A Regional Masters Cricket Tournament

Tue, Oct 18. 2011

Editor: Congratulations are in order to Mr. Selwyn Allen and the other members of the Organising Committee of the SVG Masters Cricket Tournament for their collective effort in bringing another tournament on stream for the sixth year.{{more}}

The tournament is an ideal platform on which cricketers of yesterday and present competitive cricketers participating in the National Cricket Association’s Cricket Competitions can forge renewed friendship, share common knowledge on the game and establish social friendship for life.

It is noticeable, though, that while a Masters over 40 game is in progress at any scheduled venue, groups of youngsters, predominantly males, would flock around to take in the live action, particularly at the Grammar School Playing Field. These youngsters at the latter playing field would look on with grudging admiration at their adult counterparts displaying their mature, positive interpersonal skills. One can only hope that these skills will be transferred to and emulated by these youngsters.

And because the Masters Cricket tournament was, and still is, essentially designed for those cricketers who are no longer vying for selection on the National Cricket Team, and for those who are just playing the game recreationally, it has generated tremendous interest as spectators take time out to have a glimpse of past cricket icons.

Perhaps the time is right to extend our geographical boundaries by establishing links with our regional Cricket counterparts, especially those of prominence who have contributed greatly to Cricket development in their respective island state. Naturally, the best way of making this a reality is by the Organising Committee of the SVG Masters Cricket Tournament to host a regional inaugural Masters over 40 Cricket Tournament in the near future. A tournament of this nature will be an opportunity to re-unite cricketers of past regional unity through sports, cricket in this instance. Cricketers will be given a nice opportunity to regale listeners with tales of memorable moments of the game.

From an economic standpoint, an inaugural regional Masters Cricket Tournament, hosted by SVG, will add to the revenue coffers of our economy. In this way, sports tourism will be enhanced. I propose that the SVG Masters Organising Committee and the SVG Cricket Association work jointly on this initiative. With a regional Masters Cricket tournament initiated by SVG, we will of course be catapulted into annals of regional Cricket history.

Patmos Richards