Cricket West Indies has appointed experienced coach Monty Desai to the post of West Indies Men’s Batting Coach.
Desai, who has agreed to e two-year contract who has worked with several teams at the franchise level as well as with several international teams. He joins the West Indies ahead of the start of the T20 International Series against India, which bowls off on Friday, December 6 at the Rajiv Gandhi Stadium in Hyderabad.
“I have worked with Monty before and he is an excellent coach,” said West Indies Head Coach Phil Simmons.
“He has proven he has the ability to get players to improve on their talent and also to perform better in matches. He has a vast knowledge of the game and it is good he is starting here with us in India. I look forward to seeing him work with our batsmen in all formats as we look to get better in all areas.”
Desai said he is eager to get started with the West Indies.
“I am very excited to join a team with such a rich history in the world cricket arena, one that I myself grew up admiring,” he said.
“I am very much looking forward to being part of a journey where I can help to create a winning work environment, learn and embrace a new culture, and build a ‘happy dressing room’ tradition alongside other excellent leaders. I am eager to join forces with Head Coach Phil Simmons and Director of Cricket Jimmy Adams and our captains, such that I may contribute in every possible way to the success of our team.”
Desai has worked with Canada, as their Head Coach at the ICC World Cricket League Division 2 and Afghanistan as their Batting Coach at the ICC Cricket World Cup qualification tournament in 2018. More recently, he also worked as Batting Coach for the United Arab Emirates at the ICC T20 World Cup qualification event.
The Team Management Unit in India will also include Roddy Estwick as the bowling coach and Rayon Griffith as fielding coach. Experienced strength and conditioning coach Ronald Rogers, has rejoined the team’s medical staff, which also includes physio Denis Byam and massage therapist Zephyrinus Nicholas.
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England make good on fightback, erase West Indies lead
Still with eight wickets in hand, England have fought their way back into the first Test at the Ageas Bowl after openers Rory Burns, 42, and Dom Sibley, 50, slowly chipped away at the West Indies' 114-run lead, removing altogether just after lunch.
Burns was the only dismissal in the morning session on Saturday, caught by John Campbell at backward point off Roston Chase for a 104-ball 42.
Sibley got to his 50 off 164 deliveries but lost out to Shannon Gabriel soon after.
Joe Denly, 20, and Zack Crawley, 7, are the men at the crease with England 125-2.
England had resumed its second innings on 15-0 at the empty Rose Bowl in reply to West Indies' first-innings total of 318. Progress was slow in the morning with at one point only three runs off nine overs, and 64 runs from 30 overs overall in the session.
England scored 204 in its first innings of the rain-affected test.
Entire CPL confirmed for T&T venues
The Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) and the government of Trinidad & Tobago have come to an agreement for the whole of the 2020 season to be played in that country. The tournament will run from Tuesday 18 August to Thursday 10 September.
The CPL will have a full season and will feature overseas and Caribbean players with the standard higher than it has ever been with the likes of Rashid Khan, Chris Lynn, Carlos Brathwaite, Dwayne Bravo, Alex Hales and Kieron Pollard all set to take part.
Last year’s CPL had a combined broadcast and digital viewership of 312 million and with the tournament being the first franchise T20 event to take place in several months there will be more interest than ever.
The CPL have worked with the Trinidad & Tobago Ministry of Health and the CPL’s own board of medical advisors to create protocols which minimize risk of transmission of the COVID-19 virus to the population of Trinidad and in amongst those who will be travelling to Trinidad & Tobago from overseas.
All teams and officials will be housed in one hotel and everyone will be subject to strict quarantine protocols for the first two weeks they are in the country. Everyone travelling from overseas will be tested for COVID-19, before departure and then again on arrival in Trinidad.
Teams and officials will be put into “households” where social distancing will need to be in place. There will be smaller clusters within each household where these measures can be relaxed. However, if any member of this cluster display signs of COVID-19 at any time during the tournament all members of that cluster will be expected to self-isolate for a period of 14 days from the time that a member of that cohort first shows symptoms.
All members of the CPL party will be subject to regular temperature checks and will be re-tested for the virus throughout their stay in Trinidad and again before departure.
Pete Russell, COO of Hero CPL, said: "We would like to express our gratitude and thanks to The Hon. Dr. Keith Rowley, Prime Minister of Trinidad & Tobago, The Hon. Shamfa Cudjoe, Minister for Sport and Youth Affairs, The Hon. Terrence Deyalsingh, Minister for Health, Dr. Roshan Parasram, Chief Medical Officer for Trinidad & Tobago, Douglas Camacho, Chairman of Sport TT and their respective ministries and organisations for their support and guidance in making this all possible.
“We are really excited to bring high-class cricket to the Caribbean and to the rest of the world. The standard of players involved in this year’s tournament will be higher than ever and we can’t wait to get the tournament under way.”
Michael Holding’s look at institutional racism important to Caribbean views on class
Fast-bowling legend-turned-legendary commentator, Michael Holding, effortlessly threw case studies here and there while backing up his views on the issue of racism.
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