Barath raring to go

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO batsman Adrian Barath is eagerly looking forward to the West Indies Cricket Board’s Caribbean Twenty20 tournament. The 20-year-old right-handed opener – who late last year became the youngest West Indian to make a Test match century– made a return to the game last week for Trinidad and Tobago against Combined Campuses and Colleges at the 3Ws Oval in a warm-up to the Caribbean Twenty20. He has recovered from a right knee injury which kept him out of the game since April.“I have not played any ‘real’ cricket since the Indian Premier League (IPL), so it was good to get back in the action,” Barath said. “I got a half-century in the first match so that was very good. I am feeling strong again and I’m really looking forward to the Caribbean T20.“It was good to get some batting under my belt and it was good to get acclimatised to the conditions in Barbados. I’m feeling really confident with my form going into the tournament.”Trinidad and Tobago will play in Zone A alongside Canada, Jamaica and Leeward Islands. Their opening match is against the Canadians tomorrow at 4 p.m. at Kensington Oval. Barath, who has played in the IPL for King’s XI Punjab, said the mood in the Trini camp was upbeat. He said that they had full respect for the other seven teams and wouldn’t be taking anything for granted. There is a huge incentive to win the Caribbean Twenty20, with the leading team going on to represent the region at the Airtel Champions League in South Africa in September. Trinidad and Tobago went to the inaugural Champions League in India last year and placed second to New South Wales Blues of Australia. “Our main objective is to win the Caribbean T20 and after that look towards the Champions League. “We don’t want to get ahead of ourselves and focus on the Champions League and lose track of what we have to do in the home tournament,” Barath said.“The Caribbean T20 won’t be a walk in the park. We are playing against some very good teams with some very talented players. “Everyone will be playing hard and everyone wants to win. That will make it a very interesting tournament and we know it will be very competitive. “We went to the Champions League last year and we want to go back. It is a milestone for any team to go to the Champions League. “We had a tremendous time last year. It was a great experience playing in front of those huge crowds and it was special the way we performed as a team. It is something every cricketer would love to experience.”