WITH?JUST?OVER?two months to go before the Caribbean Premier League (CPL)?begins, the remaining players who will be drafted by the six franchises were finally revealed this week.
At a Press conference at Hilton Barbados Thursday, attended by several players from the West Indies cricket team, along with former South Africa top order batsman Herschelle Gibbs, one of the international franchise players, CPL operations manager, Carlisle Powell disclosed the names of the 14 Pool “A” West Indies players as well as the 12 Pool “A” International players.
In addition, he also named the 127 Pool “B” West Indies players, six Pool “B” International players as well as the 53 Pool “C” players who are all Under-23 cricketers.
During the draft, scheduled to be held on June 5 in Jamaica, each of the six franchises will select a 15-member squad.
Each squad will comprise one West Indian and International franchise player, four players from Pool “A”, seven from Pool “B” and two Under-23 players.
Reflecting upon the quality of players available, CPL commercial director, Jamie Stewart said he was very impressed with the calibre of both the international and regional selectees.
“We have secured a broad selection of cricket talent that we feel will appeal to cricket fans everywhere,” he noted. “The variety of players, from the experienced and well established to the rising star on the cricket scene should make the inaugural CPL an exciting tournament that showcases the best of the best.”
He explained that because of upcoming series that clashed with the CPL, players from neither Sri Lanka nor England were targeted.
Powell, who is the father of West Indian cricketer Keiran Powell, acknowledged that preparations for the competition had been going smoothly.
He said he had visited each of the franchises to ensure that everything was in place for the July 30 start.
“I have had an opportunity to tour each venue to assess what each facility has to offer and what will be needed from a CPL standpoint to meet our goals and objectives for the tournament.
“I feel confident now that all of the cricket boards are better informed and more aware of all our preparations. The foundation for a solid working relationship has been established and I know I can call on each of them to assist us with the operations and logistics in their respective countries.”
Powell said CPL was also working with the West Indies Cricket Umpires Association to secure regional umpires who would work with a group of international umpires.
He said the team names, assignment of franchise players to franchise countries and the results of the player draft would be announced soon.
West Indies Pool A:
Andre Russell, Darren Bravo, Denesh Ramdin, Dwayne Smith, Fidel Edwards, Johnson Charles, Kemar Roach, Kieran Powell, Lendl Simmons, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Ravi Rampaul, Samuel Badree, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Tino Best
International Pool A: Aaron Finch (Australia), Albie Morkel (South Africa), Daniel Vettori (New Zealand), Dirk Nannes (Australia), Luke Pomersbach (Australia), Shakib al Hasan (Bangladesh), Shaun Marsh (Australia), Shoaib Malik (Pakistan), Steven Smith (Australia), Tamim Iqbal (Bangladesh), Umar Akmal (Pakistan), Vernon Philander (South Africa).
International Pool B: Elton Chigumbura (Zimbabwe), Davy Jacobs (South Africa), Justin Kemp (South Africa), James Franklin (New Zealand), Mark Guptill (New Zealand), Kevin O’Brien (Ireland).