Permaul, Smartt crowned top cricketers of the year

For the second year running, West Indies left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul and Women’s all-rounder Tremayne Smartt copped the male and female cricketer-of-the-year prizes respectively when the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) held its annual awards ceremony on Friday evening at the Georgetown Cricket Club’s pavillion.

The two were were hailed for their exceptional performances at both the regional and international levels for Guyana and the West Indies. Permaul edged out fellow spinner Devendra Bishoo and batsman Vishaul Singh for the male award. Permaul also copped the award for Senior Regional Cricketer-of-the-year.

The other nominees in the female division were Akaze Thompson and Shemaine Campbelle.

Albion Sports Club was deemed the club-of-the-year, with Demerara Cricket Club and the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club being the other contenders.

Other top awardees were Vishaul Singh (Most Improved Cricketer); Shimron Hetymer (Junior Cricketer-of-the-year); and Rajendra Chandrika (in recognition of his selection to the West Indies team).

Also receiving recognition for their efforts were Mandy Mangru (Most Promising Female Youth Player; Sachin Singh (Most runs in Regional U-15); Kevin Omrao (Most wickets in Regional U-15); Kevlon Anderson (Most Valuable Player in Regional U-15); Ronaldo Ali-Mohamed (Most runs in Regional U-17); Bhaskar Yadram (Most wickets in Regional U-17); Ronaldo Ali-Mohamed (Most Valuable Player in Regional U-17); Shimron Hetmyer (Most runs in Regional U-19); Keemo Paul (Most wickets in Regional U-19 team); Balchan Baldeo (Most wickets in Regional U-19); and Shimron Hetmyer (Most Valuable Player in Regional U-19).

Corporate awards were also given to Digicel and Banks DIH Limited for their outstanding contribution to the development of cricket through sponsorship.

Special service awards went to Edward Nicholls for long and dedicated service as a cricket umpire; Sean Devers for outstanding service rendered as a Cricket Journalist; and Jerome Inderdat for outstanding service rendered as a curator.

Delivering remarks at the event, President of the GCB, Drubahdur, commended the Guyana teams for their outstanding performances over the years. He also highlighted the Guyana Jaguars team for their phenomenal run in the Professional Cricket League (PCL) Four-day competition.

The president also made a call for more of corporate Guyana to come onboard and support the game of cricket.

Minister within the Ministry of Education, Nicolette Henry, congratulated the awardees and charged them to continue their outstanding work, stating that they should proud of their achievements.

Determined to improve the standard of the game locally, the GCB has introduced a new feature of cricket in Guyana whereby junior and senior players are being paid to play in local domestic competitions.

This fact was highlighted by GCB Secretary and WICB Director, Anand Sanasie.

(Taken from Guyana Times)

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