National trials begin for Windies U-19 squad selection

TRINIDAD and Tobago’s top Under-19 cricketers have been called up for a series of trial matches for a shot at selection on the West Indies team for the 2022 International Cricket Council (ICC) Under-19 World Cup which will be staged in the Caribbean.

A TT Cricket Board media release said the national trials get underway on Sunday when North/Tobago play South East/South at the National Cricket Centre Ground in Couva where all the matches will be contested. The matches will be 50-overs per side.

The competition also involves Central/South West and East/North East with matches being played on a round-robin basis leading to a finale on April 24 with a North against South clash.

The trials have been requested by Cricket West Indies as the best gauge to assess the quality of the youth cricketers who would have ordinarily been on show in the regional championships which unfortunately have been scuttled in 2020 and 2021 because of the ongoing covid19 pandemic.

The process to select the venues for the World Cup has already started and regional territories are preparing their bids for consideration by CWI which is expected to be one of the most competitive ever because of the prevailing circumstances.

The tournament, which was won by the West Indies in 2016 and unearthed future West Indies Test cricketers including Alzarri Joseph, Shimron Hetmyer and Chemar Holder, will involve 64 matches.

It is reported that packages for the January 9 to February 5 tournament involving the group stages leading up to the quarter-finals, and the semi-finals and grand final are on offer with the successful bidders in line to feature on the world stage through live television and related media coverage.

Under-19 National Trials

Sunday - North/Tobago vs South East/South

Tuesday - Central/South West vs East/North East

April 15 - North/Tobago vs Central/South West

April 17 - South East/South/East/North East

April 20 - North/Tobago vs East/North East

April 22 - South East/South vs Central/ South West

April 24 - Best vs Best (North vs South)