GCB plans U-21 and U-23 competitions to bridge gap between youth and senior cricket

In a concerted effort to bridge the huge gap between youth and senior cricket, the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) has undertaken to introduce Under-21 and Under-23 competitions in 2022.

This will be realised once the Board can secure the requisite sponsorship and the weather is conducive at the times earmarked for the competitions, GCB President Bissoondyal Singh recently announced.

At a press conference, the GCB head was quizzed on the Board’s plans to ensure youth players transition more seamlessly to the senior level, as many cricketers find it difficult to step up after their Under-19 days are over.

“To answer your question- you noticed two competitions there- Under-21 and Under-23, and that is the focal point,” Singh stated.

“They will fit into academy programme and development programmes and so on, but this gives you a clear idea as to the end-game and how you bridge that gap.”

Guyana has consistently lost players after the Under-19 level, and one of the factors has been the absence of any structured programme/competition to engage players in those critical ensuing years.

That is something the current GCB is looking to rectify, and the initial plan is to have an Under-21 50-over competition and Under-23 Three-Day and 50-over tournaments.

Other competitions earmarked for the 2022 are:

• Female Inter-County 50-over (home and away)
• Female Senior Inter-County Two-Day
• Under-15 50-over (home and away)
• Under-17 50-over (home and away)
• Under-17 Two-Day
• Under-19 Three-Day (home and away)
• Under-19 Inter-County 50-over (home and away)
• Franchise Under-19 50-over
• National Secondary School 50-over
• National Primary School 100-over
• Senior Inter-County Four-Day
• Senior Inter-County 50-over
• National Club T20 or Franchise Cricket
• Franchise 50-over to be played before Inter-County