The prolific Leinster man has been drafted into the Trinidad and Tobago franchise and will play alongside test stars Dwayne and Darren Bravo, Ross Taylor, Sulimann Benn and Fidel Edwards in the Twenty20 spectacular.
O’Brien has a big following in the Caribbean on the back of his exploits for Ireland and of course, everyone recalls his amazing innings against England when he scored the fastest century in World Cup history off only 50 balls. He will be an immediate hit with Trinidad and Tobago fans as he plays with West Indian flair and the flamboyant Trinis will appreciate his aggressive approach.
Six franchises will be involved and it remains to be seen if the local supporters in Barbados, Antigua, Guyana, St Lucia, Jamaica and Trinidad and Tobago support them with the same passion as their home team. This is a unique region where the West Indies is really a combination of a number of sovereign nations and the only thing that formally binds them together is cricket. Franchise cricket is very different from national cricket and for Barbadians it will seem strange to have Trinidadian Kieron Pollard as captain and the locally-based team facing Barbadian players Kemar Roach, Fidel Edwards, Tino Best, Sulimann Benn and promising pace bowler Miquel Cummins in the opposition.
The big names who will be participating include former Australian skipper Ricky Ponting and his dynamic countryman Shaun Marsh, South Africans Herschelle Gibbs, Jacques Rudolf and Albie Morkel, New Zealanders Martin Guptill, and James Franklin Pakistanis Shoaib Malik, Mohammed Haafez and Umar Akmal, and the attacking Bangladesh opener Tamin Iqbal. Virtually all the top West Indies players will be involved and each host franchise will have a guaranteed number of local players in the squad, similar to IPL.
The organizers have also involved a number of West Indian legends in their administration with Desmond Haynes, Gordon Greenidge, Sir Vivian Richards, Curtley Ambrose, Andy Roberts and Roger Harpur in coaching or managerial roles.
Woodvale fans will recall with some interest big Roger playing at the Ballygomartin Road as a raw young teenager in the early Eighties before he went on to test glory and a glowing reputation as one the best fielders in the world.
Ireland fans will feel a little disappointed with only one player included in the competition, but the county fixtures have ruled out our other main contenders Paul Sterling and Niall O’Brien.
August is traditionally a quiet time in the Caribbean and that means there will be attractive offers for would-be travellers. The tourism industry is wilting in the face of economic meltdown and that means there are plenty of incentives from airlines and hotels. The Barbados Tourism Authority is also offering dinner and attraction vouchers up to US$600 for visitors to the island. What an incentive to cheer on big Kevin when he travels with the Trinidad and Tobago team to the Kensington Oval!
Don’t wait for August rain-book early and treat yourself to an end of season jolly in the Caribbean!
The CPL has an excellent website which will provide a lot more information at
Clarence Hiles
Editor
