Scotiabank Guyana and the Guyana Cricket Board today joined forces to launch the Scotiabank West Indian Jubilee in Guyana.
The Scotiabank West Indian Jubilee is a five-month celebration of the 75th anniversary of Test Cricket in the Caribbean, involving events throughout the region and will culminate in the announcement of the West Indies’ Five Jubilee Cricketers at a live television gala show on 27th July in the spectacular Birmingham Symphony Hall during the West Indies tour of England.
These five West Indian cricketers will be elected by a jury of thirty international players, journalists, broadcasters and analysts selected by Wisden. They will be asked to “set aside any bias towards your own country and your own era and name the five whose excellence at cricket during the past 75 years made the greatest contribution to the game. Excellence can be interpreted broadly: it is legitimate to take into account leadership qualities, personality, character and impact on the public.” The Wisden Jury will make their selection from a shortlist of players elected by the people of the Caribbean. Voting takes place through Scotiabank branches, and through National newspapers (In Guyana’s case Stabroek News) and thanks to the support of Cable and Wireless, fans in Jamaica, Barbados, Trinidad and the ‘Combined Islands’ will have the chance to vote for their country’s representatives by telephone - the first promotion of its kind in the West Indies.
The names of those elected to go through to the final Jubilee shortlist will be announced at live events in Barbados (30th March), Guyana, at Thirst Park (17th April; See Terry Holder’s message), Trinidad (23rd April) and finally in Jamaica (May 8th).
The 75 players short-listed for the national voting will be published in the Stabroek News and other newspapers throughout the Caribbean.
The Wisden jury will also select the greatest batting, bowling and one-day international performance in the history of West Indian cricket. These awards will also be announced at the Scotiabank Jubilee Gala in Birmingham. The festivities will include the production of more than 15 hours of television programming and the publication of two commemorative books.
In addition to Scotiabank’s sponsorship the celebrations are being supported by Cable and Wireless, Shell, Busta, Liat, The Pegasus and Air Jamaica.
According to Scotiabank’s Bill Clarke, “The Scotiabank West Indian Jubilee marks an important anniversary in our game: it is seventy five years since the first MCC Test team arrived on our shores in 1929 and I cannot think of a better way to honour our cricketers than through a public celebration of their achievements.” And Sir Garfield Sobers, who attended the inagural launch in Jamaica said: “We know that a love of cricket is what unites the people in the Caribbean and so it is important for us all to remember and appreciate the contribution to our culture and national pride the achievements of our cricketers have made over the past seventy five years. I am greatly looking forward to the Scotiabank West Indian Jubilee celebrations.”
And, according to the Guyana Cricket Board:” Wisden is the world’s most respected cricket authority and I am sure their selection will generate huge interest and debate amongst West Indian fans around the world. It will be a very tight vote - I think any one of twenty cricketers could be in the final five. When it’s about more than just statistics, how do you choose between cricketing greats like Constantine, Headley, Greendige, Hall, Walsh, Lara, Valentine, Worrell, Holding, Sobers, Lloyd, Richards, Weekes, Ramadhin, Rowe, Marshall ...I don’t envy them their job!’