This water hog (left) was not enough to `drink up' the amount of water left on the Everest ground after yesterday morning's rainstorm which caused the limited-overs cricket match between Guyana and the touring English team to be washed out. (Lawrence Fanf
Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) president Chetram Singh said yesterday the scheduled one-day game between the touring England cricketers and the regional one-day champions Guyana, which was washed out at the Everest Cricket Club ground yesterday was a financial loss for the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB).
And Guyana's team manager Albert Smith said yesterday he was very disappointed that the game was washed out.
Speaking to Stabroek Sport by telephone, Smith said "me and the guys are very disappointed. We were looking forward to playing today (yesterday) and we thought we would have done well".
Smith said at least himself and the rest of Guyana would have gotten a chance to see how the locals would have performed against England, who defeated the West Indies 3-0 in the four-test Cable and Wireless series.
The fourth and final test ended in a draw in Antigua earlier this week.
Singh, like Smith, said he was very disappointed and called the washed-out game a major financial loss for the WICB.
"Today's match was a total financial loss for the West Indies Board, not a ball was bowled, it was a major loss and from a Guyana point of view, I think the Guyana players lost an opportunity to showcase their talent," Singh stated.
Singh explained that finances had to be spent on preparing the Everest ground and for the preparation of meals for both teams as well as other expenses.
Asked if yesterday's game would have been crucial to Guyana's captain Shivnarine Chanderpaul since he had been omitted from the West Indies squad for the fourth test match in Antigua last week, Smith said he would not say that it was crucial.
"Everyone knows that he (Chanderpaul) is the most dependable batsman in the West Indies team, and he would have gone into the middle and showed the public what he is capable of. He loves to bat on his home ground and I know that he would have come good. He's comfortable playing at home," Smith stated.
Singh said Chanderpaul is already in the one-day squad and as far as he is concerned, he (Chanderpaul) is a permanent fixture in the team.
"Whatever problems he and the West Indies Board had for the fourth Test has nothing to do with him making the starting XI for tomorrow's ODI. In my opinion he will start," Singh declared
Singh added that it was especially sad that the two newcomers to the Guyana team, Assad Fudadin and Trevaun Garraway, did not get an opportunity to showcase their talent.
"They could have probably been earmarked for a future West Indies team," Singh opined.
With regard to what Guyana's chances would have been against England, Smith said in terms of batting, he thought the locals would have done well and in the bowling department it would have been good to see how they would have performed.
On the possibility of play at Bourda for the first one-dayer between the West Indies and England Singh said the GCC ground was flooded yesterday from the early morning rainstorm, but the GCB and the GCC had the water pumped out at the time of speaking (5.30pm yesterday) "the ground is free of water right now but it is damp."
Singh said if there is no more heavy showers by midday today, play will definitely be on tomorrow (Sunday) but if it rains heavily, the match will be postponed to Monday
Efforts to contact the English team's Press Liaison Officer yesterday for a comment proved futile.