Let cricketers run cricket – Basil Butcher

Former West Indies middle order batsman Basil Boucher is calling on Government to leave the administration of cricket in the hands of those who have on field experience.
The 80-year-old Butcher made the comment in the presence President Donald Ramotar. “Mr President we want the cricket to run right. Let cricketers run the cricket and let the other people go to where they want to go to,” he said.
Boucher who played 44 tests and scored 3,104 runs was at the time a guest of honour as the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) honoured several past and present test players and cricket administrators.
“I hope that President Ramotar will look at the situation in Guyana with our cricket.
“If our cricket is going good the Government is going good and if the Government is going good our cricket is going well,” he said.
President Ramotar said that his Government will continue to support the development of cricket and alluded to the large sums which are being spent on developing community grounds countrywide.
The President, himself an ardent cricket fan, stressed the need for corporate Guyana to support cricket. He noted that cricket is part of the nation’s life.
Re-emphasizing the importance of cricket to Guyanese, Agriculture Minister Dr Leslie Ramsammy noted that cricket to Guyana is as rice or sugar.
Culture Youth and Sport Minister Dr Frank Anthony called on current players to develop a passion for the game as did players of the past.
“Take a page out of the page out of the past when people played because of the passion of cricket and not because of money,” he urged.
The administration of cricket in Guyana has been making headlines since 2013.
The lack of a Bill that adequately deals with the administration of the game is the key issue.
President Ramotar in June said he is ready to sign the recently passed Cricket Administration Bill into law.
“I am going to sign the Bill as soon as it comes on my desk.
“If there is any kind of joint agreement by anyone in the place they can do an amendment if they want but we are going to sign the bill into law.
“We are going to move ahead with our legislation,” he had told the media.
However, the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) has expressed serious reservations that the Bill, which was passed in the National Assembly in May, would thrust the administration of cricket in Guyana from an independent body to the Government of Guyana. The WICB had viewed as undesirable and inconsistent with International Cricket Council (ICC) tenets.
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