West Indies benefit match for Dominica

West Indies Twenty20 captain Darren Sammy says he is very much looking forward to playing in an upcoming charity cricket match for Dominica.
Sammy says he is is very interested in being part of the celebrity T20 being organised by the University of the West Indies (UWI), in partnership with the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB).
Slated for September 26 at Kensington Oval in Barbados, the event is intended to raise funds for the Commonwealth of Dominica, which was left reeling from the devastation caused by the passage of Tropical Storm Erika on August 27.
Already signed on for the fixture, which will pit a WICB President’s Celebrity XI against a UWI Vice-Chancellor’s Celebrity XI, are legendary West Indies and Trinidad and Tobago cricketer Brian Lara, Trinidad and Tobago footballer Dwight Yorke and Jamaican Olympian Yohan Blake.
“Obviously, as former captain of the Windward Islands, I have close ties with a number of cricketers, administrators and fans from Dominica,” said Sammy. “What has happened to that country, an island I know so well, a country I love – the worst disaster in recent history in the Caribbean, over thirty people dead, still more missing, and hundreds of Dominicans having to evacuate their homes… it’s heartbreaking, and it is a call to all of us in this region to work more closely with one other. I have always dedicated my career to the people of the Caribbean, and it would be my privilege to be able to give back with my participation in this upcoming game. God willing, the game will be a great success.”
The 31-year-old Saint Lucian has led the regional side in 39 T20 internationals since 2011, winning 21. Not coincidentally, he has scored at an average of 28 runs per innings, taken eight wickets and held 15 catches in West Indies wins during his tenure. One of Darren’s career highlights was leading the West Indies to the 2012 World T20 title, the first global trophy lifted by the West Indies in over 30 years at that point.
Man Of The Match in the 2008 Stanford Super Series, the man from Dugard has been plying his trade in cricket leagues worldwide over the past year, turning out for the Saint Lucia Zouks in the Caribbean Premier League; Nottinghamshire Outlaws in England’s NatWest T20 Blast; Royal Challengers Bangalore in the Indian Premier League; Hobart Hurricanes in Australia’s Big Bash League; and Titans in South Africa’s Ram Slam.
- stlucianewsonline.com