Two of the Caribbean’s brightest prospects, Guyana’s Ashmead Nedd and Kevlon Anderson, have departed Guyana’s shores during the past week to begin their final preparations for the 2020 ICC Under-19 Cricket World Cup.
Ashmead Nedd
The 50-over tournament will be played in South Africa from January 17 to February 9 in a round-robin and knockout format. Sixteen teams across the globe will battle for supremacy, and a total of 48 matches will be played.
West Indies are in Group B, which include teams such as Australia, England, and Nigeria. The Caribbean team will open their campaign on January 18 against Australia, and this would be followed by the clash against England on January 20. On January 23, West Indies will play their final group game, against Nigeria.
Nedd and Sinclair are the lone Guyanese in the West Indies team. They are both Berbicians, hailing from Region 6, East Berbice-Corentyne.
This tournament was won by the West Indies in 2016 under the leadership of Guyanese Shimron Hetmyer, himself also a Berbician.
Kevlon Anderson
Hailing from the Rose Hall Town Youth and Sports Club, Anderson is a complete cricketer, and is seen as the rock of the middle order, having in the past displayed level-headedness and maturity in batting. Fresh from a stint with the West Indies team that played the Under-19 Tri-Nation Series against Sri Lanka and England, Anderson scored only 97 runs, but he gathered a wealth of experience ahead of the World Cup. He has been dominating local and Regional Under-19 cricket, but a different challenge awaits him in South Africa.
The gifted left-arm spinner Ashmead Nedd has impressed over the years, and has featured in the 2018 ICC U-19 World Cup. Having great experience from playing in the last tournament, he will be aiming to dominate. Nedd played in the Regional Super50 Cup and displayed his skill with the ball. He played a significant role in the West Indies Emerging Players win of the tournament, bagging 11 wickets at a brilliant economy rate of 3.27 at an average of 10.27. His best bowling figures were 4-29 in the semis of the Super50.
West Indies have displayed ordinary performances against Sri Lanka and England in the Super50 Cup, and will now have to bounce back and perform at their best in the ICC U-19 World Cup.
