Five teams: namely, eventual Champions Rangpur Riders, Guyana Amazon Warriors, Lahore Qalandars, Cricket Victoria and Hampshire Hawks, converged on the Guyana National Stadium one week ago for an inspired T20 tournament that would bring the world together.
With the inaugural edition now in the rearview mirror, the ExxonMobil Guyana Global Super League (GSL) T20 can be considered a resounding success that culminated in Bangladesh’s Rangpur Riders coming from behind to clinch the inaugural trophy in a nail-biting final; a script that embodies the shorter format of the game.
Guyana Amazon Warriors Captain, Imran Tahir
When asked about their thoughts on the Guyanese tournament, Championship winning Captain and Coach Nurul Hasan and Mickey Arthur both shared glowing reviews of the GSL T20.
The championship-winning captain Nurul Hasan shared, “It’s a great tournament, and I really want to thank the Guyanese people. They’re very friendly. I was here in 2022, so I love this place, and I think it’s a great tournament and the management was really good. They worked hard for this tournament. I played a lot of international matches as well, and no difference with that. So, I think it’s a great tournament.”
Including a bit of his own vision for the future of the event, Rangpur Riders Head Coach Mickey Arthur related, “It’s been fantastic! I think it’s been a great tournament. I see it going from strength to strength. I know every one of the teams here, the players have had wonderful experiences; so, I just see it going bigger and bigger. It’s been fantastic!”
Rangpur Riders Coach, Mickey Arthur
Closer to home, Amazon Warriors captain Imran Tahir thanked stakeholders for their vision in putting Guyana on the world map with its own league.
“It’s been a great competition! I’m pretty sure Guyana is going to be on the map of the world playing their own league, and I’m sure everyone here – we’ve been talking to the teams – they’re really, really enjoying the hospitality from Guyanese people and all the people who have been putting this effort together: Dr. Ramroop and Mr. Irfaan Ali, President of the country. So, it’s a great effort, and I have no doubt that this competition is going to go very far,” Tahir detailed.
Meanwhile, Lahore Qalandars Owner and Chief Operating Officer (COO), Sameen Rana, described Guyana’s objective of promoting the country through cricket as ‘brilliant’. He opined, “I think the objective of this league is a little bit different. I believe number 1 is the promotion of Guyana, which is the right objective. Through sports, His Excellency is promoting Guyana across the world stage. I think it’s an excellent move, it’s brilliant.
Rangpur Riders Captain, Nurul Hasan
“You see, people from Australia, England, Pakistan; people from Bangladesh, they all are watching this tournament (and) they all are learning about Guyana. In the broadcast, you see they’re showing those amazing waterfalls and the culture. Through us, they are actually (promoting) Guyana’s hospitality,” he detailed.
“So, it’s a wonderful concept to promote Guyana as a destination of choice and for the people to get interested in this place.”
Referencing the recent interest in Pakistani player Salman Mirza after his heroics in the tournament, Rana opined that the tournament has rightly given up-and-coming talents an opportunity to showcase their skills.
Divulging the interest in Mirza that arose out of his wicket maiden over against Cricket Victoria, Rana explained, “Look at the teams. Majority of them have young talents, upcoming talents, which is exciting. With all due respect to the League, which is like a different level, where you have all the superstars playing, sometimes you have so many leagues happening it becomes repetitive, the excitement goes down. For example, if you see one superstar playing in PSL, then CPL, then in Big Bash league, BPL, ILT, South Africa, then in IPL; how many times you gotta see the same guy in different uniforms? So, I think the cricket is becoming too much and the superstar element is going, but it’s getting too much.
“With this league, the good thing is you will not only see the superstars, you see the upcoming raw young talent. You see what a great opportunity this tournament has provided for any youngster to come, showcase their skill, and live their dream. This is what Qalandars is all about; so, it’s a perfect match of our vision and this tournament,” the Lahore Qalandars owner added.
The five teams in the ExxonMobil Global Super League (GSL) T20 competed from November 26 to December 6 for a US$1M prize pool.
