“I have no apologies to make for investments in cricket” – Sport Minister Ramson Jr

The Ministry of Culture, Youth, and Sport has recently been under harsh criticism on social media for investing more heavily in cricket and its facilities than in other sporting disciplines.
Construction of international stadiums at Palmyra and Anna Regina and renovation of the Mackenzie Sports Club would enable the three venues to hold international cricket matches. That would be ample demonstration of the substantial investments being made. It has also been announced that Region 3 would see the construction of another top-notch facility.
Speaking at the launch of the National T20 League on Thursday, Sport Minister Charles Ramson Jr replied to criticisms by expounding that cricket is Guyana’s most successful sport, and it has given youths from rural areas several opportunities to excel.
The Minister said, “And I have no apologies to make for the commitment that I’ve made towards cricket, because it’s our number one sport. It is our most successful sport; it is the sport that has shown everyone around the world that we can be number one; and it has given (opportunity to) young people from many different circumstances and areas, regardless of how far those areas are located: it can be an island in the Essequibo River; it can be a young Essequibo River; it can be a little bit of Baracara, that takes two hours to get (there) if you’re lucky. And those young people ended up becoming world-class players,” he explained.
“Sometimes arguments can always be presented throughout the country to persuade in any direction; which may not necessarily take you into the most beneficial direction,” he disclosed.

The Minister went on to detail the importance of the stadiums giving players year-round opportunities to develop their skills, due to the challenges with the rainy season and its challenges.
“So, we’re currently holding three. It’s five stadiums in total, but three of those can play international cricket. In this country, as you know, we’ve always had those challenges where, during the rainy season, we don’t get an opportunity to play because it’s just mud,” he explained.
“It’s just too much mud! You lose two months. Now, you lose two months, but what do those two months mean in terms of competing against other people? It means that you are losing anywhere between three, maybe more, hours a day for those two to three months, while the persons whom you’re competing against are getting those hours every single day,” he reasoned.
“And you multiply that across every single player as well as every single year for a short career period.
Remember, if you don’t make it by about 25, then the chances of you making it (are) very, very slim, unless you’re like a Ricky Jacobs or the fast bowler from Australia, Mitchell, who was one of the older stars at that moment. So, unless you make it by that age, the chances of you making it thereafter (are) very, very slim,” he explained.
“Having said that, once you are on the move, that time that you accumulate, it compounds. The effect of it compounds, because you’re building on what you did the day before. Meanwhile, what happens to your skill during the period when you’re not playing? It refines, meaning it declines. Some of the things that you were capable of doing very easily if you were doing it the day before you miss a few months, you go back and do it (and) it’s not a shot,” Ramson disclosed.
“That’s why people lose timing. They might have to learn to play particular shots again, or get certain ball movements again. The inconsistency is where we lose our competitive edge. The inconsistency. That’s why we made those investments,” he explained.
“So now (because of the stadiums), you’re going to have three or four areas that you can play 365 days a year 12 months out of the year,” Ramson Jr related.
The recent investment in cricket was the National T20 League which is under the patronage of President Irfaan Ali. It is organized by the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB), and is set to bowl off today. (Omar McKenzie)