Hoops is back as Coach

Jun 13, 2015 Sports

Confident ‘Warriors’ can jump final hurdle this year

By Sean Devers
The Guyana Amazon Warriors have been the most consistent team in the two-year history of the Caribbean

Carl Hooper

Premier League (CPL) t20 cricket tournament but they twice had to settle for being the bridesmaid but never the bride.
Newly appointed ‘Warriors’ Head Coach Carl Hooper, the former Guyana and West Indies Captain, intends to change that this year.
The 48-year-old Hooper played 102 Tests and scored 13 tons including his only ‘double’ but for all his elegance and talent, averaged a modest 36.46 while taking 114 wickets which included four five-wicket hauls.
But now back in Guyana for the first time (barring a one day visit in 2011) since scoring an unbeaten 130 against Jamaica in April 2003 in Carib Beer Cup semi-final at Albion, a game in which discarded West Indies batsman Shiv Chanderpaul made 109 and added 137 for the fifth wicket with Hooper.
The 40-year-old Chanderpaul, who has played the most Tests by a West Indian (164) and has the second most runs (11,867) behind Brain Lara and second most centuries (30) behind Lara, has never played in a CLP game but Hooper has selected him in the Amazon Warriors 15-man squad despite his International t20 average of 20.7 from 22 games.
According to Hooper, Shiv was selected because of his dedication, professionalism, experience and commitment to batting.
“At 40, Shiv is fitter than many younger players and I believe he still has a few more

Carl Hooper began his work at the Stadium yesterday.

years left in him. He just came back from the United States where he scored a century in a t20 match. Shiv just loves to bat and I hope his attitude to cricket rubs off on the youngsters. He faces a bowling machine for two hours although he is so successful and I know he want to prove a point and will be an asset for us,” Hooper said. Hooper played 45 First-Class matches for Guyana and scored 3,372 runs with a highest score 222, an Average 58.13 with 13 hundreds and 12 fifties.
He played 85 First-Class matches for Kent in the English County cricket and Averages 50.48, while playing 27 matches at the same level for Lancashire with an Average of 53.11. Hooper is no stranger to t20 cricket as he played in t20 tournaments in England since 2003, three years before that format was introduced to the West Indies by Allen Sanford.
Hooper said it was always his dream to Coach Guyana. “I applied to the CPL the first year but could not get a slot. I applied again last year and got the job as Coach for the Antigua Hawksbills. When Dr Ramroop asked me to be Head Coach of the Guyana Franchise this year I jumped at the idea,” the classy right-hander informed.
“It is nice to be home again. Last night (Wednesday) I went to dinner with Lennox Cush (former Guyana and USA cricketer) and visited some friends whom I grew up with in Duncan Street. We spent over three hours talking on their bridge,” said Hooper who lives in Adelaide, Australia with his Australian wife Connie and their daughter and son.
Hooper feels the ‘Warriors’ who face Barbados Tridents in the opening game in Barbados on June 20, has got a great chance of winning its first CLP title after losing to Jamaica (2013) and Barbados, in controversial fashion last year.
“When we picked the initial squad the dates for the Sri Lanka, Pakistan ODI series had not been announced as yet which means the Sri Lankans in our squad will only be available for the first four matches but we have adequate cover for them. In addition, our other International overseas pick, Brad Hogg is one of the most experienced t20 players and I might use him high in the order so I don’t see why we can’t win,” the GCC batsman stated
Tillakaratne Dilshan, Thisara Perera and Lasith Malinga, a big crowd favorite in Guyana, will join the team in Barbados on June 18 and will miss the Guyana leg of the CPL. They will play the game in Barbados, one in St Lucia and two in St Kitts.
The 44-year-old Hogg also bowls left-arm spin and along with Chanderpaul are the oldest players in the ‘Warriors’ set up which shows Hooper’s faith in tried and tested players.
Hooper, who scored the first of his 69 First-Class hundreds in Barbados as an 18-year-old, explained that Pakistani Umar Akmal and South Africans David Wiese and Marchant de Lange are the replacement players.
“My biggest challenge is to make sure that when the replacement players arrive they are ready to go, especially on the Guyana decks which should be slow and low and where we have four matches in six days,” Hooper pointed out.
Asked if he would be interested in being involved with the West Indies team, the charismatic right-hander, who also bowled off-spin said that was not in his thoughts.
“No not really. I don’t want to be traveling around so much anymore but I would love to come back and get involved with School’s cricket in Guyana as a Coach. I would love to come home and live here some day but that depends on the family who will meet me in St Kitts. It will take some getting used to for Connie and the Kids to move from Australia which has first World facilities, to here. I grew up here and I can make the readjustment,” Hooper revealed.
Hooper, who led the West Indies in his 22 last Tests and averaged above 40 as Captain, feels there is no shortage of talent in the West Indies.
Hooper was appointed as batting coach of the Sagicor High Performance Centre and while there he said he saw many talented young cricketers.
“When I was at the HPC for three months I saw a lot of talent there. Shane Dowrich, Jason Holder and Rajendra Chandrika were all there and are now all in the West Indies team so I think talent is not the problem. The main problem is the quality of the decks (pitches) in the West Indies and how things are done here in terms of harnessing that talent,” Hooper opined.
Hooper informed that the Sri Lankans and the three players in the West Indies team (Denesh Ramdin, Devendra Bishoo & Veerasammy Permaul) will join the team in Barbados on June 18, two days before the first match, while Hogg, Lendl Simmons and Sunil Narine are expected here on Sunday.
The Amazon Warriors will conclude their preparation in Guyana with a night game on Monday from 18:00hrs and a Day/Night game on Tuesday from 16:00hrs. Both games are set for Providence. The team, which is managed by Trinidadian Omar Khan, will depart Guyana on June 17.
Guyana Amazon Warriors Team Squad:
Denesh Ramdin, Veerasammy Permaul, Sunil Narine, Christopher Barnwell, Lendl Simmons, Tillakaratne Dilshan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Lasith Malinga,Thisara Perera, Brad Hodge, Devendra Bishoo, Ronsford Beaton, Trevon Griffith, Assad Fudadin, Paul Wintz.
Support Staff: Carl Hooper (Head Coach), Curtly Ambrose (Asst Coach-Antigua), Omar Khan (Manager-T&T), Jason Pilgrim (Physio-T&T), Clinton Jerimiah (Trainer-T&T)