Counting down to Caribbean Premiere League opening in Broward County
West Indies World T20 champion Dwayne Bravo is praising the recent move by Caribbean Premiere League (CPL) to host official games in South Florida. The Trinidadian star is set the lead last year’s defending champions, the Trinbago Knight Riders, as they compete in the Florida playoffs set for July 28 to 31 at the USA’s only ICC ODI-certified stadium, the Central Broward Regional Park in Lauderhill.
Bravo praised the move as a major step for cricket, expanding into a yet untapped sporting market.
“It’s been a while now that a lot of people have tried to get cricket associated with America,” said Bravo. “It’s good that CPL take that responsibility and take it over there.”
Bravo also expressed hope that the CPL games will also maintain the level of world-class cricket as the game makes inroads in the U.S.
“It’s all well and good to say ‘Oh, cricket is in America,’ but we need to have good facilities and the cricket needs to be good,” said Braco. “And that’s the most important thing, that (the quality of) cricket is the selling brand, and that’s the selling brand of any sport.”
Meanwhile, Bravo says the Trinbago Knight Riders “are looking forward to it. It’s a great sport and let’s see how it goes.”
All six teams will be competing in the Florida games for the final chance to earn coveted league points ahead of the play-offs and finals. Guyana Amazon Warriors and Barbados Tridents will launch the schedule of matches on July 28, in a repeat of the dramatic 2014 final in St Kitts. Bravo’s side, the Trinbago Knight Riders, will play in the second game a day later when they clash with the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots. Tickets are now on sale at the Ticket Offices at the Lauderhill Performing Arts Center, located next to the Central Broward Stadium.
Bravo, 32, is one of the world’s great all-rounders and played leading roles in both CPL and World T20 successes over the last year. In 31 career CPL matches to date, he has scored 452 runs (with a strike rate of 122.2) and has taken 47 wickets (including 28 last year) and was named the Man of the Series in last year’s competition after a string of outstanding performances. For the CPL Florida tournament, Bravo will also be joined by fellow West Indies players Chris Gayle, who will play for the Jamaica Tallawahs, and Kieron Pollard, who will be leading the Barbados tridents – a team also joined by South Florida’s own cricket star, former USA national player, Steven Taylor.
