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Zuyana was once a staple of England’s tours to the Caribbean. From the steamer passengers in 1930, led by the venerable Freddie Calthorpe, to Mike Atherton’s jumbo jet set in 1998, in all but one visit to the region, their cricketers have landed in Georgetown on the South American mainland.
After that they pretty much stopped. There was a Super Eight encounter with Ireland in the 2007 World Cup, a couple of one-day internationals against the West Indies in 2009 and two wet group matches during the World T20 in 2010. Then another 14 years of holiday islands hitting on the wallets of beach-seeking English tourists; white sand and lapping waves preferred to the steamy fringes of the Amazon rainforest.
That long absence from one of the traditional Caribbean cricket venues comes to an end on Thursday when Jos Buttler’s side meet India in the second semi-final of the Men’s T20 World Cup. On paper, it’s also a pretty tasty comeback, pitting the defending champions against a side that has been unstoppable. Rohit Sharma and his men are said to be fueled by a sense of redemption after their heartache Over 50 World Cup last year and assuming doubts don’t creep in as they near the end of an 11-year global trophy drought, they appear to have all the bases covered in their XI.
India’s passionate global fans have known for some time that their team will be at the Providence Stadium if they make it this far. But England followers only had confirmation of the 50-50 talk between Trinidad and Guyana on Monday afternoon when India beat Australia24 hours after a place in the semi-finals was secured. Anyone who then thought about the trip – including the media and the BBC, no less than the official radio partners – soon discovered that, as had been the case for some time, there was no bed to be found in Georgetown. Expect blue to be the dominant color in the stands for this one.
While the American frontier was explored early on, this tournament is primarily a Caribbean affair where Twenty twenty enjoying lights under a pulsating soca beat. First and foremost, however, this is a television product; the first of a four-year deal that cost Star India $3 billion and accounted for 90% of the International Cricket Council’s revenue. Star wanted consistent start times for India all along – 10.30am local time to be 8pm for home viewing – and just a day after the schedule was published in January, the broadcaster is said to successfully lobbied for this to be the case during the group stages, along with 25 of the total 55 games.
But with the first semi-final in Trinidad always having to be played at night and the second scheduled for Guyana at 10.30am the following day – in itself a climb after Cricket The West Indies initially demanded that all three knockout games be played in the evening – the odds facing punters this week were something neither Star nor the ICC were prepared to take on. Playing regulation was added to ensure that India would be certain to be in Guyana regardless of whether they finished first or second in their Super Eight group. Each side nodded in agreement at that, their kitty split too attractive to make a fuss over a minor issue like sporting integrity.
So here we are (or rather not in this correspondent’s case), even though the match itself looks pretty ripe for a jungle rumble. That’s provided they get on. June is Guyana’s wettest month – averaging 359mm of rain – and the forecast looks a bit iffy. The Providence Stadium, which replaced the sub-sea Burda in 2007, is a quick-drying pitch, but in the event of a no-score – a minimum of 10 overs per side is required to make up a match in the knockout stages. compared to five during the group stages – India will advance after finishing top of their Super Eight group.
Unlike the first semi-final in Trinidad and Saturday’s (10.30am naturally) final in Barbados, there is no spare day for Guyana, but an extra 250 minutes to play the minimum overs. This disparity in two sets of playing conditions has raised eyebrows in some countries, with the quick turnaround for the final forcing the ICC’s hand here. He really should have scheduled the final for Sunday. Either way, if England go down with a washout, they can hardly complain after a wobbly campaign in contrast to India’s smooth cruise.
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It may require the perfect game to beat them on the field; suffocation like this Australia drew in Ahmedabad last November, perhaps, or even a calculated gamble to meet the indomitable Jasprit Bumrah with aggression. A quick assessment of conditions will also be necessary. India played two T20s against the West Indies in Guyana last year – won one, lost one – but none of England’s players had set foot on the ground before their only practice day.
Andrew Flintoff is the only Englishman returning to Georgetown, although the key man in the backroom staff is Kieran Pollard. He has been a vital resource for Butler and head coach Matthew Mott, sources said win against West Indies in St. Lucia was a direct result of the Trinidad War, which reduced it to the bottom. Draw up a similar plan for India – players he knows well from his time at Mumbai Indians – and the next stop will be the far more familiar climate of Barbados.
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