Hunte wants fan support for West Indies
Published:Tuesday | April 27, 2010 | 9:27 AM
West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) chief Julian Hunte is urging regional fans to throw their support behind the home squad for the upcoming World 20/20 Championship.
In a statement yesterday, Hunte said the home team’s success in any international tournament was important, and encouraged fans to embrace the Windies as they campaigned in the April 30 to May 16 event.
West Indies will be headliners for the tournament-opening doubleheader when they clash with minnows Ireland in Group ‘D’ in Guyana on Friday.
In the preceding fixture, New Zealand and Sri Lanka clash at the same venue in the curtain-raiser.
The bulk of the teams arrived in the Caribbean at the weekend, averting a travel crisis following the closure of British airports and some throughout Europe because of ash from the Icelandic volcano.
Hunte says he is expecting the tournament to live to expectations.
The women’s side of the tournament, comprising four teams in Group A and B, will be played in St Kitts during the preliminary stages before moving to St Lucia for the semi-finals.
Pakistan are the defending men’s champions while England are the women’s title holders.