By KERN RAMLOCHAN Saturday, August 7 2010

PRESIDENT of the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) Azim Bassarath believes the national cricketers have missed out on an important opportunity to further enhance their reputation by failing to qualify for the Airtel Champions League Twenty20 tournament in South Africa.

Trinidad and Tobago were knocked out from the Caribbean Twenty20 by four runs to eventual champions Guyana. The national team eventually finished third after beating Jamaica by ten wickets in a rain affected match.

“The players missed out on the opportunity of playing on the biggest stage. They would have played in front a world audience. Hopefully they can rectify this and win the next tournament so they qualify for the Airtel Champions League,” said Bassarath yesterday.

He added that the players also missed out on the financial riches and opportunities to showcase their talent to prospective clubs.

“The players lost some financial gain by not qualifying. I think the income made at the tournament would have put them in a good position for life after cricket,” said Bassarath.

Trinidad and Tobago were runners-up at the inaugural Airtel Champions League tournament with Kieron Pollard being signed by the Mumbai Indian and Adrian Barath drafted by the King’s XI Punjab in the Indian Premier League.

The TTCB president revealed that he has arranged to meet the management of the national team to discuss what transpired at the Caribbean Twenty20 tournament and plan for forthcoming regional tournaments.

“I am hoping to meet with the technical staff and the committee responsible for the preparation of the team in due course. I want to ensure that the necessary programmes are put in place so that we can work from there to ensure the success of the team. We have the 50-over tournament in October which we need to defend and it is vital that we retain our title,” stated Bassarath.

The top cricket administrator felt that the loss against Guyana was just an off-day for the national team and it did not reflect the ability of the team.

“We just had a bad match against Guyana because if you watch the third place match against Jamaica you would not have thought that was the same team that lost to Guyana.

“The team came out with guns blazing and followed the loss with a commanding win. I don’t think anybody could believe we lost to Guyana but credit must go to the players for bouncing back.”