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Tuning up for the WC

Wednesday, February 19 2003

Guyana and West Indies middle-order batsman Ramnaresh 'Ronnie Sarwan' is excited about the upcoming World Cup and wants his first taste of performing on the World's biggest cricket stage to be a memorable experience.

Sarwan has his eyes fixed firmly on the upcoming World Cup in South Africa.

Sarwan, Marlon Samuels and Chris Gayle are three 'young guns' who took centre stage during the West Indies last tour of India and Bangladesh.

Gayle blasted three centuries against India, Samuels took apart the Indians in the deciding one day final while Sarwan scored his first one-day ton in Bangladesh after several near misses in India.

According to the stylish middle-order bat, playing in the World Cup will be the realisation of one of his most cherished dreams. Being part of the World Cup, one of the biggest, most prestigious event in world sports, is like a dream come true, he declared.
And, Sarwan is hoping for another dream to come true in South Africa - that of helping the West Indies to win the World Cup and regain the place as Kings of One-Day cricket.

From a personal point of view and from that of the team it presents an ideal opportunity to cement my place in the one-day team. Of course, anyone that will be participating in the World Cup would want to make a good statement in the matches, he added. Sarwan admitted to learning quite a bit from the tours of India and Bangladesh.

What I learnt most is that you need to be patient, he revealed. And, now that he has broken the jinx and has scored centuries at both the test and one-day level bowlers might need to beware when the 22-year-old reaches the 70s and 80s.

I think I know a little better how to play when I approach the 70s and 80s, the said without divulging his secret.

Asked about the one-day game when he was left high and dry on 99 and if he felt he was batting too slowly Sarwan said: I don't think that is the problem.

He pointed out that he batted 101 balls for his 99 runs in that match. He also pointed out that he was on 94 for three to four overs. This, he said was not a criticism of his skipper Carl Hooper who was with him at the time, for he pointed out that the team's needs came first and there was a need to score quick runs at the time.

I put that down as unfortunate, he said.

He also said in another match he ended on 83 not out off 88 balls.
Sarwan disclosed that he felt a big relief after he scored his first one-day and test centuries after scoring so many half centuries before and not getting to three figures.

It was kind of getting to me, he revealed.
After scoring his century he said experienced a kind of anti- climax. The one-day hundred was pretty good and that had an effect on me scoring my first test ton, he said.

Sarwan leaves tomorrow for Antigua and then the World Cup. Since he has been back home he has been practicing with the national cricketers at the DCC ground over the past five days to try and hold his fitness.

Of the upcoming camp Sarwan said his goals is just to go out there and give 110 per cent every time.

I think the West Indies stand a good chance of winning the World Cup once we can continue to play the same way we have been playing, he said.

Posted by Orin