WHILE expressing his delight at being selected for national duties at such a young age, debutant fast bowler Andre Stoll is looking at maintaining his place in the Guyana national team for all forms of cricket.
Stoll was the lone new face selected in Guyana’s 14-man squad which will defend their West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) Caribbean Twenty20 championship in Antigua and Barbados from January 10 to 23.
In an invited comment with Chronicle Sport after an intense training session at the Guyana National Stadium , Providence, yesterday afternoon, the 18-year-old left-arm fast bowler, said he was shocked when he heard the news of his selection.
“Honestly, I was very surprised when I heard of my selection. Even though I was working hard towards making the 22-man squad, I never thought that I would have made the team at such a young age, given the type of players who were in the mix.
“However, I plan to use this as a stepping stone for my career, as my aim is to go on and on, with a view of becoming the next West Indies left-arm fast bowler from Guyana, after Brandon Bess, and I know with my work ethics and the right guidance, I can achieve this,” said Stoll.
The Police Sports Club (PSC) fast bowler was not hesitant in expressing heartfelt gratitude to his coach Bharat Mangru and the national team’s fitness guru Kezqweyah Yisrael for the hard work they put in, that enabled him to be where he is today.
“My coach always says to me, ‘hard work brings success’ and yes I can say for sure, that that is a true meaning, as I am a living example of same. Yisrael was with me on a daily basis, sometimes twice a day driving me to a limit that I never thought I would have reached.
“On the other hand, Mangru always looked at my bowling figures after a match irrespective of the level of the competition and asked me where I went wrong, based on the figures he has seen and from there, we work on correcting any faults that may have arisen.”
He turns 19, two days after the tournament culminates (January 25 2011) and was not hesitant to state, how wonderful a birthday gift it would be when Guyana retain the title in Barbados, whether or not he had the opportunity to play.
“I am proud to be in this team. To have the opportunity to rub shoulders alongside players in the calibre of Ramnaresh Sarwan, Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Narsingh Deonarine on a senior Regional tour for Guyana is tremendous.
“I know some persons would tend to say that I have rubbed shoulders with Ronnie (Sarwan) before, but that was at the Inter-county level.
“This is different in comparison to the local Inter-county, as Ronnie is known to pass on bits of advice to young players in the team and certainly, I can’t wait to get out there and do my best for Guyana. I plan to put my best foot forward at all times, ensuring my family, friends and teammates are proud of my performances at the end of the tournament, with the crowning glory being Guyana retaining the title.
“However, my aim is not to be a one-tour figure, but a permanent fixture in the team, as that’s the only way I can realise my goal to play for the West Indies. I have seen and heard of individuals who only got the opportunity to play for their country or made a one-off tour and I don’t intend to be placed in that category.
“My aim is to keep on playing for as long as possible by God’s grace and as long as I can do so, I would like to play for the West Indies. I think the time is ripe and the fruit is there for the taking, so why not give it a chance, but everything is up to me. With regard to my fitness and work ethics and the way I am feeling now, I have no intentions of giving up easily.”
Guyana who are grouped with Jamaica, Windward Islands, Somerset and Combined Campuses and Colleges in Group ‘A’, open their defence against the mighty Jamaicans on the January 10 in Antigua, before they oppose Somerset, CCC and Windward Islands in their next three matches.