By Stephan Sookram
Berbicians Veerasammy Permaul and Tremayne Smartt have been named male and female Cricketers of the Year following the annual awards ceremony and dinner of the Guyana Cricket Board on Friday night at the Georgetown Cricket Club pavilion.

Permaul, the West Indies spinner and Smartt the right-hand batter, were chosen from a three-member shortlist for each gender.
Both Smart and Permaul who spoke after receiving their awards thanked the voting body that ensured that they walked away with the titles.
The feature speaker and West Indies Cricket Board vice-president Emmanual Nanthan, who could not make it to the event due to family issues, nonetheless sent his speech which was read by WICB Director Anand Kalladeen.
In his message Nanthan lauded the strong administrative framework of the Guyana Cricket Board and their commitment to the development of the game not only on the domestic front but to West Indies as well.

He contended that the Guyana Jaguars have shown that preparation and discipline are the pillars by which cricket should be played for positive outcomes and as such, added that boards across the region should take on.
Meanwhile, WICB Chief Executive Officer Micheal Muirhead in his recorded message reminded that Guyana’s regional dominance comes at a time when hard work, dedication, and discipline show their rewards.
President of the Guyana Cricket Board Drubahadur contended that the past year was a successful one for the GCB, adding that, “This year, we had brought home several regional titles.”
“In the coming year, we want to focus on upgrading those community grounds; and we also want to continually upgrade our LBI facility to ensure that it is top class,” added Bahadur.
Minister within the Education Ministry with responsibility for Sport Nicolette Henry pledged the government’s support to the sport in the coming year.
Other awardees included Club of the Year (Albion); Most Promising Youth Player (female), Mandy Mangru; Most Improved Cricketer – Lance Gibbs Trophy, Vishaul Singh; Junior Cricketer of the Year – Roy Fredricks Trophy, Shimron Hetymer, and Senior Regional Cricketer of the Year – Rohan Khani Trophy, Permaul.
In recognition of his selection to the West Indies team Rajendra Chandrika was given an award, as was Sachin Singh (Most Runs in the regional U-15), Kevin Omroa (Most wickets in regional U-15), and Kevlon Anderson (Most valuable player in regional U-15).
At the Under-17 level, Ronaldo Alimohamed picked up the most runs award, Bhaskar Yadram (Most Wickets) and Alimohamed (MVP).
Hetymer picked up the Most Runs in the Regional U-19 category and was also adjudged the Most Valuable Player in that division with the Most Wickets award being split between Kemo Paul and Balchan Baldeo.
Corporate awards went to Digicel Guyana and Banks DIH, while special awards went to Edward Nicholls (Long and Dedicated Umpire Service), Sean Devers (Outstanding Service rendered as a cricket journalist, and Jerome Inderdat (Outstanding Service rendered as a Curator).