Newcomers Crowned Inaugural PSAL Champions

By: Ray Sundar
Today, Sunday June 1, 2008, is the culmination of PSAL’s (Public School Athletic League) pilot program of introducing cricket, the gentleman’s game, into New York City’s High Schools. This inaugural season attracted 15 schools in the Bronx, Brooklyn, and Queens.

Summer is still 20 days or so away, but it is a picture perfect day for this final – pitting Ozone Park’s John Adams Spartans, captained by Guyana’s Thakur Singh, Vs Long Island City’s Newcomers Lions, captained by Dominic Gomes.

Perhaps divine intervention should be credited with a major assist as nature cooperated fully and ordained there must be cricket. With clear blue skies, nary a cloud hovering above the field, brilliant sunshine predominating, a cool breeze whispering across the field, temperature in the comfortable 70’s, intermittent sightings of jets dotting the skyline on their way to/from JFK Airport, and most importantly, the “heavens shutting down the rain door”, thereby allowing uninterrupted play.

Thus the stage is set for the gentleman’s game. America, here we come! Sit back, fasten your seat belts and enjoy the game. Follow the trajectory of the ball as the brutal collision of willow and leather creates a beautiful sound as the ball scampers to all parts of the field.

Invited to take first strike at Gateway, Brooklyn Newcomers got off to a rollicking start, clobbering 19 in the first two overs. Wicket-keeper/batsman Git Das was in terrific form, disdainfully dispatching the ball to the onside, offside and heck, all sides. He fell victim to the spin of Thakur Singh when he was comprehensively bowled for a swashbuckling 37.

Dominic Gomes executed some lusty strokes in his cavalier 30. He was very fortunate as 2 simple chances were dropped by John Adams.

Averaging about 10 per over to the midway point, the spin trio of Thakur Singh, Kamaljit Singh and Hugh Craig settled down, stifling the batsmen, slowing the run rate.

Eventually the allotted 20 overs yielded 149 for 6.

Requiring 150 for victory, at an asking rate of 7.5 runs per over, one sensed John Adams felt it was insurmountable.

Wickets fell in rapid succession, though Thakur Singh and Randy Nurse each made 15. At one point it appeared they would not score 100. However, some late flurries, a gallant, brave rearguard action, with Kamaljit Singh leading the charge (by design?), added some excitement and a pulse of maybe winning. A running error ended the match as John Adams were all out for 124, 26 shy of victory.

The organizers, PSAL, ought to be commended for a superb first attempt. Our hats off to:
Mr. Donald Douglas (Executive Director), Mr. Bassett Thompson (Commissioner), Ms. Lorna Austin (Assistant Administrator), and Mr. Ricky Kissoon (Deputy Commissioner).

Over the years, long before the advent of PSAL’s involvement (early 90/s) several individuals and organizations (in the NYC area) in their unique way, made meaningful contributions to further the growth and development of cricket. It would be remiss of me, a grave injustice, if their contributions are not acknowledged. So please join me as we salute and extend a warm thank you to:
Administrators: Lesly Lowe, Austin Hutchinson, Paul Da Silva, Ralph Tamesh, Gerald Singh, Carlyle Miller, Hinds and J.P Singh.
Media: Herman Singh Showtime, Cricket International, Caribbean Daylight, and Sharmela Karim
Sponsors: Chubby Bedessee, Vish Lekhram, Kawal Totaram, Ricky Singh, Ed Ahmad, and Laparkan
Players: Alvin Kallicharran, Glen Lorick, Garfield Wildman, Derek Kallicharran, Zamin Amin, Sew Shivnarine, Debu Sankar, Tim Persaud, and Kumar Lorick
And Ray Sundar who played an integral role in starting 2 major tournaments – the Indo-Caribbean Federation Match featuring Guyana Vs. Trinidad and the Sunder Memorial Match featuring Guyana Vs. Rest of the Caribbean. Both, started in the early 90’s, are ongoing and must see affairs on the summer calendar.

A special thank you to Daren Ganga and Len Baichan for conducting several coaching clinics (gratis) for the youngsters.

Some humble suggestions for PSAL: -
1. As it pertains to USACA – tread cautiously. Allow enough elbow room to (a) demonstrate competence, diligence, and vision and (b) ability to function with most, if not all, groups across the board.
2. Develop a culture, strategy if you will, to attract cricket moms and dads, a la soccer moms and NASCAR dads.
3. Most assuredly better grounds and facilities are absolutely vital.
4. Encourage local media participation. It’s great that the New York Times and Wall Street Journal carry the announcement. The inevitable question is, how many in this particular market read either?
5. A few good men and women with exceptional cricket expertise and keen foresight need to be cajoled to come on board.

For the cricket lovers and enthusiasts, for those who want to see the elevation of the game in the USA, want to witness acceleration greater than glacial speed, this tournament is of immense importance. It’s as though a lifeline has been thrown cricket’s way. No longer should I hear the question, “when will cricket be introduced in the school system”. Now, maybe, the question should be when will all the schools have cricket?

Let me re-iterate – this is a superb first effort. Like everything else there are growing pains. Time will be the final arbiter whether or not this exercise comes to fruition. From my vantage point this is a significant and dramatic step in the right direction.

From its humble beginnings on April 2, 2008, Cricket has come a long way in a relatively short time.

Next year will be here soon enough and many more schools will participate. A new breed of cheerleaders will emerge. Yes, a resounding yes, there is only one way it can go – up, up and still up.