Lee Savident returns to the Guernsey ranks for the tour to Sussex. (Picturesby Chris Clark)
GUERNSEY face their biggest challenge to date when they meet Kenya tomorrow. Kenya are widely regarded as the strongest nation outside the Test-playing countries.
They are currently ranked 12th in the world in one-day internationals. Tomorrow’s match at the Sussex County Ground, Hove, is the equivalent of the island’s football team taking on Romania.
Kenya have featured in every World Cup since making their debut in India in 1996. In 2003 in South Africa they surprised the cricketing world when they reached the semi-finals.
‘It is for sure [our biggest challenge],’ said Guernsey captain Stuart Le Prevost. ‘The boys are looking forward to it and it should be good fun, especially playing on the County Ground at Hove.’
Kenya are playing Guernsey as a warm up for their World Cup Twenty20 qualifiers against The Netherlands and Canada in Belfast in two weeks’ time.
They are then playing two three-day Intercontinental Cup matches against Scotland and The Netherlands and one-day matches against those countries as well.
They are wrapping up their trip with a one-day series against Ireland at the end of August.
The Kenyans have a number of full-time and ex-professionals in their ranks.
Arguably their best player is their captain, Steve Tikolo.
The 37-year-old top order batsman has scored 2,785 runs in 101 ODIs.
They have also have former Warwickshire leg spinner Collins Obuya and current Sussex all-rounder Ragheb Aga.
Le Prevost knows it is not going to be an easy day.
‘Obviously without a doubt we’ve got to be at our best,’ he said.
‘As long as we can give it our best shot, who knows? They could have an off day as well.’
Guernsey manager Dave Hearse does not feel that the game is a step too far for his team.
‘No it’s not,’ he said.
‘We’ve beaten Holland A and Scotland A a couple of times. Cricket is a game where someone can have a good knock or a good spell and it can even itself out.
‘This will be a good indication of where we’ve got to go if we want to play serious cricket in the future.’
Guernsey’s other two matches on their trip will hardly be pushovers in comparison.
In connection with the island’s development and coaching partnership with Sussex, Friday sees the greens take on the county’s academy at Hove.
Then on Sunday, the Sussex League Representative side are the opponents.
‘Two tough teams and two tough games,’ said Hearse.
‘They will be great tests for our players. We’ve not played them before so we’ve got to suss them out.’
Hearse has named a 14-man squad for the tour,
He also confirmed that the squad will represent Guernsey in the ICC European Division Two Championship that is being held in the island next month.
In the squad are nine Cobo players, two from Rovers in GH Smit and Stu Bisson, Wanderers’ rising star Tim Ravenscroft and two UK-based cricketers in Lee Savident and Ben Ferbrache.
Former Hampshire professional Savident turns out for Totton & Eling in the Southern Premier League while Ferbrache is plying his trade at Cheltenham.
Complicated ICC residency rulings have seen Tim Duke dropped in favour of Smit and Jeremy Frith.
All three players have resided in the island for more than four years but less than seven, which is when a person is considered domiciled in a country.
A team is allowed to field only two players between the four and seven years bracket.
Hearse also took exception to a comment made by the Guernsey Press sports editor Rob Batiste who in his Saturday column described the senior island side as ‘stale’.
‘It’s a fresh looking squad with six under-23 players in it,’ he said.
‘And the fact that Jonny Clark and Dave Hooper have also played for Guernsey this year and we’ve also given opportunities to Tom Kirk and Will Peatfield – I see them as the future Guernsey cricketers.
‘We want to blood them as soon as we can so that they can give competition for places to the players in the squad.’
Article posted on 23rd July, 2008 - 2.29pm
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