A Trini at the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup.
Indra Ramsingh Geoffroy shares her view of the momentous last game in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup match for the West Indies.
The second day at the Sheikh Zayed Stadium, Abu Dhabi, the trek was shorter, as we were staying a few minutes away from the Stadium. Thank you to our generous and beautiful hostess, who shall remain unnamed.
After an all-you-can-eat breakfast at the W Abu Dhabi, Abi, Ria, Donna, and I went back to our temporary home, changed into our cricket apparel, and took the 5-minute drive. This time we got it right, drove to the ticketing booth to collect our tickets, and then straight to the hospitality parking.
The atmosphere for this game was different as we await what we wanted to be a big game for us. DJ’s last international game for Windies and maybe Chris Gayle’s too. Our group was smaller this time as we rallied with Harry, Lennox, and his family. The group met Brandon and a couple from the USA. We cheered, we hoped, and we rallied. Believing that this would result in a win. However, this was not to be.
The Australian fans around us were far different from the Sri Lankans; we shared smiles and hellos. The group of Windies fans at another stand lent to our courage as we had one common purpose, which was to support the men in maroon as we desperately hoped for the win. Lunch and drinks were very much appreciated.
In the stand with us again was President Skerritt and his lovely daughter Andrea and other cricket officials and a group of important Kittians, including the Honourable Lindsay Grant, Minister of Transport, Tourism and Ports, Honourable Jonel Powell, Minister of Education, Youth Empowerment and Sport. Also, in the stands supporting and rooting for the Windies were Brian Charles Lara, Dwight Yorke, Russell Latapy, and Hyper Hoppa.
The evening ended bittersweet, with the game being the last in Windies colours for Dwayne Bravo and Chris Gayle. The salutes from the entire stadium for these two were tremendous. An era has ended for Windies cricket with these men who went through their individual careers with ups and downs.
After the match, both teams gave a guard of honour to DJ, who served West Indies cricket for close to two decades, since his international debut against England in Guyana in April 2004. We congratulate our Trini lad, DJ Champion Bravo, for his stellar career and the way he revolutionized the T20 format, for outstanding stats. For his 91 T20 Internationals, 78 wickets and 1,255 runs; for his 2,200 runs–with three centuries and 86 wickets in his 40 Tests and 2,968 runs and took 199 wickets 2,968 runs and took 199 wickets and for his 2,968 runs and 199 wickets in his164 One-Day International appearances.
DJ Bravo told the media: “Being around the international circuit to represent my country for, let’s say, 18 years–18 years, I’m very grateful to represent the West Indies for so long. There are some strong friendships with great people and some great players, and I’m very lucky to be playing this game.”
The T20 World Cup posse extends best wishes to DJ as he moves on from this phase in his life. We also thank Chris Gayle for his contribution to cricket and wish him the best in his future endeavours. Two icons not to be seen in the maroon again will be missed.
A special thank you to our ticket source for making this experience more enjoyable. It was so very much appreciated. I am looking forward to networking with my newfound “friends.”
We drove back to Dubai in one hour for Abi to get ready for a 14-hour flight to work.
The evening capped off for me, listening to Dre Rus talk about his experiences in the bubble and his feelings about the T20 World Cup 2021 over a drink of Campari and Hennessy.
