PNG U19s arrive in West Indies for Cricket World Cup

By PATRICIA KEAMO
THE national men’s under-19 cricket team arrived in the West Indies yesterday, ahead of this month’s World Cup after departing Port Moresby on New Year’s Day.
The 15-man squad and four officials boarded their flight on Saturday as scheduled after passing their Coronavirus (Covid-19) tests at the Jackson International Airport.
Cricket PNG general manager Tony Naidu confirmed with The National yesterday that the team would be quarantined for three days at Marriott Hotel in St Kitts, West Indies, before being cleared to train.
The Garamuts have about a week to settle in and acclimatise before their first match on Jan 11.
The World Cup fixtures will bat off on Jan 14 and run through to Feb 15. The Rodney Maha-coached side are scheduled to play two of the 16 warm-up matches scheduled by the International Cricket Council from Jan 9-12.
According to the draws released by the council, the Garamuts will be playing against the United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Jan 11 (PNG time) and England on Jan 13.
“The warm-up matches are fixed, so if something happens, it can’t be rescheduled,” Maha said.
“We are hoping that the weather will be fine, so the matches can proceed as scheduled.
“These two matches are important because it will prepare the rookies — minus the captain — for the actual World Cup fixtures.
“England and UAE are good teams, and I’m sure our players will give them a strong match.
“Playing against these two teams will prepare them to face Pakistan, Afghanistan and Zimbabwe in our pool.” Fixtures: Tues, Jan 11 — PNG v United Arab Emirates; Thurs, Jan 13 – PNG v England (warm-up matches); Sun, Jan 16 – PNG v Pakistan; Wed, Jan 19 – PNG v Afghanistan; Fri, Jan 21 – PNG v Zimbabwe.