Twenty-four young, aspiring West Indian cricketers will be the first to undergo an extensive three-month training stint at the recently opened St George's University Cricket Academy in Grenada.

The academy is based on the famous Australian Cricket Academy in Adelaide.

Speaking at a media briefing on Saturday, 7 April at the Antigua Recreation Ground, the CEO of the WICB, Gregory Shillingford, himself newly appointed to the position, announced that 24 Caribbean cricketers, aged 18-23, would begin an intense three-month stint at the academy, starting on 19 May, 2001.

The actual training of the young cricketers while at the Academy will be about 70% cricket and 30% educational skills, according to Dr Rudi Webster, the newly appointed Director at St George's University. The academy is the brainchild of Dr Webster, who spent much of his professional time in Australia after his first-class cricket career came to an end.

While the main criteria for selection of the young men was their cricketing skills, academia, especially computer-related skills, would also be emphasised.

Dr Webster said that the Cuban government had agreed to supply three specialists each year (two baseball fielding coaches, and one sports medicine expert), for the next four years to the Academy. This is again in keeping with the Australian Cricket Academy, since many present and former Australian cricketers are, and have been, excellent baseball players, the obvious emphasis here being fielding and ball handling.

As a part of the young cricketers' education and development, they will be taught money management, developing their analytical skills, as well as learning and developing their media relations skills.

The four main components of the course to be offered are: (i) fitness and conditioning, (ii) technical development, (iii) tactical training, and (iv) mental development skills. Dr Webster emphasised that much time and care would be placed on the cricketer's ability to focus consistently and steadily for long periods of time, not unlike that required for batsmanship, and perhaps even fielding for extended periods.

Shell Antilles & Guinas Ltd, a group which has been involved in cricket in the West Indies for more than 20 years, initially sponsoring the senior regional competition in the 1960s, '70s and '80s, are the other partner in this venture. They have again taken the initiative, making a commitment to underwrite this venture for at least three years. Earlier this year, with the slogan "We are back!!", Shell recommitted themselves, after some time away, to the continued development of West Indies cricket.

None of the candidates who have been selected to tour with the West Indies Under-19 team this summer have been considered for selection.

The 24 players chosen are: Romel Currency (Windward Islands), Fernix Thomas (Windward Islands), Wayne Phillip (Windward Islands), Shane Shillingford(Windward Islands), Rodney Sooklal (Trinidad & Tobago), Andy Jackson (Trinidad & Tobago), Theodore Modeste (Trinidad & Tobago), Zaheer Ali (Trinidad & Tobago), Kevin Bazil (Guyana), Sewarine Chatergoon (Guyana), Reon Griffith (Guyana), Esaun Crandon (Guyana), Callitos Lopez (Barbados), Marlon Franklyn (Barbados), Sulieman Benn (Barbados), Ryan Hinds (Barbados), Kurt Wilkinson (Barbados), Runako Morton (Leeward Islands), Elsroy Powell (Leeward Islands), Sylvester Joseph (Leeward Islands), Donovan Pagon (Jamaica), David Bernard Jr. (Jamaica), Keith Hibbert (Jamaica), Ryan Cunningham (Jamaica).

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