[dropcap]T[/dropcap]he St Lucia National Cricket Association (SLNCA) congratulate Kimani Melius on his selection to the West Indies Under 19 squad for the ICC Youth World Cup in New Zealand from January 13, 2018.
It must also be noted that West Indies are the defending champion of this tournament. At sixteen years old Kimani is one of the youngest on the squad, but he also has a lot of senior experience having played for St Lucia since the age of 15.
Melius Kimani is a product of the Babonneau Secondary School and is part of the Northern Grassroots Cluster under head coach Alton Crafton. This year, Kimani has had the opportunity to play for Gros Islet at the Under 19 and senior levels. He also represented the Windwards at the Under 17 and Under 19 age groups.
The SLNCA has closely monitored young Kimani’s progress from the Under 15 age group, when he first played for St Lucia and is proud of his development and the level of maturity and humbleness that he displays.
This year has been an outstanding year for young Kimani as he has represented St Lucia at the senior level and the Under 19 level. His under 19 season was exemplary as he was the lead scorer for the Windward Islands tournament, as well as the lead scorer in the West Indies Three Day Format.
The full squad is expected to meet in St Kitts from December 10 – 20 for a preparatory camp. After that they are expected to depart for New Zealand on December 27, where they will be engaged in warm up matches ahead of the ICC World Youth Cup. They are scheduled to face host nation New Zealand in the first match, a day / night encounter on January 13.
The full squad reads: Ronaldo Alimohammed, Alick Athanaze, Cephas Cooper, Jarion Hoyte, Kirstan Kallicharan (Vice Captain), Kimani Melius, Ashmed Nedd, Keon Pemberton, Raymond Perez, Joshua Persad, Javeor Royal, Keagan Simmons, Emmanuel Stewart (Captain), Bashkar Yadram and Nyeem Young.
