Sammy gets Titans captaincy

The Titans have given former World Cup T20 winning captain, Darren Sammy, the reigns for the remainder of the RAM SLAM T20 Challenge campaign.

He will be the skipper when the Titans take on the Knights in a vital must-win RAM SLAM T20 Challenge clash at Chevrolet Park in Bloemfontein on Friday.

“I wanted Henry Davids, Darren’s predecessor, to focus solely on winning games for the Titans with the bat,” said Rob Walter, the coach, in explaining the decision to replace the current captain.

Davids was the captain of the Titans team that shared the spoils with the Cape Cobras in the One-Day Cup competition in 2013/2014.

“As a team, we haven’t experienced the type of success we are capable of, so it was felt that a change of captaincy might benefit the team at this point,” said Walter.

“Having Darren as a world cup-winning captain is a bonus and I am sure the team will be able to benefit from his leadership and vast experience.

“Henry has always placed the team’s success ahead of his own and will always hold a leadership position in this team,” added Walter.

Jacques Faul, CEO of the Titans, hailed Davids’s loyalty and paid tribute to his unselfish pursuit of the team’s best interests ahead of his own. “It is an admirable trait by a true warrior,” said Faul.

Sammy has represented the West Indies 55 times as a T20 player, and he was at the helm on 36 occasions.

He was the captain when they comprehensively beat the Sri Lankans to win the T20 World Cup in 2012. Sammy took two for six in that match and hit 26 off 15 balls to power the Caribbean men to glory.

Roelof van der Merwe, senior player of the Titans, said in a candid interview in the build-up to the match on Friday that the Titans have to win virtually every match now to put themselves in contention for the playoffs, something this quality squad is undoubtedly able to pull off.

“Winning will have a snow-ball effect psychologically as the players will gain confidence from victory,” he added.

But Van der Merwe warned that more penetration with the new ball in the power play is pivotal if the Titans are to break their duck by beating the dangerous Knights.

He said the Titans have been good in the middle-period, but had to regain so much lost ground that it was very difficult to put themselves in a winning position from there.

-Sports24