Abhinav Singh 
St Lucia Zouks (SLZ) have announced the local players’ retention for the eighth season of Caribbean Premier League (CPL 2020).
St Lucia Zouks have retained eight Caribbean players ahead of the CPL draft, including all-time leading T20 run-scorer Chris Gayle and St Lucia batsman Kimani Melius as one of their Emerging West Indies players.
The local players retained by St Lucia Zouks (SLZ) are:
- Chris Gayle (Jamaica)
- Daren Sammy (Windward Islands)
- Andre Fletcher (Windward Islands)
- Kesrick Williams (Windward Islands)
- Obed McCoy (Windward Islands)
- Rahkeem Cornwall (Leeward Islands)
- Kimani Melius (Windward Islands)*
- Kavem Hodge (Windward Islands)
*Emerging player
The captain of the St Lucia Zouks, Daren Sammy, said, “I don’t have to tell you about Chris Gayle. He is the most successful T20 batsman in the world and I’m happy to be playing with him. I think he will be focused and motivated for the season. Andre Fletcher has been with us since the inception of the league. He carries the genuine spirit of St Lucia Zouks, and he is a great entertainer on the field.”
“Kesrick Williams is one of the top T20 bowlers over the last few years in International cricket. Rahkeem Cornwall bosses the power-play overs and him partnering up with Chris Gayle will be something exciting to watch,” he added.
“I’m excited about Kimani Melius because he is from St Lucia. He is one of the hardest working youngsters I’ve ever seen. With the experience of Chris Gayle and Andre Fletcher, he could enjoy this CPL exposure. Obed McCoy is a talented left-arm fast bowler out of St. Vincent. He is a very skilful bowler, can’t wait to see him play a full season for the St Lucia Zouks. Kavem Hodge is another talented all-rounder we have. He works hard on his game; he had a good first-class season,” he concluded.
St Lucia Zouks coach, Andy Flower, said, “I’m looking forward to having two Caribbean legends in our dressing room; Daren Sammy for his outstanding leadership and Chris Gayle for his experience and explosive stroke play. They will be central to our chances of doing well in the tournament. Kesrick Williams and Obed McCoy will be the mainstays of our seam attack, both operating in distinct ways but both effective in this form of the game. I am very excited that we have the youth and potential of the West Indies U19 World Cup captain Kimani Melius with us. A St Lucia native, it is brilliant to have him on board and looking forward to seeing how he progresses when he gets his chance.”
