By TENAJH SWEETING 

Tribune Sports Reporter 

tsweeting@tribunemedia.net

BAHAMIAN cricketer Marc Taylor is on the right side of history as it pertains to the former national sport of The Bahamas.

Taylor was drafted by the Miami Lions cricket team for the Max 60 Caribbean Tournament to be hosted in Grand Cayman, Cayman Islands, making him the first Bahamian to accomplish this historic feat.

The inaugural tourney has a unique T-10 format and will feature five teams in 25 games from August 18-25.

The right-handed cricketer acknowledged that he tried on more than one occasion to be drafted but to no avail. Fortunately for him, he was delayed but not denied and is happy to be the first Bahamian drafted for the Caribbean tournament.

“It is a good feeling. I am definitely excited because this is the first time I was actually able to be drafted after trying two times in the past. It is definitely a long time coming but it is better late than never,” he said.

The Miami Lions selected Taylor in round 14 as the 92nd pick. He is on the star-studded roster along with Dwayne Bravo, Shoaib Malik, Ravi Bopara, Corey Anderson, Joe Burns, Nikhil Chaudhary, Josh Kann, Chadwick Walton, Johnathan Carter, Gerhard Erasmus, Rohit Paudel, Unmukt Chand, Conroy Wright, Mohan Manivannan and Asghar Afghan.

The Bahamas national cricket team member is proud to see his hard work recognised and paying off.

He wants to give this tournament all that he has to offer. “I want to do my best and try to bring my best game forward. This could potentially be the start for future tournaments so I just want to do my best, play the game that I know and do not overthink it,” he said.

The five teams expected to play at the Max 60 Caribbean Tournament are the Caribbean Tigers, New York Strikers, Boca Raton Trailblazers, Grand Cayman Jaguars and the Miami Lions.

Greg Taylor, president of The Bahamas Cricket Association (BCA) and father of the Bahamian cricketer, was proud to see his son accomplish this monumental goal. “It is a first for a Bahamian cricketer and, in this day

and age, now there are a lot of professional cricketers from all around on the circuit. For him to be drafted by the Miami Lions tells us that he is good enough to play at that level. It brought excitement to The Bahamas Cricket Association.

Everybody congratulated him and I am especially proud of him because he is my son,” he said.

He added that this moment highlights the amount of talent that exists within the cricket world in The Bahamas despite being ranked 69th on the International Cricket Council (ICC) World Rankings.

The right-handed batsman will not be the only Bahamian to make history at the Max 60 Caribbean Tournament. Umpire Narendra Ekanayake, who

completed an umpiring course two months ago, will be the first Bahamian to officiate at an international tournament.

“It is an awesome accomplishment because in Bahamian cricket this is the first for an umpire to be selected to officiate in an international tournament,” the BCA president said.

As for Taylor, competition begins on Saturday for the Lions. They will make their Max 60 Caribbean debut against the Boca Raton Trailblazers.