Former West Indies Women's Captain Merissa Aguilleira Honored with Hummingbird Medal Gold Award at 2024 National Awards: CWI President Commends Achievements

Cricket West Indies (CWI) has expressed its congratulations to former West Indies women’s captain Merissa Aguilleira on her remarkable achievement of receiving the prestigious Hummingbird Medal (HBM) Gold Award at the 2024 National Awards of Trinidad & Tobago. The awards ceremony took place on Tuesday September 24, at the President’s House in St Ann’s, Port-of-Spain.

CWI President, Dr Kishore Shallow extended his organisation’s commendations to the former captain.

“On behalf of the CWI board and management, I extend our heartfelt congratulations to Merissa for the well-deserved recognition conferred upon her,” said Dr Shallow. “Merissa’s exemplary dedication and outstanding contributions serve as an inspiration to us all. As she embraces and embarks on other influential roles in cricket, particularly to develop other young athletes, we express our gratitude for her ongoing commitment and wish her continued success.”

The Hummingbird Medal Gold Award is one of Trinidad & Tobago’s highest honours, recognising loyal and devoted service beneficial to the nation, in any field of human endeavour or for gallantry or other humane action. Merissa was recognised not only for her immense contributions as a Trinidad and Tobago national to the West Indies team, but for her contributions to the sport on the island.

In spite of her retirement in 2019, Merissa Aguilleira remains an inspiring figure for aspiring cricketers, particularly women in the sport. Her journey and achievements highlight the growth of women’s cricket and the impact of dedicated athletes in challenging traditional norms. As a player and a leader, Aguilleira has left an indelible mark on the game, paving the way for future generations.

Merissa played in over 100 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and captained the West Indies Women from 2009-2015, a period during which she led the team to the final of the ICC Women’s World Cup in India 2013, and the semi-finals of the ICC Women’s World T20 in 2010, 2012 and 2014 and was part of the 2016 ICC Women’s World T20 winning team in Kolkata.

In her primary role as a wicketkeeper, she has over 100 dismissals in ODI cricket, having recently achieving the magical three figures during the home series against South Africa Women in September 2018. In addition, she has over 70 dismissals in T20 internationals (T20Is) from the 95 matches she has played.

Having made her ODI debut against the Netherlands Women in July of 2008 and her T20I debut against South Africa in June of 2009, she played 112 ODI matches, amassing 1752 runs at an average of 20.61 and 95 T20Is, scoring 768 runs at an average of 14.49.

In 2023, CWI Vice President, Azim Bassarath and former West Indies two-time world champion, Samuel Badree also received The Hummingbird Medal Gold Award.

(PR)