The Independent Voice of West Indies Cricket

PCL: Round 4 preview

Wed, Nov 15, '17

 

PCL

RED FORCE SEEK TO OVERTAKE JAGUARS
Other teams look for stability in the fourth round of D4Day matches

ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – Fans attending the Brian Lara Cricket Ground over the next four days could get a real treat, when Trinidad & Tobago Red Force and Guyana Jaguars meet in the key clash in the fourth round of the Digicel 4-Day Championship, starting tomorrow.
A mere 5.2 points separate the top two sides in the Championship and they will each be looking to bag a bounty of points, as they seek to put some distance between themselves in a bid to finish in first place at the first break of the season next week.

In other matches: Leeward Islands Hurricanes will be looking to keep pace with the front-runners in a bid to upset the status quo later in the season, when they host Jamaica Scorpions at Warner Park, and Windward Islands Volcanoes and Barbados Pride duke it out at the Arnos Vale Sports Complex.



Red Force vs  Jagguars

Red Force are coming off their first victory of the season and Jaguars are looking to rebound following a tough contest.

Both sides appear evenly-matched with a number of internationally-capped players boosting the line-ups on either side to make the match far more competitive.

Jaguars have been the far stronger side in the Professional Cricket League era, logging five wins out of the six matches the two sides have played during that period.

But the presence of Denesh Ramdin, Jason Mohammed, Kyle Hope and last season’s leading batsman Yannic Cariah in the batting, along with left-arm fast bowler Sheldon Cottrell to spearhead the attack gives the Red Force an edge which they previously could not boast.

The Jaguars are practically at full strength and have survived the absence of key players in the first two rounds, and will be no pushovers.

With the conditions at the BLCG still an unknown factor, it’s hard to choose a winner, so predicting a draw could be the safe choice.

Squads:
RED FORCE (from) – Denesh Ramdin (captain), Yannic Cariah, Bryan Charles, Sheldon Cottrell, Kyle Hope, Amir Jangoo, Imran Khan, Jason Mohammed, Khary Pierre, Roshon Primus, Jeremy Solozano, Daniel St. Clair, Tion Webster
IN–Cottrell, OUT–Isaiah Rajah
JAGUARS (from) – Leon Johnson (captain), Anthony Bramble, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Rajendra Chandrika, Chanderpaul Hemraj, Keon Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Keemo Paul, Veerasammy Permaul, Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, Vishaul Singh
Unchanged


Hurricanes vs Scorpions 

The return of veteran left-arm spinner Nikita Miller to Scorpions sets up what should be an intriguing battle with Hurricanes.

The home team have punched above their form of the previous three seasons and are looking to continue in the same vein that now has them in third place.

For Scorpions, they did not respond well to the loss of Miller to injury and other key players to Windies duty of one form or another – and have found themselves desperately seeking a victory and answers in the bottom half of the table.

This match will be decided on how well the Hurricanes batting copes with Miller and if the Scorpions’ batting has overcome the stumbles of the previous game.

Interestingly, the two sides have won every other match in the duel, so if the trend continues, it’s the Scorpions’ turn.

Squads:
HURRICANES (from) ­– Rahkeem Cornwall (captain), Nkrumah Bonner, Keacy Carty, Jahmar Hamilton, Montcin Hodge, Chesney Hughes, Jeremiah Louis, Mervin Matthew, Gavin Tonge, Akeem Saunders, Stanny Simon, Devon Thomas, Terrence Warde
Unchanged
SCORPIONS (from) – Nikita Miller (captain), Fabian Allen, Dennis Bulli, Jason Dawes, Assad Fudadin, Garth Garvey, Derval Green, Trevon Griffith, Paul Harrison, Brandon King, Romaine Morris, Paul Palmer, Damani Sewell, Keno Wallace
IN–Miller, OUT–Paul Harrison


Volcanoes vs  Pride 

Both Volcanoes and Pride will be looking for their first win of the season when they renew their feisty rivalry.

The two sides are separated by the Scorpions in the bottom half of the table and have played well in patches this season.

They will be looking to put together a strong, consistent performance with the aim of elevating themselves at the break.

This will be a serious grudge between the two sides, as Barbados-born Volcanoes pair of Kirk Edwards and Kyle Mayers will have a point to prove and several other of their teammates have played club matches in the ultra-competitive Barbados domestic league in recent years.

Recent results favour the Pride, as they have won four of the six matches in the PCL era. They have chosen to give their attack a bit of an edge, swapping out rookie fast bowler Shakeem Clarke, son of late Barbados and West Indies fast bowler Sylvester Clarke, for former Barbados Under-19 speedster, Keon Harding.

Squads:
VOLCANOES (from) – Tyrone Theophile (captain), Audy Alexander, Gian Benjamin, Roland Cato, Kirk Edwards, Tarryck Gabriel, Kavem Hodge, Ray Jordan, Sherman Lewis, Kyle Mayers, Liam Sebastien, Shane Shillingford, Devon Smith
Unchanged
PRIDE (from) – Shamarh Brooks (captain), Anthony Alleyne, Jonathan Carter, Justin Greaves, Keon Harding, Aaron Jones, Shayne Moseley, Ashley Nurse, Mario Rampersaud, Kevin Stoute, Hayden Walsh Jr, Jomel Warrican, Kenroy Williams
IN–Harding, OUT–Shakeem Clarke