Lewis fireworks, Motie four-for power West Indies to huge win
Fri, Nov 1, '24
The only way is up as England seek to reboot their once-glorious white-ball fortunes, but on the evidence of a deeply one-sided first ODI against West Indies, the journey to the 2027 World Cup will be long, arduous and - perhaps most significantly - unfamiliar to a new generation of cricketers whose lack of experience in 50-over cricket was all too plain to see in Antigua.
The format's rhythms weren't quite such a mystery to the man who gunned them down, however. Evin Lewis had been absent from West Indies' ODI plans for more than three years until last weekend, when he announced his second coming with a 61-ball century in Sri Lanka. Now he added a startlingly violent 94 from 69 balls, making light of a two-paced pitch and a stodgy outfield to blaze eight sixes - one for each of the wickets by which his team eventually won. It might even have been nine for nine had he connected properly with the shot that got him out, an inside-out slap to wide long-off, with victory already in the bag.
The result had scarcely been in doubt after Gudakesh Motie's four-wicket haul had wrecked England's hopes of a competitive total, but the only real challenge to West Indies' dominance was the rain, which arrived at the end of the 15th over of their chase to briefly raise the prospect of a very unjust washout. West Indies were 81 for 0 by that point - with Lewis himself on 51 - but after an hour-long delay and the loss of 15 overs and 53 runs from the target, the skies cleared sufficiently for justice to be served on a red-raw England line-up featuring no fewer than four debutants.
The power and poise of the run-chase was at total odds with the tentative fare that had preceded it. Whereas England had had to wait until the 32nd over of their innings before their stand-in captain Liam Livingstone struck the first of their two sixes on the night, Lewis himself outdid that tally four-fold, having waited just 11 deliveries before hoisting the lively pace of John Turner over the ropes at deep backward square.
Big wins for Hurricanes and Pride on second day of Super50
Thu, Oct 31, '24
Leeward Islands Hurricanes and Barbados Pride pulled off commanding wins on Wednesday when action continued in the Cricket West Indies’ CG United Super50 Cup in Trinidad.
At the Queen’s Park Oval, Hurricanes blew away West Indies Academy by 142 runs, while over at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Pride defeated Jamaica Scorpions by 24 runs via the Duckworth/Lewis/Stern method.
Batting first in Port-of-Spain, Hurricanes got to 236-7 in a game reduced to 47 overs per side. Opener Justin Greaves batted through the innings to score an unbeaten 111, the first hundred of the 2024 competition.
The right-hander faced 117 balls and struck nine fours and a six. Dimitri Adams (26) and Jahmar Hamilton (20) were the only other batsmen to get to 20 or above, as Jediah Blades claimed 3-49 and Joshua Bishop 2-31.
In reply, West Indies Academy folded for 94 in 27.5 overs, with only players- Nimar Bolden (30), Teddy Bishop (21) and Carlon Bowen-Tuckett (21)- getting into double-figures.
Off-spinner Rahkeem Cornwall claimed 3-22, left-arm spinner Daniel Doram 3-34 and fast bowler Oshane Thomas 2-4.
Jason Holder: England's frequent tours are 'boosting West Indies' survival'
Thu, Oct 31, '24
Jason Holder, West Indies' former captain, says that England's third white-ball tour of the Caribbean in as many years is a "massive boost to their survival as an international team", and goes a long way towards repaying the ECB's debt to his team after they helped to save the finances of English cricket during the Covid summer of 2020.
Holder, 32, led the West Indies squad that played three Tests behind closed doors in Manchester and Southampton at the height of the Covid outbreak in July 2020, enduring weeks of lockdown in bio-secure surroundings to help "keep the lights on", in the words of the former ECB chief executive, Tom Harrison.
It was a tour that helped to mitigate the ECB's losses during the pandemic, which could have been upwards of £380 million had their entire summer schedule been cancelled. Each of those three Tests was worth approximately £20 million as they helped to fulfil the board's £1.1 billion rights deal with Sky Sports.
Speaking at the end of that tour, Holder had warned that the ECB would be obliged to reciprocate the favour to help out cricket's "smaller countries" who lacked the financial clout to stage matches during a global lockdown. Now, four years on, he believes that England have been fulfilling their side of the bargain.
"I think it's a fair way of putting it," Holder told ESPNcricinfo, ahead of an eight-match tour that will be shown on TNT Sports in the UK. "We've obviously had the English coming over for the last three years consecutively. And that has definitely boosted, not only our economy within the Caribbean, but it adds a massive boost to our survival in international cricket.
Khary Pierre spins Red Force to win over CCC in Super50 opener
Wed, Oct 30, '24
A brilliant spell of spin bowling from vice-captain Khary Pierre (four for eight) helped defending champions TT Red Force to a 60-run win in the first game of the 2024 CG United Regional Super50 tournament versus Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC) at the Sir Frank Worrell Memorial Ground at UWI, St Augustine on October 29.
In the build-up to the match, Red Force assistant coach Rayd Emrit, who's currently deputising for David Furlonge because of medical reasons, told Newsday he was dissatisfied with the pitch conditions at St Augustine. Emrit said the practice pitches were underprepared, while the pitch for the match looked to be of a similar nature.
With the batsmen faced with a turning wicket with inconsistent bounce for the Super50 opener, the bowlers had their way. Red Force were bowled out for a modest 194 from their 50 overs, but that score was made to look like a mammoth one as Pierre and leg-spinner Yannic Cariah (three for 31) combined to roll over CCC for just 134 in 38.1 overs.
In their pursuit of 195, CCC appeared to be cruising at 76 for one with the pair of Shaqkere Parris (57 off 68 balls) and TT batsman Kamil Pooran (18 off 61) in the midst of their 67-run stand for the second wicket. The game turned drastically on its head, though, as CCC lost their last nine wickets for just 58 runs.
Volcanoes condemn Harpy Eagles to opening day defeat
Wed, Oct 30, '24
Windward Volcanoes edged a sloppy Guyana Harpy Eagles for a stunning come-from-behind victory in their opening match of the Regional Super50 at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad and Tobago.
In pursuit of 275 for victory, the Volcanoes were 58-5 in 11.4 overs, and the writing was on the wall for a crushing defeat.
But it was not the case.
Battling the heavy dew, the Eagles dropped catches and made constant misfields, helping the Volcanoes recover to 139-6.
Shadrack Descarte and Dillon Douglas made a brilliant stand of 81.
Descrate was dismissed for 60 (7x4s:1×6) from 62, while the wicketkeeper-batsman, Douglas, in just his second List A, fell painstakingly short of a well-deserved century.
Douglas was crestfallen, run out for 90 (8x4s; 2x6s) from 100 balls, but his innings proved the pillar to a stunning victory.
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