Rose Back for Red Stripe Bowl

Jamaica's cricket selectors have named former West Indies players, Franklyn Rose and Nehemiah Perry in a 36-man squad to prepare for the Red Stripe Bowl limited overs tournament which begins in mid-August.

Also back is the promising 21 year-old West Indies batsman, Marlon Samuels, who, like the 30 year-old fastbowler, Rose, and the 34-year-old offspinner, Perry, has only recently recovered from knee surgery.

All three missed the 2002 Busta Cup/Shield season because of injury to Perry and Samuels, and in the case of Rose, his decision to play professionally in South Africa instead.

That decision by Rose, who has played 19 Tests and 27 one-day internationals, meant that like former WI captain, James Adams, who also opted to play in South Africa, he had in the short term made himself ineligible for selection to the regional team under prevailing rules.

Should he represent Jamaica in the Red Stripe Bowl, which begins on August 14, Rose, whose omission from the West Indies team in 2000 and 2001 left many puzzled, would presumably be eligible for selection for next year's World Cup in South Africa.

Brian Breese, the Jamaica Cricket Association's CEO told the Observer yesterday that Rose, who is now playing professionally in the English leagues, is now "apparently fit" and "has indicated that he will be making every effort to be available for the Red Stripe Bowl." It is understood that Rose is attempting to negotiate a release from his club, Sunderland.

Perry, now 34, would appear to have very little chance of returning to the West Indies team, for which he grabbed 10 wickets with his clever offspin in four Tests against Australia in 1999. He missed the first class season after sustaining a severe knee injury during practise in last October's Red Stripe Bowl.

Samuels, whose audacious talent impressed international critics on his Test debut as a teenager against Australia in that country two years ago, has only just returned to playing club cricket after his knee problems forced him out of the West Indies set-up late last year.

Missing from the 36-man squad is the opening batsman Donovan Pagon, who will be out of action for six weeks, having sustained a broken rib on the just-ended tour of England by West Indies "A". Pagon, who returned to Kingston last week, was hit by the Indian pacer Ajit Agarkar in India's tour game against the "A" side two weeks ago.

The other five Jamaicans on the West Indies "A" side which has just ended a tour of England are included: Chris Gayle (who is due home today), Jermaine Lawson, Keith Hibbert, Gareth Breese and Darren Powell, who moved on to Canada with the "A" side for a short tour.

The three Jamaicans, who went to the latest Shell cricket academy course in Grenada -- Lorenzo Ingram, Carlton Baugh Jr and Brenton Parchment -- are all named.

Among the new and relatively new names in the training squad are the Clarendon swing bowler, Lascelles Davis, who was called to trials earlier this year, Byron Wilson, an offspinning allrounder from Westmoreland (formerly of Trelawny), Harlon Haye, a fastbowler from Portland, Danza Hyatt, St Catherine's exciting 19 year-old right hand batsman. Others named in the squad are Nicharlo McFarlane, an offspinning allrounder from St James, Evon McInnis, a fast medium bowler and hard-hitting lower order batsman from Westmoreland, Leon Bent, the Melbourne (formerly Clarendon) leftarm pacer, the Kingston fastbowler, Sadique Phillips and the St Mary batsman, Tyson Gordon.

While a captain has not yet been named, Robert Samuels appears set to retain the job.

Squad:
Chris Gayle, Jermaine Lawson, Keith Hibbert, Lorenzo Ingram, Leon Garrick, Marlon Samuels, Laurie Williams, Warren Medynter, Matthew Sinclair, Franklyn Rose, Lascelles Davis, Audley Sanson, Tyson Gordon, Byron Wilson, Kevin Peart, Phillip Keating, Harlon Haye, Nehemiah Perry, Gareth Breese, Darren Powell, Carlton Baugh Jr, Brenton Parchment, Wavell Hinds, Robert Samuels, Ryan Cunningham, David Bernard Jr, Danza Hyatt, Tamar Lambert, Nicharlo McFarlane, Evon McInnis, Leon Bent, Maurice Kepple, Bryan Murphy, Wayne Cuff, Sadique Phillips and Ricardo Powell.

SOURCE: Jamaica Observer.