Jamaica Scorpions ripped up the batting form book yesterday afternoon, galloping to a target of 158 runs to beat four-time defending champions Guyana Jaguars by eight wickets in the West Indies four-day cricket match at Sabina Park. The 27-year-old Jermaine Blackwood picked his moments to make a typically swashbuckling 72 not out. Brandon King, still only 24, was elegance personified in his breezy, unbeaten 66. The two shared in a stroke-filled, unbroken, 143-run partnership that ensured the Scorpions' third victory of the season was wrapped up inside two days. The performance yesterday was a far cry from the fragility proffered by the Scorpions batsmen for most of the season.
Hurricanes vs Red Force
DESPITE a fighting half century from TT Red Force all-rounder Imran Khan, the Leeward Islands Hurricanes remained in the driver's seat at the end of day two in the eighth round match at Warner Park in St Kitts, yesterday. After resuming the day on 296 for five in the first innings the Hurricanes were dismissed for 365 with Terrance Ward scoring 83, Jahmar Hamilton cracking 68, Devon Thomas lashing 67 and Rahkeem Cornwall slamming 62. Spinners Khary Pierre and Yannic Cariah were the best bowlers for the Red Force, grabbing 4/110 and 3/25 respectively.
Volcanoes vs Pride
Middle-order batsman Tevyn Walcott’s half-century spared the Barbados Pride the blushes on the opening day of the match against the Windwards Volcanoes at Arnos Vale on Thursday. After winning the toss and opting to bat, the Pride were in immediate trouble when in the first over, Sherman Lewis bowled Rashidi Boucher for a duck with only one run on the board. Lewis struck again the seventh over when he had Shayne Moseley caught by Dennis Smith for 9.
Debutant Akim Frazer grabbed four wickets to dent the Jaguars’ batting on day one of the eighth round clash at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica. After Jaguars were bowled out for 158, Clinton Pesatno’s 4-wicket haul in the afternoon left the Scorpions in a spot of bother. Playing at Sabina Park in Kingston Jamaica, the hosts, Jamaica Scorpions, asked the Guyana Jaguars to bat first. On a pitch with grass covering, Jaguars made one change to their starting XI, replacing Gudakesh Motie with Clinton Pestano. Openers Tagenarine Chanderpaul and Chandrapaul Hemraj added 33 runs for the steady opening partnership. Hemraj was the first dismissed, for 23 from 34 balls, hitting five boundaries in his fluent innings. He attempted to cut a delivery, but found substitute fielder Alwade Williams, and was out caught at backward point off the bowling of debutant Akim Frazer.
BASSETERRE, St Kitts, (CMC) – West Indies hopeful Jahmar Hamilton led three batsmen with half-centuries as Leeward Islands Hurricanes recovered from a shaky start to keep Trinidad and Tobago Red Force in the field for the entire first day of their eighth round match here Thursday.
Youth World Cup star Keacy Carty stroked 44 while the irrepressible Rahkeem Cornwall was on 34 not out.
Sent in, Hurricanes were tottering on 14 for two early in the morning after left-arm seamer Daniel St Clair (2-32) knocked over both openers cheaply.
First, he bowled the in-form Montcin Hodge for two in the day’s fourth over with eight runs on the board before sending back captain Kieran Powell for five in the eighth over, with 14 runs on the board.
However, the experienced Thomas came to his side’s rescue by anchoring a 101-run, third wicket stand with Carty, which kept the Red Force bowlers without any further immediate success.
Volcanoes vs Pride
Kingstown, St. Vincent, February 21 - (www.bcacricket.org) - Windward Islands Volcanoes were 49 for two off 23 overs in reply to a first innings total of 215 all out off 62.2 overs by Barbados Pride at the close of play on the first day of Round 8 in the regional first-class Championship at Arnos Vale today.
The not out batsmen were Kimani Melius on 19 and Sunil Ambris, two.
Devon Smith, defending on the back foot, was bowled by left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican for 18 (33-1).
And Kavem Hodge, pushing forward, was bowled by Warrican for four (47-2; 17.5 overs).
FORMER West Indies team manager, Mr Ricky Skerritt, and president of the St Vincent & The Grenadines Cricket Association Inc., Dr Kishore Shallow, have announced their candidacies for the CWI president and vice-president positions in the upcoming CWI elections.
Both nominations were supported by the Leeward Islands Cricket Board (LICB) and Trinidad & Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB).
The experienced Skerritt, 62, and youthful Shallow, 35, both have impressive leadership track records and share a lifelong love of cricket.
They have created a robust 10-point ‘Cricket First’ Plan that identifies the strategies needed to regain global competitiveness and dominance. It focusses on the skill and character development of young players with extensive use of science, technology and innovation.
Once elected, Skerritt has promised to immediately seek the reallocation of resources currently used for centralised activities by CWI to where it matters most – with local grassroots cricket, coaching development, and the territorial governing bodies.
“By my estimation, too much cost is being wasted on administrative and non-cricket-related activities including the high price of running an elaborate office for the president,” said Skerritt. “The budget for the president’s office has been growing alarmingly in recent years, and I intend to reallocate a sizeable portion of that budget to grassroots cricket,” he added.
Controversies and even an England win in the 3rd and final Test in St. Lucia might have shadowed some facts coming out of the series, but here’s the most important one — it took Windies a combined seven days to defeat England and claim the series with a game to spare. It was the Caribbean side’s first Test series win versus a team other than Bangladesh or Zimbabwe since defeating New Zealand 2-0, here in 2012. It was as you were for the West Indian bowlers in Tests, resuming their 2018 home form, as they added another fifty-five (of a possible sixty) to the ninety-six (of a possible one hundred) wickets they picked up last year. Unfortunately, the same was so (in terms of home form from last year) for the Windies top-order, where only two individual half centuries were scored by top-order batsmen in ten individual innings throughout the entirety of the series.
Windies batsmen found wanting yet again
As has been the theme of this hopeful resurgence of Caribbean cricket, an unhealthy relationship prolongs between batsmen and bowlers; when Windies bowlers have been reliable and are able to make amends, batsmen continue to “flatter to deceive”. A prime example of this in the just-concluded Test series was evident when indiscipline marred the Holder-less attack during the first innings of the second Test, still the seamers were able to pick up wickets (whether that’s a testament to the English’s batting abilities or lack thereof). When those same seamers were found out later in that innings, by a partnership between Ben Foakes and Moeen Ali, Roach and company recovered well; finding the line and length to sweep England’s lengthy tail aside. Giving credit also to the batsmen in that particular innings as they did well to ‘cover’ for the bowling attack leaking 40/50 runs too many. We give credit, in this instance, to the Windies batsmen since circumstances—the areas the two English seamers (Anderson and Broad) were hitting, coupled with the unpredictable nature of the pitch—were such that, if the openers came out a minute earlier than they did, or Windies’ batsmen ate an extra grape during the break, or spat just a little bit further than they did, they would not have been able to accomplish what they did during that innings—batting 131 overs on that pitch.
At the mention of credit, how much should we give to this bowling attack for realizing their error on Day 1 of the third Test (being too short in length) and rectifying their shortcomings immediately the following morning to take the remaining six England wickets for just forty-six runs? Regardless, so inconsistent and unreliable remains this Windies top-order, that when asked to have a turn at carrying the basket, they let it slip, leading to the loss of the final Test (only the two openers from the top six got into double-figures).
England showed just why they'll enter the 2019 World Cup as favourites as they aced the 360-run chase and handed Windies a six-wicket loss in the first ODI in Barbados on Wednesday (February 20). Windies rattled the visitors in the first half on the back of Chris Gayle comeback ton but Jason Roy smashed 123 off 85 to ease the team into the chase before Joe Root finished things off with 102. England's win also helped them record the fourth-highest successful chase in the history of ODI cricket.
Roy had dropped Gayle when he was on 9 and then saw the openers smoke the English bowlers to all parts of the ground. To his credit, he compensated for the grassed chance in some style as his ton reduced a tall chase to a regular one. Windies started with spin knowing Roy's weakness against the slow bowlers but the right-hander managed to hit out Devendra Bishoo out of the attack. Once the pacers came in, Roy was settled and already in full flow.
Jonny Bairstow and Roy gave the visitors a fast start as their 91-run opening stand was enough to leave Windies reeling. Bairstow fell for 34 - caught behind trying to pull Jason Holder - in the 11th over before Root and Roy started building the chase. The collaboration fetched England 114 runs in 16.1 overs as the score soared past 200. Roy was dropped thrice during his stay as he went on to complete his ton, off 65 balls, in the 22nd over by smoking an Ashley Nurse delivery over long-on. Windies dropped five catches to hand England the advantage but eventually managed to dismiss Roy.
