ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – More intense rivalries are expected with the chasing teams eager to close the gap before it’s too late, when the second half of the 2019-20 West Indies Championship begins on Thursday.
The Championship resumes following a two-week break with chart-toppers Barbados Pride on 84.2 points – 23.4 clear of nearest rivals and five-time defending champions Guyana Jaguars, heading into the sixth of 10 rounds in the four-day competition.
With a maximum of 24 points available to each side in every round (eight first innings points and four points for wickets taken by pace bowlers, plus 12 points for an outright winner), the jockeying for positions that took place over the first half of the Championship is expected to intensify over the coming weeks.
West Indies suffered an upset against Pakistan as they went under by eight wickets in the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup match on Wednesday night at the Munaka Oval in Canberra. Batting first on a good pitch, the 2016 champions lost three early wickets and never quite recovered enough to post a big target.
West Indies are now in third position in Group B on two points from two matches, while Pakistan earned their first points in their first match – and are second to England, who beat Thailand earlier in the day at the same venue.
MATCH SCORES: West Indies 124-7 off 20 overs (Stafanie Taylor 43, Shemaine Campbelle 43) Pakistan 127-2 off 18.2 off overs (Bismah Maroof 38 not out, Javeria Khan 35)
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – Cricket West Indies advised on Tuesday that the eighth-round match between hosts Trinidad & Tobago Red Force and Windward Islands Volcanoes from March 12 to 15 at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy will now be played as a daytime contest using red balls.
The match is no longer a day/night contest because of an issue with the lighting at the BLCA and play on each day is now scheduled to start at 10 a.m.
The West Indies Championship resumes on Thursday with the sixth round of matches following a one-week break.
Barbados Pride led the standings at the halfway stage of the Championship with 84.2 points – 23.4 clear of nearest rivals and five-time defending champions, Guyana Jaguars.
Virat Kohli is likely to be available for one match for the Asia XI side that will take on a World XI in the two-match T20I series in Dhaka next month as part of the nationwide celebrations to mark the birth centenary of Sheikh Mujibur Rehman, often referred to as the father of the nation. Kohli is among six Indian players named in the Asia XI side, with KL Rahul also slated for a one-match appearance. Shikhar Dhawan, Rishabh Pant, Kuldeep Yadav and Mohammed Shami have been included for both the matches.
BCB president Nazmul Hassan announced the names of the players in Dhaka on Tuesday, naming Faf du Plessis, Chris Gayle, Rashid Khan and Jonny Bairstow among the members of the World XI side.
However, although BCB said Kohli would play one game, ESPNcricinfo understands the BCCI is still waiting for the India captain to confirm his participation. Workload management remains an issue with Kohli in particular, with India having a packed schedule.
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – Cricket West Indies confirmed on Monday that Barbados Pride, as well as Guyana Jaguars’ pair of Leon Johnson and Nial Smith received penalties under its Code of Conduct during the first half of the 2019-20 West Indies Championship season.
Pride were fined for maintaining a slow over-rate against the Jaguars during their second-round match from January 16 to 19 at Kensington Oval in Barbados.
Johnson was fined and Smith reprimanded for Level 1 breaches of the Code during the fourth-round match between Jaguars and Jamaica Scorpions from February 6 to 9 at the Guyana National Stadium.
