BELFAST, Ireland (CMC) — Captain Jason Holder does not believe West Indies having to play in a qualifying tournament to reach the 2019 World Cup in England is an embarrassment for the Caribbean side.
Hosts England and the remaining top seven teams in the ICC rankings at the September 30 cut-off date will earn direct qualification to the showpiece.
But with the Windies languishing ninth, they face the increasing likelihood of having to contest a 10-nation qualifier — comprising ICC associate nations like the Netherlands and Scotland — in order to secure one of the last two World Cup spots.
“I don't think it is embarrassing,” Holder said following Wednesday's rained off One-Day International against Ireland.
“The World Cup is of such that teams like Ireland have come into world events and done really well and beat big teams before, as well as other smaller teams, so I don't think it's embarrassing.
T&T cricketer and Guyana Amazon Warriors captain Rayad Emrit was on the cricket field in Kabul, when the suicide bomber blew himself up outside the ground in Afghanistan yesterday.
Emrit is the only West Indian cricketer taking part in the Afghanistan T20 league called the Shpageeza. He is playing for the Boost Defenders and was on the field when the action occurred. Speaking to Guardian Media Sports the former T&T captain said: “We were in the field bowling when the situation occurred. It was the second over of the innings and we heard a loud explosion go off on the outside. I felt the stadium shake, such was the force of this explosion. When I looked outside I saw a tall building shaking and broken glass all over. The entire area of the building was in smoke. We were told by officials that it was a gas cylinder that went off.”
Pakistan is set to host the West Indies in a short three-match Twenty20 series in Lahore at the end of November this year, a top Cricket Board (PCB) official said. "The agreement with the West Indies Cricket Board has been finalised and done and they have confirmed they will come to Lahore in November to play three T20 Internationals," PCB chairman Najam Sethi said. Speaking on a television channel last night, Sethi said the itinerary for the matches against West Indies would be announced soon. He informed that Sri Lanka has also confirmed to play a lone T20 international on October 29 in Lahore. "I am still trying to convince Sri Lanka to play at least two matches in the coming series in Lahore," Sethi said. If both the tours materialise, it would be the first time since the militants attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore in March, 2009 that Pakistan would witness a proper international season at home, starting with the ongoing tour by the World XI.
LONDON, England (CMC) — Test Captain Jason Holder hopes Yorkshire's acquisition of Kraigg Brathwaite for the two final games of the County Championship can lead to a breakthrough on the circuit for other West Indies players.
Yorkshire turned to the 24-year-old opener after Australian Shaun Marsh was forced to return home early to honour domestic commitments.
“I would love to see a lot more of our guys playing County cricket whenever the opportunity arises,” Holder said.
“There is so much cricket playing now in the world and people tend to go the T20 route, but it's good to see Kraigg hanging around and playing the last two games for Yorkshire.
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – The Selection Panel of Cricket West Indies has announced an 18-member Windies Women’s squad for a training camp to be staged from September 25 to October 4 in Trinidad.
All of the players that were chosen for the recent ICC Women’s World Cup in England, along with batsman Britney Cooper have been invited to the training camp which will be conducted under the direction of interim head coach Hendy Springer and interim assistant coach Gus Logie.
Commenting on the squad, Chairman of the CWI Selection Panel Courtney Browne said: “Our women’s player pool in the Caribbean is quite small compared to other countries, and our regional tournaments do not always produce the kind of consistent batting and bowling aggregates and averages we would relish. Hence, we rely on using strategic camps like this to give our high performance coaches time to help the players with their development.
“Coming out of the camp, the Selection Panel expects keen competition for final selection, and will focus attention on players with a healthy attitude and willingness to work hard, improve fitness and team work, as we seek to restore confidence in our side following the disappointing results at the Women’s World Cup.”
Browne also noted that the availability of Selman and Connell are subject to clearance from the CWI Medical Panel. The two Windies Women’s fast bowlers suffered tournament-ending injuries during the WWC.
Selman was sidelined following a blow to the head while fielding against Australia Women at Taunton, where Connell also suffered a hip injury against India Women a few days later.
The squad is preparing for an upcoming home series against Sri Lanka Women for which full details will be unveiled at a later date.
