When Ottis Gibson arrived in Staffordshire for a club stint in the late '90s, he won hearts with his down-to-earth nature and kudos for his cricketing nous . Arguably the greatest ever (unsuccessful) hat-trick ball was that bowled by Ottis Gibson in the Friends Provident Trophy final at Lord's in August 2007, his last year as a professional cricketer. Durham, still trophy-less 16 years after moving up from the minor counties, had posted a daunting 312, though Hampshire would no doubt have fancied their chances, if only because they were captained by Shane Warne. And Warnie, as we know, believes anything is possible.
First ball of Hampshire's reply, the 38-year-old Gibson, eschewing the traditional loosener, is bang on the money, pitching on off, angling across Michael Lumb, who nicks to second slip: 0 for 1. In comes another leftie, Sean Ervine. Gibson bowls the same ball, gets the same result. 0 for 2 off 0.2 overs. Sensational.
Into the swelling catastrophe bounds Kevin Pietersen, barely having had time to neck his Red Bull. Lord's is abuzz. Hat-trick ball! Having waited for KP to attend to his rituals, Ottis steams in and bowls… a bouncer! And not even a straight bouncer. A high bouncer, two feet outside off! An ego-ball. A ball for KP, who, being KP, takes it on, mistiming a pull wide of mid-on. Just. A delivery of genius.
West Indies offspinner Sunil Narine has written to the National League Representatives (NLR) asking for an independent probe into whether an email that mocked him for "pelting" was sent by Trinidad & Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) president Azim Bassarath.
Narine, who was banned from bowling in international cricket on November 29, had undergone biometric testing at Loughborough University after being reported for a suspect action during the third ODI of West Indies' tour of Sri Lanka earlier that month.
"If indeed the letter came from Mr Bassarath and I have to stress the 'if' right now, it seems that he must have long believed that my bowling action was illegal," Narine wrote.
ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – Leaders Guyana Jaguars and nearest rivals Barbados Pride face inconsistent, but slippery opponents that could derail their title ambitions in the eighth round of the WICB Professional Cricket League Regional 4-Day Tournament, starting tomorrow.
With the final break of the season next weekend, the two teams will be looking to make a huge dip towards the finish line, as they take to the road for this weekend’s round of matches.
The Jaguars, the reigning R4Day champions, stumbled in the previous round, but did not fall and will want to return to winning ways, when they meet Windward Islands Volcanoes at the Beausejour Cricket Ground.
A huge haul of points to overcome the 17-point deficit they now face will be the aim of the Pride, when they tackle Jamaica Scorpions at Sabina Park.
At the same time – Trinidad & Tobago Red Force host Leeward Islands Hurricanes at the National Cricket Centre in a contest between two sides that have shown improvement as the second half of the season has unfolded.
St John’s, ANTIGUA – The West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) is celebrating with Sir Everton Weekes on this his 91st birthday today (February 26). The right-handed batsman, who is from Barbados is possibly the oldest living Test cricketer and the West Indies would like to recognise and share in this great moment with this outstanding man in the region and the world.
President, Dave Cameron in his wishes says “Sir Everton Weekes, one of the three famous Ws in the West Indies and the world forms a significant part of our history and we salute him on this milestone.” Sir Everton has the Order of St Michael and St George, Gold Crown of Merit and the Order of the British Empire. In the ten years he represented the West Indies, he played 48 Tests and scored 15 centuries with a top score of 207. His batting average was 58.61 and scored 4,455 runs. He played for his home country Barbados for 20 years and at the First-Class level he played 152 games and scored 12,010 runs with an average of 55.34. He had 36 centuries in that total. His highest total was 304 not out.
At the joint WICB/WIPA Awards in Jamaica last year June, Sir Everton was one of the seven members of the ‘Sir’s Club’ for men who have been knighted. He was accompanied by Sir Garfield Sobers, Sir Vivian Richards, Sir Richie Richardson, Sir Andy Roberts, Sir Wes Hall and Sir Curtly Ambrose.
“The region and the world celebrate with Sir Everton and we wish him the best for this special occasion,” Cameron added.
YOKOHAMA, Japan, CMC – Exciting West Indies all-rounder Andre Russell has been named by Japanese automaker, Nissan, as one of its global brand ambassadors.
The 27-year-old Jamaica has emerged as one of the most sought-after players on the global Twenty20 circuit in recent years, and is currently with West Indies the United Arab Emirates preparing for the T20 World Cup beginning in India next month.
Russell joins Indian batting star Rohit Sharma, South African speedsters Dale Steyn and Kagiso Rabada, and New Zealand women’s captain Suzie Bates, who were also appointed Nissan ambassadors this week.
