West Indies bowlers toiled early but struck back late to restrict Australia’s Prime Minister’s XI to 297-9 from 89.3 overs at the end of the first day of their four-day match at Canberra on Wednesday.

Having won the toss and elected to bat, the Prime Minister’s XI got a solid start as openers Matt Renshaw and Marcus Harris shared in an opening stand of 134 inside 42 overs.

Jayden Seales broke the partnership when he had Harris caught by Kyle Mayers for 73.

Renshaw made 81 for the Prime Minister’s XI, who also benefitted from 55 from the bat of Peter Handscomb as the home side looked set for a score above 400 at 250-4.

However, Roston Chase led the West Indies fightback when he dismissed Aaron Hardie for 23 and then removed Handscomb as the Prime Minister’s XI slipped to 253-6.

Alzarri Joseph then bowled Ashton Agar for 33, Michael Neser for 10 and Joel Paris for two with the last ball of the day to finish with figures of 3-52 from 17.3 overs.

Chase’s two wickets in 21 overs cost 72 runs while Kemar Roach, Mayers and Raymon Reifer had one wicket each.

West Indies wicketkeeping great Jeffrey Dujon believes the decision taken by captain Nicholas Pooran to step down is the best one for the player at this point in time.

The 27-year-old, who took charge of the region’s white-ball teams earlier this year, made the surprise decision to step down as captain, after just 7 months on the job.

As captain of the team, Pooran had faced severe pressure following the team’s poor showing at the T20 World Cup.  The West Indies failed to advance from the first round of the competition, following losses to Scotland and Ireland.  The results led to the resignation of the team’s head coach Phil Simmons but having only just been appointed to the post, Pooran was widely expected to keep the position.

Dujon admitted to being surprised but believes the player has done the right thing given the circumstances.

“I think it’s a good thing for him.  As a young player, you have been given responsibility but things haven’t worked out for him,” Dujon told the Mason and Guest radio program.

“He still has a career ahead of him and shedding this responsibility might just help his cricket as time goes on,” he added.

Pooran captained the T20 team for 23 matches, winning 8 and losing 14 for a win ratio of 35 percent.

The Jamaica Gymnastics Association will act as hosts of the International Gymnastics Federation’s (FIG) Technical Committee meetings scheduled to be held at the Oceans Coral Springs Hotel in Falmouth, Jamaica from November 25-29.

The FIG Technical Committee has the responsibility of setting all code of points and the technical direction of Artistic Gymnastics.

According to the JGA President, Nicole Grant, that the FIG selected Jamaica to hosts these very important meetings is an indicator of the JGA’s growing stature within the sport and she sees it as a major milestone.

“We are super excited that the Ministry of Tourism and the Jamaica Tourist Board as well as Elite Diagnostics for coming on board at such short notice to make this possible for us,” said JGA President Nicole Grant. 

“We are also pleased that the Pan American Gymnastics Union president Naomi Valenzzo will also be visiting Jamaica during the Technical Committee meetings. She was very instrumental in getting the FIG to donate much needed equipment last month.

“We are even more excited that the President (Donatella Sacchi) and Vice President (Nehad Zayed) of the FIG Technical Committee have decided to arrive two days early to see our National Junior elites who are currently preparing for the PAGU Youth Tournament in Columbia from December 2-16, 2022.”

Grant revealed that the officials will be also meeting members of the JGA board as well as judging the national juniors in pre-competition on Thursday November 24 at the Jamaica School of Gymnastics on Slipe Road in Kingston.

Cricket West Indies (CWI) confirmed today that Nicholas Pooran has decided to relinquish the white ball captaincy of the West Indies Men’s team following the team’s exit from the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2022 tournament just completed in Australia.

 “I have given the captaincy a great deal of thought since the enormous disappointment of the T20 World Cup," said Pooran. "I took on the role with great pride and dedication and have given it absolutely everything over the past year.

“The T20 World Cup is something that must not define us and I will readily get involved in the upcoming reviews. And whilst it will be several months until we reconvene as a squad, I want to give CWI plenty of time to prepare for the matches against South Africa in March and beyond.”

The Trinidadian middle-order batsman said relinquishing the captaincy is not an indicator that he was throwing in the towel.

 “This is not me giving up. I remain ambitious and still view the captaincy of West Indies cricket as an honour that is bestowed upon you. There is no doubt I remain fully committed to West Indies cricket and I look forward to providing my services as a senior player in a supportive role," he said.

"By stepping down now as the West Indies white ball captain I believe it is in the best interests of the team and for me personally, as I need to concentrate on what I can deliver to the side as a player. I desperately want us to be successful and the most value I can give to the team is through fully focusing on the role of consistently scoring runs at crucial times.

“I am very thankful to CWI for the opportunity and faith shown in me and for the support that I have received by our devoted fans since taking the role, and to my teammates who have worked so hard as well. I know we have it in us to carry West Indies cricket forward and be proud.”

CWI Director of Cricket, Jimmy Adams thanked Pooran for his time leading the two teams.

“On behalf of CWI I want to thank Nicholas for his time leading our white ball teams. Having spoken with him I know he remains fully committed to West Indies cricket and I am convinced he has a big role to play in our future,” Adams said.

Last year and earlier this year, Pooran led the West Indies in the absence of Kieron Pollard, enjoying a T20 International (T20I) Series win against Australia at home (4-1). He was officially appointed West Indies Men’s white ball captain in May this year when Pollard stepped down. Overall, Pooran led the team in 17 One Day Internationals (ODIs) and 23 T20Is, recording Series wins against the Netherlands (ODI 3-0) and Bangladesh (T20I 2-0).

The West Indies Men’s next white ball series is against South Africa in March 2023 (directly after the two Test Match Series) and consists of three ODIs and three T20Is.

“A nice and competitive game,” is what West Indies Test Captain Kraigg Brathwaite expects when his team continues their preparation for their two-match series against Australia by taking on an Australian Prime Minister’s XI in a four-day game warm-up fixture beginning on Tuesday in Canberra.

The Windies already have one warm-up fixture under their belt, a high-scoring three-day match against a combined NSW/ACT XI which ended in a draw on Saturday.

That game saw the Windies get scores of 424-9 declared and 114-4 while their opponents got 426-4 declared.

“Everyone is feeling good. We had a nice, competitive three-day game. The pitch was more batting friendly but I think our bowlers got a good run out as well.”

Australia’s PM’s XI will feature players with a lot of international experience and Brathwaite says this will give his side a big test ahead of the series.

“This second game is obviously a different team; a much more competitive team so we look forward to that challenge,” he said while also noting how important it will be to get used to the pink ball ahead of the first test.

“Gearing towards the first test, it will be good to get used to the pink ball and the conditions here in Australia. It will react differently off the surface, especially when the lights turn on. It tends to do a lot more at night so that is something we have to keep on our minds,” Brathwaite added.

The match gets underway on Tuesday at 10:00pm Jamaica time (11:00pm ECT).

Former Trinidad and Tobago gymnast Thema Williams has opened a gym intended to be a safe space for all-rounded childhood athletic development.

The talented gymnast said her aim is to “create initiatives that foster teamwork through sport and culture.”

“We envision an environment in sport built on the pillars of accountability, equity, integrity, knowledge and transparency,” she in an interview with T&T newspaper Newsday.

“I started by offering private gymnastics classes during the pandemic, and word quickly spread throughout a network of reputable people. Before I knew it, I had five clients weekly.”

She has poured a lot of sweat into making her idea into reality even making her own equipment. She revealed that she made a balance beam, her first, from wood from her home storage unit and used foam and glue to fashion mats.

The demand for her teaching was so great that she had more than 100 students enrolled by the end of 2021, which then prompted her decision to open a gym.

In 2018, Williams won a court battle against the Trinidad and Tobago Gymnastics Federation that was deemed to have discriminated against the gymnast when they withdrew her from the 2016 Summer Olympics in Rio, Brazil. In her place, the TTGF selected Canadian-born gymnast Marisa Dick.

She was awarded damages amounting to more than $TT200,000. However, the TTGF did not turn over the cash until a few weeks ago when a high court judge ordered Republic Bank where the gymnastics federation held an account, to cut a cheque for more than $230,000 to pay the athlete.

The Jamaica Scorpions had two of the top three leading run scorers in the 2022 CG Insurance Super50 competition that ended on Saturday night with the Jamaican franchise defeated the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force by three wickets in a tense encounter at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua.

Captain Rovman Powell ended the tournament with the highest aggregate of 346 runs, just four more than Red Force captain Nicholas Pooran (342) and nine more than his teammate Brandon King (337). But it was success of his bowlers that led the Scorpions to their first regional 50-over title since 2012 when Tamar Lambert led Jamaica to victory.

Four Jamaican Scorpion bowlers are among the top 10 wicket takers in the tournament – Odean Smith and Nicholson Gordon each took 15 wickets and shared the prize of leading wicket taker with Red Force and former West Indies paceman Shannon Gabriel. Not far behind were spinner Dennis Bulli with 14 wickets and Jeavor Royal with 12.

Asked about the impact of Smith and Gordon, Powell said the two pace bowlers were key to the team’s success this season.

 “They were very, very important in the sense that every time I gave them the ball they delivered right throughout the tournament,” he said.

“As a captain, it is very good when you find bowlers that give you wickets in crucial times of the game and both of them have been fantastic throughout the entire tournament. Not the most fast-bowling friendly wickets to be honest but they have been very good.”

Smith took his 15 wickets at an average of 19.26 and economy of 5.25 wicket while Gordon was slightly more expensive at 21.26 and economy of 5.94.

Bulli snared wickets at an average of 18.64 and economy of 4.75 while Royal took his 12 wickets at an average of 21.91 and economy of 3.92.

Meanwhile, the team has been praised by the Jamaica Cricket Association on its triumphant season.

The Jamaica Cricket Association (JCA) congratulates our national senior men’s team “The Jamaica Scorpions” on winning the regional CG United Super 50 Championship. This achievement is the end product of teamwork, intense preparation and exemplary leadership,” said President Billy Heaven in a statement released on Sunday.

“Under the astute leadership of Captain Rovman Powell and guidance of Head Coach Andrew Richardson and Assistant Coach Nikita Miller, the world witnessed the Jamaica Scorpions win five games back to back. The collective performance of the entire team has made Jamaica proud.”

According to Heaven, strategic planning by the JCA that places emphasis on a player centric approach built an ‘exceptional team’ that claimed the trophy in a year when Jamaica celebrates its 60^th year of independence.

“Cricket is known as the Gentleman’s Sport and on November 19, 2022, as the world celebrated International Men’s Day, Jamaica Scorpions provided the perfect celebration of the day winning the CG United Super 50 Championship in fine cricketing style,” Heaven said.

“This year Jamaica celebrates its 60th year of independence and cricket has always been a rich part of our history and legacy. The JCA is therefore extremely proud that our senior men’s team provided this gift to a proud nation on its diamond jubilee. Gentlemen we raise our bats to you.”

Jamaica Scorpions Captain Rovman Powell said he hoped fans of the team enjoyed their winning the 2022 CG Insurance Super50 title on Saturday night which ended a decade-long wait for the Jamaicans, who had not won a regional title since 2012.

Jamaica Scorpions spinner Dennis Bulli has credited a strong showing in the CGI insurance Super50 tournament with getting a good opportunity to showcase his talent.

The 35-year-old Bulli was one of the standout bowlers for the tournament and claimed an impressive 14 wickets in 6 matches, with an economy rate of 4.76.  Despite playing two fewer matches, the spinner was just one wicket off the top spot occupied by Shannon Gabriel (15), Odean Smith (15), and Nicholas Gordon (15).

In Saturday’s final, the left-arm spinner's mesmerizing skills were on full display when he left Trinidad and Tobago Red Force batsman Darren Bravo bamboozled all ends up, to take the crucial wicket of the dangerous batsman and end with figures of 1 for 44.

With a tournament best of 4 for 32, against the West Indies Academy, Bulli, who has not always managed to find consistency, was one of the key reasons the team was able to win the first Super50 title in 10 years.

“I’ve had times but I never got a good enough chance to express myself but this has been one of those times,” Bulli said of his performances this season.

“The first time I really got a chance to express myself was in 2019 and I did well.  I got called up for the President’s XI team and got injured, got picked for the CPL, and got covid.  So this is another opportunity and a good time for me to show what I can do.”

The Jamaica Scorpions are champions of the 2022 CG Insurance Super50 after a three-wicket win over the Trinidad & Tobago Red Force in the final at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium in Antigua on Saturday.

The Scorpions won the toss and chose to bowl first.

Red Force openers Kjorn Ottley and Amir Jangoo put on 46 before the latter was caught off the bowling of Scorpions skipper Rovman Powell for 23 in the 13^th over.

Ottley was next to go four overs later for 33 off the bowling of Jeavor Royal to leave the Red Force 57-2.

One became two for Royal when he dismissed the experienced Jason Mohammed for just three in the 19^th over to leave the Red Force 66-3.

Dennis Bulli then got into the action with the crucial wicket of Darren Bravo for 14 in the 22^nd over to leave the score at 79-4.

The Red Force brought up their 100 in the 26^th over but then found themselves in further trouble as 100-4 quickly became 101-5 as Odean Smith removed captain Nicholas Pooran for eight in the 27^th over.

Yannic Cariah (39) and Akeal Hosein (20) brought the Red Force past 150 in the 36^th over. One over later, the Red Force found themselves 157-6 after Cariah was dismissed hit wicket off the bowling of Nicholson Gordon for 43.

The Red Force lost their seventh wicket in the 41^st over when Terrance Hinds was dismissed by Gordon for 17 with the score on 184.

A Sunil Narine six off Peat Salmon in the 45^th over brought up the Red Force’s 200. In the same over, Salmon took the Scorpions’ eighth wicket, removing Akeal Hosein for 37 with the score on 206.

Gordon took his third wicket and the ninth overall when he dismissed Narine for 12 in the 46^th over with the score on 208.

Shannon Gabriel was the last man to go for one as the Red Force were bowled out 217 in 47 overs, their lowest total in the tournament.

Nicholson Gordon ended with 3-51 from eight overs and got good support from Jeavor Royal (2-22 from four overs) and Odean Smith (2-29 from six overs).

Scorpions openers Brandon King and Chadwick Walton brought the score to 24 in the sixth over when King was dismissed by Shannon Gabriel for 12.

Walton (27) and Andre McCarthy (11) combined to bring up Jamaica’s 50 in the 11^th over.

In the 20^th over, Walton brought up his first fifty of the tournament off 60 balls.

The Scorpions’ 100 was brought up one over later through a boundary from Walton off Yannic Cariah.

McCarthy was next to bring up his first fifty of the tournament, and 13^th in List A cricket, off 75 balls in the 30^th over.

The final ball of the 32^nd over saw Walton being dismissed by Cariah for a well-played 80 to leave the Scorpions 150-2 needing 68 to win from 108 balls.

McCarthy was next to go for 55 in the 35^th over with the score on 155.  Four overs later, with the score on 172, Alwyn Williams became the fourth Scorpions batsman dismissed when he was caught on the boundary off the bowling of Kharry Pierre for three.

Captain Powell was next to go in the 44^th over for 25 with the Scorpions only needing 18 more to win from 39 balls. With 344 runs in total, Powell finished the tournament as the leading run-scorer.

With the Scorpions needing 14 more runs from 29 balls, Dennis Bulli was bowled by Terrance Hinds for two. The next over saw Peat Salmon going for 11 with just eight runs needed to win from 23 balls.

Odean Smith was the hero in the end with a six and a single in the 47^th over bring the score to 218-7 to give the Scorpions their first CG Insurance Super50 Cup title since 2012, when they also beat the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force in the final.

West Indies' batsmen missed a chance to find their groove on Australian pitches before their tour game against an NSW/ACT XI was declared a draw.

The visitors were 114 for 4 in their second innings on Saturday at Manuka Oval when play was called off, the hosts declaring earlier in the day on a mammoth 426 for 4.

Opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul, the son of West Indies great Shivnarine Chanderpaul, made just 4 after not batting in West Indies' first innings effort due to illness.

Jermaine Blackwood, who retired on 42 in the first innings, made just 1.

West Indies were 77 for 4 before Roston Chase (31*) and Joshua Da Silva (12*) ensured no further damage was done.

Earlier Blake MacDonald finished unbeaten on 177 after No. 3 Oliver Davies had smashed 115 off just 106 balls on Friday in a wake-up call for the West Indies attack.

Final scores: West Indies 424 for 9 dec (Thomas 77*, Brathwaite 75, Brooks 56, Holder 50) and 114 for 4 drew with Combined NSW & ACT XI 426 for 4 (MacDonald 177*, Davies 115).

The tourists will play a four-day twilight fixture against a strong Prime Minister's XI from Wednesday before Tests against in Perth and Adelaide.

Jamaica assistant coach Nikita Miller insists the team can afford to take nothing for granted when they face Trinidad and Tobago, in the final of the CGI Insurance Super50 Cup, on Saturday.

The Jamaicans will be looking to claim their first title since 2012 and should enter the match with some confidence after a strong batting performance against Guyana on Thursday, in the semi-finals,  and four straight wins.

Miller knows, however, that the challenge will be different against an in-form Trinidad and Tobago who have lost just once this season.

“We will have to plan for Trinidad’s game differently.  We have gone to a couple of their games and looked at some footage and we'll plan our approach,” Miller said ahead of the game.

Trinidad and Tobago were the zone A winners after finishing ahead of Guyana, while Jamaica won zone B ahead of the Leeward Islands.

“We’re looking forward to it we are not going into that game overconfident.  We know that they are playing good cricket and they know that we are playing good cricket as well,” Miller added.

The Jamaicans managed to defeat Trinidad and Tobago in the final the last time they won the trophy.   

Jamaica Scorpions captain Rovman Powell believes his unbeaten 105 against Guyana Harpy Eagles on Thursday night was one of the best he has played in his career.

Powell smashed seven fours and three sixes in a mature knock that steered the Scorpions to 322-7 in pursuit of the Harpy Eagles 318-9. It was the highest successful chase of the season and the best score by any team in the 2022 CG Insurance Super50 competition.

He shared in a crucial fourth-wicket partnership of 103 with Alwyn Williams who made 45 and then stands of 34 and 37 with Dennis Bulli (17) and Odean Smith (19), respectively before an unbroken 37-run eighth-wicket alliance with Jeavor Royal, who was on 18 at the end after hitting the match-winning six off Nail Smith.

In his post-match comments after his first List A century of the season and his fourth overall, the 29-year-old all-rounder rated his match-winning knock highly.

“I think it is one of my better 100s,” said Powell, who arrived at the crease with Jamaica 101-3 following the dismissal of Brandon King for a well-played 64.

“I got a very good start. It was a very good wicket to be honest and so once I paced the innings and stayed at the wicket we would win.”

He praised King for his half-century, his second of the season, that set up the victory for the Scorpions team that will face the star-studded defending champions Trinidad and Tobago Red Force in the final on Saturday.

“It was very important,” he said of King’s 64. “It was important that someone get us off to a flying start and I think Brandon did that. It was just unfortunate that he couldn’t go a little longer.

“We were looking to get to 100 in 15 or so overs for the middle order to settle in and push around the ball and I think Brandon’s innings really set that up nicely.”

Wary of the quality of their opponents in Saturday’s final, Powell said it was essential for the Scorpions to improve in all three areas – batting, bowling and fielding – if they are to have any chance of dethroning the Trinidadian unit.

“Trinidad plays the best 50-over cricket in the Caribbean for a while now so it’s important for us to play very good cricket and improve batting, bowling and fielding,” he said perhaps referring to King dropping Shimron Hetmyer early in his innings. The West Indies middle order batsman went into top score for the Harpy Eagles with 86.

“Today (Thursday) we dropped a few catches. In the final, we cannot drop Trinidad’s big players like that.”