Two members of the Reggae Boyz delegation in Austria for their international friendly against the United States on Thursday have tested positive for the Covid-19 virus, the Jamaica Football Federation announced today.

The members of the delegation were tested when they arrived in Austria earlier today.

The players have been isolation in their hotel rooms in keeping with UEFA protocols while they await another test before any activity can be initiated.  All the players subsequently took a PCR Covid-19 test with the results due 12 hours later.

Ten England-based players including Adrian Mariappa and Michael Hector, are among those who are now in Austria.

West Indies fast bowler Alzarri Joseph has signed to play for Worcestershire in the English County Championships as their overseas player.

Jason Holder had excellent figures of 5-27 as the West Indies took full control over Sri Lanka on the opening day of the first Sandals Test match on Sunday.

West Indies Test captain, Kraigg Brathwaite, insists the team will not be complacent against Sri Lanka heading into the start of the two-match series on Sunday.

The Windies are riding momentum following a hard-fought 2-0 series win away to Bangladesh and a strong performance in a 3-0 One Day International (ODI) series sweep over Sri Lanka.

Despite the recent success, however, Brathwaite, who officially replaced Jason Holder as captain to start the series, insists the team will be looking for a fierce fight from the tourists.

“It’s Test cricket so we won’t be taking them for granted.  I think they have some experienced batsmen that have played a lot of Tests, have scored a number of Test 100s, and an experienced bowler in Lakmal,” Brathwaite told members of the media via a Zoom press conference on Saturday.

“Going into the game we won’t be underestimating them.  I think they will come and fight because the Sri Lanka team always tends to fight,” he added.

Sri Lanka have shown plenty of fight, despite losing both the T20 and ODI series their spinners gave the West Indies batsmen a lot to think about once they were deployed.

Newly appointed Jamaica national U-21 Annette Daley hopes to use the unit to reinforce the senior team in light of the cancelation of the Netball World Youth Cup.

The event, which was slated to take place in Fiji, in June, was initially moved to December 2021.  The tournament has, however, now been cancelled because of the coronavirus crisis.

The decision was made in consultation with Fiji's Government and the Local Organising Committee.  Considerations like travel restrictions, athlete well-being, pandemic-related uncertainty and planning difficulties, increased costs, and Fiji's low COVID-19 rate all contributed to the decision, organisers said.

Daley was appointed to the post in February and had just begun preparing the team for the tournament.

“We are going to meet with the ladies officially, but training continues.  We are looking at continuing to develop the ladies because for the senior program we do a base that we can pull players from,” Daley told TVJ Sports.

She also pointed to the fact that there could still be some international competition that the team can take part in later this year.

“There could be a championship for Jamaica in October where Trinidad and Tobago and South Africa are coming.  If that is so at least we will be ready to engage in competition.”

 Former Wimbledon FC defender, Andy Clement, will serve as a physical trainer for the Jamaica national team ahead of its friendly international against the United States in Austria next Thursday.

Clement, who currently plies his trade with Mount Pleasant football club, will be forced to stand in after both the national team's regular trainers Lamar Morgan and Jason Henry did not make the tour.  Henry was not able to travel with the team after reportedly not managing to secure a contract in time.

Clement was suited for the job as being an Englishman he does not need a Schengen visa to enter Europe.  The team was originally expected to depart the island for the US this weekend, after completing a four-day training camp at the Horace Burrell Academy.

However, the JFF was forced to quickly alter plans after it was discovered that applications for travel to Austria had to be done in person at the current time.  The delegation, as a result, hastily departed the island on Tuesday in order to meet a Wednesday morning appointment for Schengen visas at the Austrian Embassy, in the United States.  The group was as a result without both a physical trainer and physiotherapist, important members of the support staff.

West Indies coach, Phil Simmons, insists the team is looking for improvement in every area ahead of the first Test against Sri Lanka, on Sunday, but particularly targeted once again achieving the elusive 400 runs first innings score.

In recent matches, the regional team has carved out some momentum, following up hard-fought Test series win over Bangladesh with a T20 and dominant ODI series win over Sri Lanka.  Heading into the start of Sunday’s Test series, however, Simmons is far from satisfied.    

“We need to improve in every area, we had a good series but there are lots of things we need to keep improving on,” Simmons told Windies cricket.

“We need to make sure we get 400 in the first innings, which is something that we are striving for every time we play.  Then we have to bowl and bat even better than we did in Bangladesh,” he added.

The West Indies reached 400 first innings runs last month, in the series against Bangladesh, but reaching the total has proven to be the exception rather than the rule.  Prior to that, the team got to the total against Sri Lanka in 2018.

The highest first innings total, in the last 10 years, was 590 against India in 2011, in total they have achieved the feat seven times.  By comparison, Australia has achieved the feat 27 times within the same period.

Legendary West Indies batsman, Viv Richards, was hesitant to compare the talent of players currently available to the West Indies team, with those in his heyday, as he believes eras are simply too different.

Richards represented the West Indies for close to two decades, following his debut in 1974.  For the majority of his career, the Windies were known as the world’s best cricket team, securing two World Cups during that time.

The Master Blaster, as he is otherwise known, played alongside some of the game’s greatest players, the likes of Clive Lloyd, Desmond Haynes, Gordon Greenidge, and bowlers Malcolm Marshal, Joel Garner, Collin Croft, and Michael Holding, to name a few, listed among his teammates.  Recently, the team has fallen far from that type of dominance.

For some, the quality comparison between the talent that was available then regionally, and the current crop, is an open and shut case with overwhelming favourability for the former.  For Richards, however, it isn’t that simple.

“It’s always tough for you to make comparisons of what took place yesterday to what’s happening today because I think the game would have moved on big time as well,” Richards told the Antigua Observer.

“There are a lot of things you would have had yesterday that (are) missing today and a lot of things you have today were missing yesterday, so, it’s a tough task for any individual to make comparisons,” he added.

One thing he insists that players can do from any era is to get the job done, regardless of the challenges.

 “The best way I would look at that is the period of time we were asked to work because remember we are not all the same age at this particular time. So, considering the times in which we all played and what was put in front of us at that particular time, we got the job done and you may ask that of the individuals today to do the very same. I don’t think I can give a definite answer to which period was better, and whoever was making whatever comparison; but all these individuals, at the time they came, they did good,” he said.

The West Indies Legends were denied in their bid to reach the inaugural final of the Road Safety World Series (RSWS) T20 after losing by 12 runs to the India Legends.

India batting great Sachin Tendulkar led the way with 65, as the host team posted 218 for 3 after facing their 20 overs.  Earlier, the match was lit up by a cameo from Virender Sehwag who made 35, while Yuvraj Singh cashed in with three sixes in his brisk 37 off 20.

In pursuit of the target, a 99-runs second wicket partnership between opener Dwayne Smith and Narsingh Deonarine got the Windies off to a strong start.  While Batting icon Brian Lara’s 46 from 28 balls brought the Windies to within 24 runs of the target with two overs remaining.

However, a stifling spell from Indian seamers Vinjay Kumar and Irfan Pathan scuppered the regional team’s run chase.  It was Kumar who accounted for the dangerous Lara in the 19^th over and also removed bowler Tino Best at a crucial juncture.  The West Indies finished on 206 for 6.  Best claimed two wickets, including that of Tendulkar in the first innings.  Kumar claimed two for the India Legends who will face Sri Lanka Legends in Friday’s final.

Cricket West Indies (CWI) incumbent, Ricky Skerritt, has dismissed threats from presidential candidate Anand Sanasie as part of a ‘hopeful’ strategy designed to disqualify him from seeking re-election.

Earlier this week, Sanasie admitted to beginning procedures to bring Skerritt before the CWI Ethics Committee.  If the complaint is ignored at the regional level, the Guyana Cricket Board Secretary has not ruled out instructing his attorneys to bring the matter before the International Cricket Council (ICC).

Sanasie has accused Skerritt of improper conduct after alleging that a meeting between the latter, other board members of CWI, and Guyana Minister of Sports Charles Ramson Jr was not only illegitimately convened but that the decisions stemming from it, namely a quickly convened Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) election, were specifically designed to keep him off the ballot.  Ramson Jr has flatly rejected the assertions.

In response, Skerritt painted Sanasie’s actions as more of a desperate ploy than anything else.

“He is creating an illusion that somehow I will be disqualified from the election,” Skerritt told Sports Grill.

“It is his dream and his hope that I will be disqualified from the election because it is the only chance they would ever have of winning,” he added.

The CWI presidential elections are set to take place this Sunday.

Half-centuries from Kyle Mayers and Roston Chase were the highlights of the second day of Cricket West Indies’ President’s XI vs Sri Lanka as the fixture ended in a predictable draw.

Left-hander Mayers made a typically stroke-filled 57 off just 66 balls as the President’s XI took a first-innings lead of 122. He used the match as ideal preparations for the first Sandals Test match, which starts on Sunday at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium.

They started the second day on 103-1 and made 294 in reply to Sri Lanka’s first innings 172. In the second innings, the visitors were 56-0 when the match was called off at 4:50 pm.

Mayers hit 11 fours, mainly fierce cuts, and powerful drives and added 76 for the fourth wicket with Shamarh Brooks, who made 19 before he was magnificently snapped up at slip by Lahiru Thirimanne off-spinner Danajaya De Silva (3-26).

Chase then came to the crease and showed his class. The tall right-hander was excellent against the spinner as he scored 52 off 81 balls with eight fours. He was especially fluent through the on-side before he was dismissed leg-before wicket to left-arm spinner Lasith Embuldeniya (3-69). This knock capped a very good match for Chase, who also took 4-12 on the opening day with his off-spin.

In the final session, Sri Lanka’s openers Thirimanne (27 not out) and Dimuth Karunarathne (23 not out) batted out the final 13 overs.

Former Windies wicketkeeper, Deryck Murray, believes it is important for the team to cultivate the habit of winning and admits to being encouraged by the displays in recent weeks.

The West Indies followed up a gutsy away win over Bangladesh, with a hard-fought T20 series win over Sri Lanka, before putting on a dominant display in a One Day International (ODI) series against the same opponents.

While some may view the results with an air of skepticism, due to what they believe is inferior opposition, Murray was quick to point out that the team’s approach and attitude in recent encounters was just as important as the results and could augur well for the future.

“We are at a stage where West Indies cricket, let’s face facts, is at the bottom of the rung and we have taken the opportunity to beat teams on an equal footing with us or just above us,” Murray told the Mason and Guest radio show.

“What we saw in the One Days against Sri Lanka were people playing to their responsibilities within the team…we saw that in areas of the One Day game where people were called up to bowl at different times, people coming to bowl at the death, etc. People were moving out of their comfort zone and doing what the team needed,” he added.

“Between going from number 9 to number 1 there are going to be obstacles and hiccups along the way.  We are not going to beat everybody as we go along but being able to win in tight situations is key, forget whether it was Bangladesh or Sri Lanka.  In tight situations, we came out of it winning.  Players are going to start believing they can win.  So, when we face England, Australia, India, or New Zealand, it’s not going to be us trying to do something as a one-off but let’s get into a situation to give ourselves a chance to win.  You are going to start winning more than you are losing.”

The West Indies will now turn their attention to securing victory over Sri Lanka in the two-match Test series, which begins on Sunday.  

Shai Hope hit a brilliant unbeaten half-century to follow up Roston Chase’s four-wicket haul as Cricket West Indies’ President’s XI dominated Sri Lanka on Wednesday’s first day of a two-day tour match.

After bowling out the visitors for just 172 just after tea, the President’s XI reached the close on 103-1 with Hope unbeaten on a stroke-filled 60 off just 72 balls.

Hope was the embodiment of class as he played several stunning shots, the two best of which went for sixes. The first was a nonchalant flick over deep square leg and the second a slog sweep smacked with great authority, which cleared wide long-on by some distance. He has also hit ten fours so far. Left-hander Darren Bravo ended the day on a solid 30 not out off 69 balls and has so far put on 94 for the second wicket with Hope.

Chase had earlier picked up 4-12 as Sri Lanka collapsed from 137-5 to lose their last five wickets for 35 runs in quick time. Oshada Fernando top-scored with 47, Dinesh Chandimal struck 40 while Pathum Nissanka made 23.

From the outset, Sri Lanka were never allowed to settle, as fast bowler Anderson Phillip snatched 3-47 and seamer Kemar Roach, 2-41, to cause problems early in the innings. Roach removed both openers in successive overs. He got left-hander Lahiru Thirimanne to play around a full-length delivery and gained a leg-before decision in the day’s third over.

He then had captain Dimuth Karunaratne (2) caught at first slip by Kyle Mayers, after Chase at second slip parried the initial offering. There were also four catches for wicket-keeper Jahmar Hamilton, who demonstrated excellent glovework behind the stumps.