Jamaica Reggae Girlz coach Vin Blaine expects a strong start to the World Cup qualifiers, despite missing a few of the squad’s key players, when the campaign kicks off on Thursday, at the National Stadium, with a match in the CONCACAF Women’s Championship.

The Reggae Girlz, who made a historic debut at the 2019 FIFA Women’s World Cup, have called up an experienced squad to face Bermuda and Grenada in the upcoming international window.  Despite retaining a number of players that formed part of the historic team, a few others will not be available for the campaign.

Notably absent will be Havana Solange, the scorer of the team’s only World Cup goal, who is injured, Cheyna Matthews, who is taking time away from the sport, and the team’s skipper Konya Plumber.

The likes of Khadijah Shaw and many others have, however, been called up for the fixture along with a few recent additions and players who could make their debut.

“Most of these players have played before and are quite seasoned campaigners.  We’re without a few players that we invited due to documentation issues, but we are looking forward to having them in the future.  These are the girls that have been chosen and I have selected, and we still have a formidable squad,” Blaine said.

“There are many experienced players and some new players that I am taking the opportunity to look at,” he added.

The Reggae Girlz have been given all Caribbean opponents for the first round of qualifiers. Apart from Bermuda, they will also face the Dominican Republic, Grenada, and the Cayman Islands in Group C.

An unbeaten century from captain, John Campbell, put the Jamaica Scorpions in a commanding position after day one of their second-round West Indies Championship fixture against the Barbados Pride at the Kensington Oval on Tuesday.

Jamaica won the toss and chose to bat first, posting a formidable 299-3 off 81.3 overs before a rain interruption meant a premature end to the day.

Campbell batted beautifully to be not out on 123 off 205 balls, including 12 fours and one six. He was joined at the crease by Paul Palmer Jr who is on 76 off 106 balls, including nine fours and two sixes.

All the Jamaican batsmen except Jermaine Blackwood (1) got starts as Leroy Lugg (39) and Nkrumah Bonner (49) cashed in on favourable batting conditions.

Jomel Warrican, Raymon Reifer, and Jonathan Carter are the wicket-takers so far for the Pride.

Rohit Sharma declared "experimentation is overrated" ahead of India's three-match T20 International series against West Indies.

With another T20 World Cup on the horizon in Australia this year, India and the Windies are determined to show what they are capable of after failing in the 2021 tournament.

Rohit led India to a 3-0 ODI clean sweep of West Indies this month and their expectant supporters will be demanding another whitewash.

India have won eight of their past nine matches against the Windies in the shortest format heading into the series-opener at Eden Gardens on Wednesday.

Washington Sundar and KL Rahul miss out due to hamstring injuries, while Axar Patel will not feature in the series as he is in the final stage of his rehabilitation after recently recovering from coronavirus.

Skipper Rohit is no mood to experiment as he looks to continue the white-ball momentum.

He said: "I feel the word experimentation is overrated, in my terms. We are trying to find those holes that are there in the squad and try and fill that gap. So whatever it takes, we will try and do that.

"All these guys [the fringe players] are very young and haven't played a lot of cricket. We need to give them the assurity and the game time.

"Once we have that, then we can try out things. Until then, whatever little holes we have in our squad, we have to try and fill that."

The Windies were outplayed in the 50-over format, but beat England 3-2 in a thrilling T20I series on home soil last month and named an unchanged squad to face India.

Rohit backs Kohli 

It is over two years since Virat Kohli score an international hundred, but Rohit says the former captain should not be questioned. 

The opener said: "If you guys [the media] can keep quiet for a while, I think he'll be alright. We don't need to do too much talking from your side, then everything will be taken care of. He is in a great mental space from whatever I see of him.

"He has been part of this international team for more than a decade. If someone has spent that much time in international cricket, they know how to handle the pressure situations, the environment, everything. It all starts from you guys. If you guys can keep it quiet for a bit, then everything will fall into place."

Pollard fit to lead tourists

Kieron Pollard was an injury doubt after suffering a niggle in the ODI series, but the captain confirmed he will be fit for the start of this series.

Pollard will be hoping former skipper Jason Holder can conjure up more heroics after his stunning exploits with the ball in the decider against England in Barbados last month.

The all-rounder took four wickets in as many balls in the final over to finish with figure of 5-27.

West Indies captain Kieron Pollard insists the team is nowhere close to being ready to give up on talented batsman Shimron Hetmyer, despite the player’s recently well-documented struggles with fitness.

The 25-year-old batsman was left out of the West Indies' previous series against Ireland and England and also failed to be included in the squad for the ongoing India tour.  The issue stemmed from the fact that the player failed to achieve the basic fitness standards required to be eligible for selection.

It was not the first time Hetmyer had been plagued by the issue as he also failed to get a passing mark in 2020, ahead of the team’s tour of Sri Lanka, and then again later that same year during Sri Lanka’s tour of the West Indies.  The Windies skipper, however, backs the player to get things right in the near future.

"I think the coaches have spoken on their assessment of Shimron. I miss Shimron when he is not around. He is a young player and a superstar in his own right. He will get it right and get back to the West Indies squad pretty soon. I will be looking forward to having him," Pollard told members of the media, ahead of the team’s first T20I against India.

"We know what he can do as an individual and he has a bright future. You can never write off a guy who is 25. My love for Shimron is paramount, and he knows that and we all know that. It is a matter of time for him to do all that is necessary to get back to the team. We will welcome him with open arms."

Omar McLeod is now a member of the Olympic training group run by Petros Kyprianou and based at the Episcopal School in Jacksonville, Florida. Last week McLeod, 27, who was a part of the Tumbleweed group since 2019, told athletes in the group that he was leaving.

However, the 2016 Olympic 110m hurdles champion gave no indication of why he had decided to leave or where he intended to go. His agent Mario Bassani declined to shed any light on the move which apparently took many by surprise.

As it turns out, the 2017 World Champion did not move too far away as Kyprianou shed light on his destination with a post on social media on Monday.

“Welcome to the group Omar @_warrior_child_!. Very excited to take this journey with you! Very thankful to @episcopaleagles for helping create this Olympic training group. What a great place to work at…”

Kyprianou joined the coaching staff at the University of Georgia in 2008 as an assistant coach, eventually becoming head coach in 2015. During his time there he won several awards while leading UGA to 11 top-four NCAA finishes in the last five seasons.

In 2017, he was named Women Outdoor Coach of the Year. In 2018, he won the NCAA Indoor Women’s title as well as the Men’s Outdoor title, which resulted in him winning the awards of Women’s Indoor Coach of the Year and the Men’s Outdoor Coach of the Year.

However, despite his success there, reports emerged in May 2021 that Kyprianou planned to leave Georgia when his contract expired in June that year.

The Athens Banner-Herald reported that in 2020, he turned down a multi-year extension offered by then-athletic director Greg McGarity and instead took a one-year extension.

In September, News4Jax reported that Kyprianou had joined the coaching staff at the Episcopal School of Jacksonville as the director of sports performance, a rare position in high school athletics.

 Among the athletes he coached at UGA were Olympic champion Shaunae Miller-Uibo, USA triple jump champion, Kenturah Orji and Jamaican Olympian Chanice Porter.

He has also coached the likes of British heptathlete Katarina Johnson-Thompson, St Lucia’s Levern Spencer, Maicel Uibo, Lynna Irby and rising sprinter/long jumper Matthew Boling.

Cricket West Indies (CWI)has offered congratulations to the West Indies players chosen in the auction of the Indian Premier League (IPL) which was conducted in Bengaluru on Saturday and Sunday.

In a bid to provide its senior athletes with competition as they prepare for the National Championships and other international competitions including the World Athletics Championships in Eugene, Oregon, later this year, the Jamaica Athletics Administrative Association (JAAA), in partnership with the Sports Development Foundation (SDF), has launched a series of four meets dubbed the JAAA/SDF Jubilee Series.

The first meet is set to take place on Saturday, February 19 at the National Stadium in Kingston and will begin at 5 pm and end at 7:30 pm.

Each meeting will have 14 individual events with four of them designated as Premium events. The selected premium events for the first meet are the 400m for men and women and the discus for men and women.

 At the end of the premium events, the top three finishers, providing they meet a set minimum standard, will earn a total of one hundred thousand dollars. Winners will receive $50,000, athletes finishing second will win $30,000.00 while third place athletes will bank $20,000.00.  

“It’s up to us to ensure that our athletes, especially those based locally, are given as much assistance as possible in their preparation,” said JAAA President Garth Gayle.

“We have limited resources but thanks to the SDF, who has decided to partner with us, we are able to offer some financial incentive.”

Denzil Wilks, General Manager of the Sports Development Foundation, said his organization is happy to play its part.

“Jamaica’s standing in this sport is second to none. This speaks volumes of the organization that runs the sport locally. The SDF has worked with the JAAA over the years and we have never been disappointed. We have always received value for money. This is just a continuation of that long-standing partnership,” he said.

 Junior athletes will compete earlier in the day between 8:30 and 5:00 pm.

No approval for spectators was granted for the first meet, with only athletes, officials and medical personnel to be allowed entry. Only one meet will be staged in February, with the other three scheduled for between May and June.

Registration for the meet closes on Wednesday, February 16 at 6 pm.

Britney Anderson has been on a tear this indoor season with three lifetime best times in her last three races.

The Guyana Harpy Eagles held on for a narrow one-wicket win over the Windward Volcanoes as the West Indies Championship encounter at the Queen's Park Oval came to a thrilling conclusion on Saturday.

Resuming the day on 157 for 7, with Larry Edward (29) and Kenneth Dember (9) the batsmen at the crease, the Windwards could only manage another 33 runs before they were all out for 190 in the 64 overs.  Dember was the first to be dismissed after managing to add just 5 to his overnight total, before being caught by Anthony Bramble off Veerasammy Permaul.

Edward briefly partnered with Preston McSween to add 17 for the 9^th wicket, but that did not last long as Edward was next to depart, caught by Hetmyer off Permaul for 43.  McSween could not repeat the heroics of the first innings and followed soon after.   Permaul finished the innings with figures of 53 for 5.

 The tally meant Guyana needed 203 for victory.  The Eagles seemed well set to reach the target as they coasted to 89 without loss on the back of a smooth 60 from 72 balls from Chandrapaul Hemraj and Tagenarine Chanderpaul (28).

The bowling of off-spinner Kenneth Dember threw a wrench in those proceedings as he claimed 5-80 and triggered a collapse.  The Eagles slipped to 140-6 and then 183-9.

Permaul, however, played a crucial, steady innings late on with an unbeaten knock of 20 which pushed the Eagles to the target.  Vishaul Singh added 24 with Leon Johnson 21 and Clinton Pestano 20 also making handy contributions.

An assured 71 not out from veteran left-hander Jonathan Carter ensured the Barbados Pride secured a four-wicket win over the Leeward Islands Hurricanes on day four of their West Indies Championship fixture at the Kensington Oval on Saturday.

The Hurricanes entered day four on 294-7 in their second innings, leading the Pride by 142 runs.

They batted sensibly to eventually get to 346 all out off 109.2 overs with Devon Thomas getting a magnificent 112 off 140 balls, including 17 fours.

He was well supported by Keacy Carty who got 52 and captain Jahmar Hamilton who got 47, against 4-64 off 21 overs by debutant Ramon Simmonds.

Set 195 for victory, Barbados had a decent start before Carter anchored a fairly comfortable chase with his 71 not out, coming off 131 balls, including five fours and two sixes.

He was well supported by Raymon Reifer who got 45 and captain Kraigg Brathwaite who got 29 in the chase that saw the Pride end on 195-6.

Jeremiah Louis was the pick of the Hurricanes bowlers in the second innings with 4-50 off 14 overs.

Final scores: Leeward Islands Hurricanes 172-9 declared and 346, Barbados Pride 324 and 195-6.

Stuart Broad has hit out at his omission from England's squad for the upcoming Test series against the West Indies, from which James Anderson is also absent.

England's all-time leading Test wicket-takers Broad and Anderson have been left out of the squad for next month's tour after a dismal Ashes series led to the departure of head coach Chris Silverwood.

Interim managing director of cricket Andrew Strauss, interim coach Paul Collingwood, and head scout James Taylor made up a three-man selection committee ahead of the series, which begins in Antigua on March 8, and have settled on a 16-man squad that does not include either of the seamers.

Despite Strauss contending that there was a way back for both bowlers, who have taken 1,177 Test wickets between them, Broad has used his newspaper column to hit out at the decision.

"I have to confess that I wasn't expecting the phone call I received from Andrew Strauss on Tuesday that started with him saying: 'I've got some bad news'," Broad wrote in the Daily Mail.

"I am waking up more confused and angrier with each passing day. I feel gutted. 

"Do I need to prove myself again? In my mind, I've nothing to prove. I am a proven performer, so it is now about the English cricketing summer and targeting the home series against New Zealand in June."

The 35-year-old pace bowler, whose tally of 73 career Test wickets against the West Indies is only beaten by Anderson's 87 amongst active players, also moved to defend his recent England performances and denied that any behind-the-scenes unrest had contributed to the decision.

"I could take being dropped if I had let my standards slip but being overlooked when they haven't is another thing," Broad's column continued.

"I am struggling to put things into context. It's hard to do so when all you've had is a five-minute phone call.

"If I had spoken to one person who had said they agreed with the decision to leave myself and Jimmy out, I could perhaps begin to understand. 

"Do I believe I warrant a place in England's best team? Of course, I do.

"People will ask if there has therefore been some fall-out behind the scenes, a bit of a rumble during the Ashes, but I can categorically say that is not the case. Hence, neither Jimmy nor I saw this coming. We were blindsided."

England's last series win in the West Indies came back in 2003-04.

Jamaica and Texas A&M high jumper Lamara Distin set the field alight with a new national record and world-leading mark at the Don Kirby Invitational on Friday.

The 21-year-old sophomore recorded a clearance of 1.92m, which bettered her own previous best of 1.88m that had seen her tied on the country’s national best list with two other jumpers, Kimberly Williamson and Sheree Ruff, for second place. 

Her new mark broke the record of 1.90m set in March 2002 by Maresa Cadienhead.  On the way to the record, Distin cleared heights of 1.78m, 1.83m, 1.86m, and 1.89m before soaring to the record and the event title.

The jump also moved Distin ahead of Texas Tech's Sydney Sapp in the NCAA leaders table after both were previously tied at 1.88m.

Jamaica Olympic bronze medallist Shericka Jackson clocked the fastest indoor time of her career over 60m for second place at the Tyson Invitational, held at the Randal Tyson Track Center on Friday.

Making her indoor debut for the season, Jackson clocked a new best of 7.12 but was well behind winner Mary Beth Sant-Price of the United States who clocked 7.04 to win the event. 

Sant-Price’s time is the second-fastest in the world this year behind Eva Swoboda who clocked 7.00 at the World Athletics Indoor Tour Silver meeting in Lodz.  Another Jamaican, Natasha Morrison finished third in 7.35, with the Bahamas’ Anthonique Strachan fifth in 7.41.  A third Jamaican in the race Shockoria Wallace finished 6^th in 7.47.

The men’s equivalent was captured by another Jamaica, Nigel Ellis, who took top spot in 6.90.  His compatriot long jumper Tajya Gayle, who is expected to do more sprinting this season, was second with 6.95, which was also his personal best.

In other events, Jamaica’s Ronald Levy finished third in the men’s 60m hurdles with a time of 7.98.  The event was won by Australia’s Chris Douglas in 7.64, with Jamal Britt second in 7.83.