West Indies captain Kieron Pollard was encouraged by the batting unit’s approach to Friday’s T20 International against India, even if he was admittedly disappointed with the result.
The West Indies found themselves on the losing side of another series, after going down by 8 runs to India on Friday. The result saw the South Asian team claim an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series, after winning the opener by 7 wickets.
This time, however, in pursuit of a solid 186 for 5, the team went a lot closer to the target and was more comfortable in the run chase. A 100-run partnership from Nicholas Pooran and Rovman Powell got the team close to India's score, and, in fact, until a miserly 18th over from Harshal Patel it seemed the West Indies were favourites to level the series.
According to the West Indies captain, while the team may have come up just short on runs, the approach was closer to what was required.
“I thought the partnership with him (Rovman Powell) and Pooran almost got us over the line. Sometimes that’s all we are asking from the guys to bat as deep as possible and for me, I’m pleased, obviously not with the result but with the way they continue to aim for consistency,” he added.
The partnership was the fourth-highest between two Windies players since 2019, adding to an overall 306 scored in 6 matches, whenever the duo of Powell and Pooran has come together during that time.
“Nicholas got another half-century, Powell has gotten two in the last four games, so, we are making progress.”
Rohit Sharma praised India for a "phenomenal finish" as they halted the West Indies' chase on Friday to clinch the Twenty20 series and reach 100 wins in the format.
India won for an eighth consecutive T20I match, a new record for the nation, as they defeated the tourists by seven runs in Kolkata.
After Rohit and Ishan Kishan managed just 21 runs between them, Virat Kohli and player of the match Rishabh Pant settled any anxiety at the crease by scoring 52 each, with eight boundaries apiece.
Pant's half-century came off just 28 deliveries, while Kohli's score took him to within just three runs of equalling Martin Guptill's T20I record of 3,299 runs.
The West Indies mounted a strong chase, with Nicholas Pooran hitting 62 before being caught off Bhuvneshwar Kumar's delivery – a crucial wicket with just 15 balls remaining.
Rovman Powell's 68 dragged them close to a win, but Harshal Patel and Bhuvneshwar's expert final overs saw India over the line.
"You are always a bit scared when you are playing against these guys. In the end, it was a phenomenal finish," said Rohit.
"Right from the start, we knew it wouldn't be easy. But I am proud we executed our plans under pressure."
Brilliant Bhuvi
The experience of Bhuvneshwar proved key as the West Indies cranked up the pressure. The 32-year-old finished on 1-29 from four overs, giving up just two boundaries and signing off with just four singles and the wicket of Pooran from his final over.
"It was very critical at that point when Bhuvneshwar bowled," said Rohit. "That's where experience comes into play. Bhuvi has been doing it for many years and we believe in him a lot."
No century celebrations for Pollard
Kieron Pollard became the first West Indies player to reach 100 T20I appearances and the ninth overall in international cricket, although he could not mark the occasion by hitting the single six needed to reach a century in the format.
Pollard, who gave up 14 runs in his solitary over and scored three off the bat from as many deliveries, said of the finish: "We cannot call the batters out. We can look at it in different ways how we could have got those eight runs. We are a work in progress."
The Jamaica Athletic Administrative Association (JAAA) has congratulated middle-distance runner Natoya Goule for establishing a new national indoor 800m record in France on Thursday.
The Barbados Pride secured their second win in as many games in the West Indies Championship with a 10-wicket win over the Jamaica Scorpions on day four at the Kensington Oval on Friday.
Entering day four 56-1, the Scorpions looked fairly comfortable throughout the first two sessions, losing only three more wickets to be 174-4 at the tea interval.
That comfort disappeared quickly as they lost their final six wickets in quick succession, eventually being bowled out for 233 leaving the Pride needing just 41 for victory.
Jermaine Blackwood got a top score of 61 while Jamie Merchant chipped in with 47 for the Scorpions against 6-78 from Jomel Warrican.
Kraigg Brathwaite and Shayne Moseley then ensured that the Pride got to their target with no problems, reaching 42-0 with Moseley finishing on 34 and Brathwaite on seven.
The Scorpions join the Windward Islands Volcanoes as losers of their first two games.
Final Scores: Jamaica Scorpions 328 and 233, Barbados Pride 521-8 declared and 42-0.
Cricket West Indies (CWI) and Koninklijke Nederlandse Cricket Board (KNCB) announced the match schedule for the West Indies Men’s first-ever One Day International (ODI) tour of the Netherlands in 2022.
Despite a 100-run fourth-wicket partnership between Nicholas Pooran and Rovman Powell, the West Indies lost the second T20 International against India by eight runs at Eden Gardens on Friday. The loss means India takes an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match series.
A five-wicket haul from pace bowler, Alzarri Joseph, capped off a sensational overall Leeward Islands Hurricanes performance as they ended with an innings and 57 run win over the Guyana Harpy Eagles, in the West Indies Championship, at Queens Park Oval on Thursday.
In pursuit of the Leewards massive first innings total of 438 for 7 declared, Guyana were dismissed for 265, after Joseph did his part by ripping through the top order. Chanderpaul Hemraj led the resistance from the top of the innings but could not find steady partners before being himself being bowled for 50 by Jeremiah Louis.
Anthony Bramble took up the challenge next and added 58, while Gudakesh Motie made 49 at the bottom of the order but it was never close to being enough. In support of Joseph, Louis and Collin Archibald each claimed two wickets.
Earlier, resuming the day at 366 for 5, already with a lead of 250 runs, the team added another 72 before announcing their declaration. Ward, who resumed the day on 46, moved on to 78, following the departures of Rahkeem Cornwall, who only added two to his overnight 13, and Archibald who added a quick-fire 38.
For Guyana, Motie finished with figures of 3 for 111, while Nial Smith took 3 for 100.
Jamaica Reggae Girlz striker, Khadijah Shaw, bagged a brace as the team kicked off its World Cup qualification campaign in strong fashion with a 4-0 win over Bermuda at the National Stadium on Thursday.
After missing several presentable opportunities early on, against a game Bermuda unit, Jamaica finally took the lead in the 21st minute when Jodi Brown opened the scoring. Trudy Carter doubled the team’s lead 9 minutes later after booting the ball into the net from around 8 yards, profiting from a late run into the box and a searching cutback from Brown on the flank.
Shaw, who headed the ball onto the ball early on, looked to have earned a penalty when she was brought down midway the second half by Bermuda goalkeeper Micah Pond, but her protest was waved off by the referee.
The Manchester City forward made no mistake in the 79th minute, adding the team’s third after smashing the ball high into the net from close range, after the goalkeeper had parried an effort from winger Kalyssa Van Zanten. She added her second only moments from the final whistle after picking up the ball ten yards from goal, swiveling around her defender, and firing home.
The team will face Grenada in the second match of the round on Sunday.
Jamaican Olympian Natoya Goule set a new national record in an impressive win at the women’s 800m at the Meeting Hauts-de-France Pas-de-Calais, in France, on Thursday.
Goule threw down an early-season marker after winning the event in 1:58.46, which was also a new world-leading time. The Jamaican finished ahead of Ugandan World 800m champion Halimah Nakaayi who clocked an indoor personal best 1:58.58. Kenya’s Eglay Nalyanya was third in 2:00.26.
Goule took charge after the pacemaker breezed through the first 400m at 57.56. The Jamaican was through 600m in 87.64 but was trailed closely by Nakaayi who came into the event with the world lead.
The Ugandan looked comfortable and tried to push past Goule on the inside but was smartly closed off by the Jamaican and did not have the speed to go around down the stretch.
The event marked the first time the Jamaican was going dipping below 1:59:00 indoors and also beat her previous national record of 1:59.13 set in 2019.
A career best first-class score of 276 from Barbados Pride and West Indies Test captain, Kraigg Brathwaite, put his team in strong position after Thursday’s third day of their West Indies Championship fixture against the Jamaica Scorpions at the Kensington Oval.
The Pride started day three on 243-2 off 78 overs, trailing the Scorpions first innings score of 328 by 85 runs with Brathwaite on 137 and Raymon Reifer on 55.
The Barbados batsmen ensured that the Jamaicans would spend the bulk of the day in the field, eventually declaring after tea on a mammoth 521-8, a lead of 193 runs.
Brathwaite’s 276, his 25th first-class century, came off 406 balls and included 18 fours, while Reifer supported with 71 from 162 balls. Jonathan Carter also contributed 68 off 164 balls.
Patrick Harty was the most successful Jamaica Scorpions bowler with 5-111 off 35 overs.
In their second innings reply, the Scorpions ended the day 56-1 off 17 overs, trailing the Pride by 137 runs with captain John Campbell on 15 and Jermaine Blackwood on 24.
Jamaican Olympic sprinter, Shericka Jackson, has secured another significant milestone in her career after becoming the first brand ambassador for the Scotia Group.
Jackson cemented her place in the bank’s 132-year history, in Jamaica, when she signed her first local corporate endorsement deal on Thursday.
The sponsorship arrangement with the financial institution comes months ahead of the 2022 World Athletics Championships scheduled for July 15-24 in the United States and will see the bank giving support to the athlete’s career for the next three years.
The partnership will see the two-time Olympian representing Scotiabank as she competes across the globe and continues to excel both on and off the track.
Audrey Tugwell-Henry, President and CEO, Scotia Group Jamaica, lauded Jackson for her career accomplishments and welcomed her to the Scotiabank family.
“We are beyond elated to welcome Shericka to the Scotiabank family and we are very honoured to be part of her journey. This is a proud ‘first’ for us at Scotiabank and we are very excited to be able to partner with such a dynamic athlete, who is loved both locally and internationally,” she said.
Noting that Scotiabank has been a long-time supporter of sports development regionally, Tugwell Henry shared that the Olympian will also be involved in promoting the many financial solutions that the Bank offers and will be involved in the company’s philanthropic efforts that uplift and inspire young people.
“At Scotiabank, we are big on both youth and sports development, which is evidenced through our various youth sports sponsorships and other community-based ventures over the years. This partnership also perfectly aligns with our overarching philanthropic focus. We look forward to involving Shericka in our future initiatives as she continues to inspire young people to strive for excellence,” Tugwell-Henry shared.
Speaking at the celebratory event held in her honour, Jackson expressed gratitude to Scotiabank for supporting her career and registered her readiness to represent the brand.
“I feel very excited and honoured to be welcomed to the Scotiabank family and I am tremendously grateful to the institution for investing in my abilities and dreams,” the Olympian stated.
“Growing up as a young person in Jamaica, I have always known Scotiabank to be a trusted financial force which has a longstanding reputation of being safe, dependable and innovative - much like my own ongoing ambitions in athletics, and so this partnership represents a perfect synergy for both of us,” Jackson added.
Jackson is a dynamic sprinter who has accumulated numerous medals in the 400 metres, 4x400m relay and most recently, 100, 200 and 4x100m events. Last year, she won a bronze medal in the 100 metres at the 2020 Tokyo Olympics, while forming part of the Jamaican sprint queen trio, that dominated the track throughout the season. She also won gold for Jamaica at the Tokyo Olympics, running the anchor leg on the Jamaican 4x100m relay team.
She is one of few women to simultaneously run sub-11 and sub-22 seconds in the 100 and 200 m respectively, and have a personal best below 50 seconds in the 400-metre event.
Reggae Girlz and Manchester City forward Khadijah Shaw has expressed confidence ahead of the team’s match-up against Bermuda in the opening match of the CONCACAF Women’s Championship on Thursday.
The competition will be the official start of the team’s campaign to qualify for the 2023 FIFA Women's World Cup in Australia and New Zealand. Despite facing lower-ranked opposition, the team will not be kicking off its journey in ideal circumstances.
Several players who were part of the history-making World Cup squad are unavailable for the fixture due to injury or other reasons. In addition, the team will feature a number of new players and has had limited time to work out its kinks. The situation has given interim coach Vin Blaine plenty of pause for thought, but Shaw remains confident the squad will be capable of racking up positive results in this round.
“Football is a team sport, I trust my teammates. There’s a reason why they are here, and the coach selected them, and I trust the coaching staff as well,” said Shaw, in assessing the situation.
“We have to just come in and understand each other as fast as possible. It’s not ideal right now but I trust my teammates and I really do think we can get the job done despite other players not being here.”
The team will also travel away to face Grenada in the second match of the window.
A dispute over the use of player agents is said to be one of the key issues at the heart of allegations of player victimisation, which roiled West Indies cricket a few weeks ago.
The controversial issue was brought to the fore during the England tour of the Caribbean after all-rounder Odean Smith was dropped from the team ahead of the third T20 international. Reports of the accusations were initially downplayed by Cricket West Indies president Ricky Skerrit and the senior members of the team’s hierarchy as an attempt to distract.
The CWI hierarchy has, however, since met with representatives of the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) to address the claims and the body’s Honourary General Secretary Wayne Lewis has confirmed that there are in fact a few issues to resolve.
“There were complaints to WIPA about things that happened, they were uncomfortable because of the situation, they were very unhappy and so we sat with Cricket West Indies and spoke about it,” Lewis told the Mason and Guest radio program.
“The complaint was that members within the cricket West Indies set-up were calling franchises overseas and advising them that particular players would not be given NOCs to play, and we thought that was odd because we have an MOU and a protocol that covers that, that did not include anyone from that area,” he added.
“There were situations where players were encouraged to change their agents to go with an agent of their (CWIs) choice and the players were resisting that because they had their own agents already. So that made them a little uncomfortable as well, so these issues needed to be addressed, so we did the proper thing by talking to the CWI to get to the bottom of it.”
Lewis revealed that talks between the bodies had continued to be cooperative but that a complete solution on how to address the issue had not yet been reached.
The West Indies squad have flatly rejected the suggestions that Smith's omission from the match was anything other than tactical.
The Leeward Islands' top three batsmen Montcin Hodge, Kieran Powell, and Devon Thomas, all registered scores in the 70s as the Hurricanes heaped misery upon Guyana Harpy Eagles on day two of the West Indies Championship at the Queen's Park Oval.
Resuming the day on 116 with loss, already 10 ahead of where they had previously left Guyana all-out, the team added another 36 runs before the Eagles claimed their first wicket.
Powell was the first to go, after being bowled for 74 by Nial Smith. But there was no respite, as Thomas joined Hodge at the crease and the two put on a further 85 before Thomas was dismissed for 72.
Hodge looked well set for a triple-digit tally but only lasted another five overs as he was dismissed for 72 off the bowling of Clinton Pestano, with the team at 246 for 3. Guyana broke through soon after, with Gudakesh Motie claiming Kofi James for 11.
The Eagles faced another chastening spell at the crease, however, after Jahmar Hamilton and Terance Ward put on an 85 run partnership for the 5th wicket. Hamilton was eventually dismissed for 48 after being trapped lbw by Smith. At the close of play, Ward remained unbeaten on 46 with Rahkeem Cornwall on 13.
The Leewards ended the day on 366 for 5 a lead of 250 runs.
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