The day started with the Kings losing to the Middlesex United Stars in a super over.
The United Stars win the toss and elected to field first, restricting the Kings, albeit with a number of changes to their team, to 85-7 off their 10 overs with Kenroy Williams (22) and Xavier Burton (17) being the main scorers.
Tyrone Daley was the pick of the bowlers for the United Stars with 2-14 from his two overs.
Top scores of 38 not out from captain and West Indies opener John Campbell and 21 from Jamaica Scorpions all-rounder Alwyn Williams then allowed the United Stars to match the Kings total reaching 85-6 off 10 overs.
The same pair along with Daley then combined to post 13-1 in the super over before Ojay Shields restricted the Kings pair of Jeavor Royal and Brad Barnes to eight without loss to secure the win.
The Surrey Royals got the better of the Cornwall Warriors in the second match of the day by nine wickets.
The Royals restricted the Warriors to 86-6 off their 10 overs after winning the toss and choosing to field first.
Captain Damian Ebanks (25), Damion Bryce (21 not out) and Kerry Holness (18) were the main contributors for the Warriors against an excellent 2-8 off two overs from Jamaica Scorpions pacer Nicholson Gordon.
The Royals then successfully got to 87-1 off 8.1 overs thanks to 61 not out off 29 balls from wicketkeeper/batsman Romaine Morris.
With the league stage now completed, Wednesday will see the Cornwall Warriors and the Surrey Risers contest the fifth-place playoff, while the third-place playoff will be an all-Middlesex affair with the Titans taking on the United Stars before a champion is crowned on Thursday when the Surrey Royals and the Surrey Kings battle it out.
Campbell’s Scorpions are currently last in the standings after two rounds, with 8.8 points, and will take on the Windward Islands Volcanoes at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba from May 18-21.
The West Indies Test opener will go into round three coming off some good form in the recently concluded Dream 11 Jamaica T10 tournament where he finished as the leading run-scorer, with 302 runs in 11 matches, while captaining the Middlesex United Stars to a third-place finish.
The short turnaround between formats could pose a challenge to adapt for some batsmen but Campbell insists it’s the nature of the modern game.
“In this day and age there’s a lot of cricket being played so the waiting period between formats is, oftentimes, very slim,” said Campbell in a press conference on Monday, ahead of Wednesday’s game.
“We had an opportunity to play a three-day game before we left Jamaica and I’ve had numerous net sessions with coach Coley that were centred around the longer form of the game. I’m in a good place right now,” he added.
When asked what role he could play with the bat to help turn the Scorpions’ season around, Campbell had this to say.
“For me, It’s good starts. As an opener, setting the foundation for the rest of the innings is very important and we need big totals to win games.”
Opinion Reports by independent assessors at Loughborough University have revealed that the bowling actions of Campbell and Salmon exceeded the 15 degrees level of tolerance permitted under playing regulations.
Campbell and Salmon will remain suspended until their actions are found to be legal, either by an Opinion Report from Loughborough or by an independent analysis from an accredited testing centre, in accordance with the CWI Regulations for Dealing with Suspected Illegal Bowling Actions.
They are to undergo remedial work supervised by the Scorpions franchise and can apply for a reassessment after modifying their bowling actions in accordance with the Regulations.
Campbell, 26, was reported for a suspect bowling action during the first-round match between the Scorpions and hosts Trinidad &Tobago Red Force from January 9 to 12 at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad.
The West Indies Test opening batsman was cited by match officials after he captured 1-54 from 19 overs during the match, which ended in a draw.
Salmon, 27, was reported for a suspect bowling action during the fourth-round match between the Scorpions and five-time defending champions Guyana Jaguars from February 6 to 9 at the Guyana National Stadium.
His action was cited by match officials after he ended with match figures of 8-110 during the contest, which the Scorpions won by seven runs.
The hosts won the toss and decided to bowl first, a decision which proved to be correct as the tourists were, at one point, struggling mightily at 45-6 after 15 overs of play with three top-order batsmen being removed without scoring.
They eventually recorded six ducks in total as a fighting 51 from captain Shakib Al Hasan and 29 from opener Tamim Iqbal helped the Bangladeshis stumble to 103 all out after just 32.5 overs.
Jayden Seales (3-33 from 10 overs), Alzarri Joseph (3-33 from 8.5 overs), Kemar Roach (2-21 from eight overs) and Kyle Mayers (2-10 from five overs) were the wicket-takers for the hosts.
In their reply, the Windies ended the day 95-2 off 48 overs, trailing Bangladesh by just eight runs. Captain Kraigg Brathwaite (42) and Nkrumah Bonner (12) are the batsmen at the crease while John Campbell (24) and Raymon Reifer (11) are the batsmen dismissed so far.
Pacers Mustafizur Rahman and Ebadot Hossain took the wickets.
The saga began in April 2022 when Campbell was handed a four-year ban for refusing to submit a blood sample. Despite the ban being retroactively effective from May 10, 2022, Campbell and his attorneys were determined to fight the decision. In December 2022, they filed an appeal with CAS, seeking justice and the opportunity to clear Campbell's name.
Months have turned into years as the appeal process drags on. The matter was finally heard before CAS in April 2023, raising hopes for a resolution. However, those hopes were dashed when the decision, initially scheduled for August 31, 2023, was postponed repeatedly, with the latest ruling date set for May 31, 2024.
For Campbell, each postponement brings a fresh wave of frustration and uncertainty. The prolonged legal battle takes its toll on him, both mentally and emotionally. As a professional athlete, the uncertainty surrounding his future is particularly agonizing.
Unfortunately, Campbell's case is not an isolated incident. Many athletes, across different sports and countries, find themselves entangled in the web of the sports dispute resolution system, unable to access timely justice. The ineffective processes of CAS leave athletes like Campbell stranded, facing the daunting prospect of abandoning their careers due to the financial and emotional strain of prolonged legal battles.
Calls for reform echo loudly across the sporting world. Human rights experts urge CAS to overhaul its processes to ensure fairness and transparency for all athletes. Player associations, including the World Players’ Association (WPA), the Federation of Cricketers’ Association (FICA), and the West Indies Players’ Association (WIPA), stand in solidarity with Campbell, demanding immediate action from CAS.
Campbell, in truth, did indeed struggle to make a strong impression at the crease against England in July. The left-handed batsman averaged a paltry 16.8 while tallying only 84 runs in six innings as the regional side lost the three-Test series 2-1. Campbell was caught behind twice, while in the first innings of the final Test he was caught for 32 when attempting to negotiate a steep short delivery from Jofra Archer. Wallace believes those struggles should have cost the batsman his spot.
“John Campbell is a very lucky man, I wish him all the best but it’s 'very best' in common letters. He struggled in England and then came back and said why he struggled, and we are taking him for another tour of New Zealand, which is said will be tougher,” Wallace said on the Mason and Guest radio program.
Campbell was far from the only batsman that struggled in England, but Wallace believes that is a part of the broader issue and called for tougher decisions to be made when it comes to selection.
“We pick the same batsmen that struggled in England and are sending them to New Zealand, saying New Zealand is going to be a bit tougher. How are we going to get these guys to perform? These guys have no confidence and the selection panel is going back with the same guys tried and tested,” he added.
"There are some players that are biting at the bit to get a play and we are rewarding people with mediocre performances. They had all the opportunities in England. The board sent them up there a month before, they played wonderfully well in the first Test, they messed it up in the second and third and you are rewarding them for mediocrity with a tougher Test?”
Bangladesh started day four 132-6, trailing the Windies by 42 runs with Nurul Hasan on 16 and Mehidy Hasan yet to score.
After the entire morning session was delayed by rain and a wet outfield, proceedings got underway after lunch with the Windies quickly cleaning up the Bangladesh tail with the wickets of Mehidy Hasan (4), Ebadot Hossain (0), Shoriful Islam (0) and Khaled Ahmed (0).
Nurul Hasan was the only batsman to offer any resistance for Bangladesh with an aggressive 60 not out off 50 balls as the tourists were dismissed for 186 with Kemar Roach, Alzarri Joseph and Jayden Seales doing the damage with three wickets each.
Needing just 13 runs to win, West Indies openers Kraigg Brathwaite and John Campbell made short work of the total to secure the win and a 2-0 series triumph.
Final Scores: Bangladesh 234 and 186, West Indies 408 and 13-0.
Asked to face 26 testing overs at the end of the day, the West Indies reached 49 without loss. Kraigg Brathwaite and John Campbell on 20 and 22, respectively, will resume on Day 3 with the visitors still 470 runs behind a New Zealand total made possible by Kane Williamson’s imperious 251.
Resuming from his overnight score of 97 and New Zealand 243 for 2, the Black Caps captain’s marathon knock was the backbone of the home side’s massive total. Kane faced 412 deliveries in his almost 10 and a half hour stay at the crease.
Ross Taylor, who joined Williamson at the crease at 168 for 2, added seven runs to his overnight score of 31 before becoming Shannon Gabriel’s second victim when he edged to wicketkeeper Shamarh Brooks, who replaced an injured Shane Dowrich.
Williamson dominance of subsequent partnerships of 30 with Henry Nicholls (7); 72 with Tom Blundell (14) and 56 with Daryl Mitchell (9), emphasized his impact on the New Zealand’s innings. His was the last wicket New Zealand to fall when he was caught by Roston Chase at deep midwicket from an Alzarri Joseph after a 94-run seventh-wicket stand of 94 with Kyle Jamieson, who remained unbeaten on 51 when the declaration came.
Williamson’s 251 included 34 fours and two sixes.
Gabriel finished with 3 for 89, while Kemar Roach, who should have got Williamson’s wicket but for a no-ball, returned 3 for 114 from 30 overs. Joseph had figures of 1 for 99.
Heading into the series, concerns had been raised about how the team’s top order would fare against an experienced England bowling attack. So far, they have not proven to be unfounded. With the exception of Brathwaite, the top team’s top three has failed to fire so far.
John Campbell and Shai Hope have only managed to muster high scores of 28 and 25, respectively, so far this series, and failed to make it to double digits in two of four innings. Though offering no confirmation, Simmons admitted it could be time for some changes.
“It’s something that we have to look at over the next couple days and decide which direction we go then,” Simmons told members of the media, via a Zoom press conference.
“They haven’t fired so we have to consider it (changes) over the next couple days,” he added.
Since the team's successful tour of Bangladesh in February three players, John Campbell, Shai Hope, and Kieran Powell have been paired at the top of the innings with West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite.
To date, the pairing with the Brathwaite has not bred much success. Campbell has averaged 18.5 in eight innings, Powell 14.57 in seven innings, and Hope 15 in the one match played so far. The results have often left the team well short of a solid start that has not been a feature of its play in recent times.
“I still think we need to find another opener, we are still looking for an opener and one more top-class batsman in the middle,” Dujon told the Mason and Guest radio program.
“Right now we are not getting the results, we need good open partnerships and we have not been getting that,” he added.
Dujon believes that so far, the openers paired with Brathwaite have been plagued by shortcomings with playing the new ball.
“I just don’t get the feeling that he is playing down the right line, as an opening batsman playing a moving ball, I don’t think he gets down the wicket far enough,” he said of Powell.
Having only recently returned to the team, Hope has also been tried in the position. While he certainly believes that Hope should have a spot in the team, Dujon is convinced it is not at the top of the innings.
“He’s a very good player but he is not an opener. His style of play to open the batting in limited over cricket is fine. He should be in this batting line-up but somewhere around four or so.”
