Mavendra Dindyal

Edward, 18, got the ball rolling almost immediately with the wicket of England opened Jaydn Denly just four balls into the contest after the West Indies won the toss and put England in to bat.

Skipper Ben McKinney and Noah Thain then put on 50 for the second wicket before McKinney was Edward’s second victim for 26 in the 11^th over.

Thain and new batsman Hamza Shaikh then added a further 47 for the third wicket before Thain went for 40 in the 21^st over.

England then lost their next four wickets at 99, 120, 135 and 147 before eventually being bowled out for 192 in 46.3 overs.

Shaikh went on to top score with 53 while Edward, who also took two catches, finished with 3-28 from his 6.3 overs.

He was well supported by Raneico Smith (2-28), Isai Thorne (2-40) and Tarrique Edward (2-40).

The West Indians then lost eight wickets in a nervy chase, eventually bringing up the win reaching 196-8 after 41 overs.

Captain Stephan Pascal led the way with 58 off 84 balls while Edward made a match-winning 49* off 80 balls including five fours and a six.

After the wickets of Jordan Johnson for a rapid 17-ball 31 including four fours and two sixes, Mavendra Dindyal for 14 and Jewel Andrew, the tournament’s leading run-scorer heading into this game with scores of 130 against South Africa and 64* against Scotland, for just two, the West Indies were reeling at 98-5 in the 16^th over.

Pascal was then joined at the crease by Edward and the pair put on 51 before Pascal inexplicably tried to go over the top off leg-spinner Tazeem Ali only to be caught at mid-off in the 32^nd over.

The subsequent quick dismissal of Nathan Sealy for one in the 35^th over put the Windies in a tough spot at 156-7 but Nathan and Tarrique Edward were able go hold their nerve.

Tarrique Edward was eventually dismissed for 5 in the 40^th over with the Windies needing just one to win.

The West Indies are now through to the Super Sixes phase of the competition.

The top three from each group qualify for the Super Sixes stage. From there, the 12 teams will be divided into two groups of six each. The top two teams from each group will advance to the semi-finals.

Sri Lanka first posted 231 from their 50 overs after winning the toss and choosing to bat first at the Diamond Oval in Kimberley.

Dinura Kalupahana made 53 from 83 balls to lead the Sri Lankan batting effort while Malsha Tharupathi made 42 off 38 and Supun Waduge 31 off 40 to provide good support.

Raneico Smith took 4-47 from his 10 overs to lead the West Indian bowling effort while Nathan Edward took 2-47 from his nine overs. Nathan Sealy and Tarrique Edward took a wicket each.

The West Indies then completed a tense chase, reaching 232-7 from 49.3 overs.

Steven Wedderburn, playing only his second match of the tournament, led the way with a 71-ball 61 at the top of the order. His knock included five fours and three sixes.

He was well supported by Jordan Johnson who made 39 off 46 balls including four fours. Captain Stephan Pascal made a swift 26-ball 33 including five fours and a six.

The West Indies were cruising at 147-2 in the 27^th over before Wedderburn and Johnson fell in successive overs to leave the West indies 149-4 in the 28^th over.

The subsequent wickets of Mavendra Dindyal (17), Nathan Edward (13) and Jewel Andrew (11) left the West Indies in a tricky position at 206-7 in the 46^th over before a match-winning 26-run eighth wicket partnership between Nathan Sealy and Tarrique Edward.

Sealy finished 27* off 28 balls while Edward finished 11* off 13 balls.

Vishwa Lahiru took 2-32 from his 10 overs for Sri Lanka while Dinura Kalupahana and Sineth Jayawardena also took a pair of wickets, each.

The West Indies are now second in Group two of the Super Six with four points, the same as Australia who play England tomorrow. The Caribbean side will play Australia in their final Super Six game on Friday.

The top two teams in the group will advance to the semi-finals.

Top-order batter Stephan Pascal has been named as Captain with Nathan Sealy, the slow bowling allrounder as Vice-Captain. The 15-member squad features most of the players who toured Sri Lanka for three Youth One-Day Internationals (50-over matches) and two four-day “Test” matches in August and September.

The squad includes three players who played in the 2022 ICC Men’s U19 Cricket World Cup which was staged in the West Indies. They are: fast bowler Isai Thorne, left-handed allrounder Nathan Edward and left-handed batter Jordan Johnson.

Thorne made his first-class debut for the West Indies Academy against Emerging Ireland last month and impressed with his pace. He took 12 wickets in two matches at an average of 6.16 per wicket. Johnson joined the West Indies A Team on the recent tour of South Africa where he made his first-class debut in the third and final four-day “Test” match.

The squad has assembled in Antigua for a one-week camp at the Coolidge Cricket Ground. During the camp, they will have training and fitness sessions along with planning sessions and personal development workshops.

Lead Selector Robert Haynes said:

“We have named a balanced squad for the upcoming ICC Men’s U19 Cricket World Cup and we expect them to do very well in this prestigious international event. We had a good tour of Sri Lanka in August and September where the players gained valuable experience. This helped to prepare them for the upcoming assignment. Since that tour, we also had a camp in Trinidad where we played against the USA Under-19 and the Trinidad & Tobago Under-23 teams. They will be match-fit and mentally fully prepared when they journey to South Africa.”

Haynes added:

“This is a fantastic opportunity for these young men to represent the West Indies and showcase their talent, playing against their peers, in front of a global audience. This is a crucial stage in their development. They have received excellent preparation, help, and guidance from the coaches and support staff, and we expect to see them do very well.”

For the tournament, the West Indies have been drawn alongside hosts South Africa, Scotland, and England in Group B for their first-round matches. All three matches will be played at the J.B. Marks Oval in Potchefstroom. Before that, they will have warm-up matches against New Zealand and Nepal in Johannesburg.

India, who won the tournament in 2022 and are placed in Group A with Bangladesh, Ireland and the USA. Group C features Australia, Sri Lanka, Zimbabwe, and Namibia, while Group D is made up of Afghanistan, Pakistan, New Zealand and Nepal. The top three sides from each group will progress to the Super Six phase to be played from 30 January to 3 February. The Semi-Finals will be on 6 and 8 February and the Final is on 11 February at Willowmore Park in Benoni.

FULL SQUAD  

Stephan Pascal (Captain) – right-handed bat 

Nathan Sealy (Vice Captain) – right-handed bat/left-arm spin

Jewel Andrew – right-handed bat/wicket-keeper

Mavendra Dindyal – right-handed bat/right-arm leg-spin bowler

Joshua Dorne – right-handed bat

Nathan Edward – left-handed bat/left-arm fast bowler

Tarrique Edward – right-handed bat/right-arm off-spin bowler

Reon Edwards – left-handed bat/left-arm fast bowler

Deshawn James – right-handed bat/right-arm fast bowler

Jordan Johnson – left-handed bat

Devonie Joseph – left-handed bat/wicket-keeper

Raneico Smith – right-handed bat/right-arm fast bowler

Isai Thorne – right-handed bat/right-arm fast bowler

Steve Wedderburn – left-handed bat

Adrian Weir – right-handed bat 

Team Management

Rohan Nurse (Head Coach)

Rohan Clarke (Assistant Coach)

Nick Wilton (Assistant Coach)

Dwain Gill (Team Manager)

Dominic Angoy (Physiotherapist)

Gregory Seale (Strength and Conditioning Coach)

MATCH SCHEDULE 

Warm-up matches

Sunday, 14 January: vs New Zealand at Braamfischer Oval, Johannesburg

Tuesday, 16 January: vs Nepal at St Stithians, Johannesburg

First round – Group B

Friday, 19 January: vs South Africa at JB Marks Oval, Potchefstroom

Wednesday, 24 January: vs Scotland at JB Marks Oval, Potchefstroom

Friday, 26 January: vs England at JB Marks Oval, Potchefstroom