Members of the West Indies Test squads from the recent tours to Zimbabwe and South Africa are expected to feature in the upcoming matches in the West Indies Championship. Cricket West Indies (CWI) announced the six franchise squads for the third round of matches which start on Wednesday 15 March.
Left-handed batter Alick Athanaze will return to captain Windward Islands Volcanoes against Jamaica Scorpions, who will have experienced batter Nkrumah Bonner back in their line-up for the match at the Guyana National Stadium.
Devon Thomas, the versatile wicket-keeper/batter, has been named in the Leeward Islands Hurricanes 13-member squad for the match against Barbados Pride at the Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad. The third match of the third round will see Trinidad & Tobago Red Force hosting the Guyana Harpy Eagles at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy.
Entering the third round, Athanaze is among the leading batters with 244 runs (average 61). He made his maiden first-class century (141) against Guyana Harpy Eagles last month. He is second spot behind Trinidad & Tobago Red Force skipper Daren Bravo who has scored 261 runs (average 87) – which included twin centuries against Leeward Islands Hurricanes.
Third in the list are young openers Kimani Melius of Windward Islands Volcanoes and Matthew Nandu of Guyana Harpy Eagles, who both have 204 runs (average 51). Both scored breakthrough maiden first-class centuries in the first round – Melius made 192 against Trinidad & Tobago Red Force and Nandu got 126 against Barbados Pride. Melius will however miss the third round with an injury.
In the bowling, the leading wicket-taker after two rounds is Akeem Jordan, the Barbados Pride pacer, who picked up 12 wickets and was named in the Test squad for the tour of South Africa. Next is Veerasammy Permaul, the experienced Guyana Harpy Eagles left-arm spinner with 11 wickets – which included his 500th at the first-class level for his country. Three bowlers are tied on 10 wickets – Rahkeem Cornwall of Leeward Islands Hurricanes, Ryan John of Windward Islands Volcanoes and Bryan Charles of Trinidad & Tobago Red Force.
Every West Indies Championship match will be streamed LIVE on the Windies Cricket YouTube channel. Fans can follow every game from their mobile devices, computers or connected TVs, including access to live ball-by-ball scoring on the windiescricket.com match centre.
The new Headley Weekes Series will follow the West Indies Championship and will feature three matches and three teams. Team Headley and Team Weekes will select from the best performers in the 2023 West Indies Championship and players outside the starting West Indies Test XI. The new West Indies Academy will provide the third team in the new Series.
WEST INDIES CHAMPIONSHIP ROUNDS 3 – FULL SQUADS:
Barbados Pride: Shane Dowrich (captain), Camarie Boyce, Jonathan Carter, Dominic Drakes, Jonathan Drakes, Chaim Holder, Jair McAllister, Zachary McCaskie, Shayne Moseley, Roshon Primus, Ramon Simmonds, Shamar Springer, Kevin Wickham
Guyana Harpy Eagles: Leon Johnson (captain), Antony Adams, Kevlon Anderson, Anthony Bramble, Ronsford Beaton, Tevin Imlach, Shamar Joseph, Matthew Nandu, Keemo Paul, Veerasammy Permaul, Kemol Savory, Kevin Sinclair, Nial Smith
Jamaica Scorpions: Paul Palmer jr. (captain), Nkrumah Bonner, Tevin Gilzene, Derval Green, Nicholson Gordon, Patrick Harty, Leroy Lugg, Kirk McKenzie, Abhijai Mansingh, Jamie Merchant, Marquino Mindley, Ojay Shields, Aldaine Thomas
Leeward Islands Hurricanes: Jahmar Hamilton (captain), Colin Archibald, Larry Audain, Sheeno Berridge, Rahkeem Cornwall, Karima Gore, Montcin Hodge, Kofi James, Jeremiah Louis, Kieran Powell, Akeem Saunders, Devon Thomas, Hayden Walsh jr.
Trinidad & Tobago Red Force Daren Bravo (captain), Bryan Charles, Jyd Goolie, Amir Jangoo, Imran Khan, Justin Mannick, Jason Mohammed, Vikash Mohan, Uthman Muhammad, Khary Pierre, Keagan Simmons, Jeremy Solozano, Tion Webster
Windward Islands Volcanoes: Alick Athanaze (captain), Sunil Ambris, Teddy Bishop, Kenneth Dember, Larry Edward, Justin Greaves, Kavem Hodge, Johan Jeremiah, Ryan John, Shermon Lewis, Preston McSween, Jerlani Robinson, Tevyn Walcott
WEST INDIES CHAMPIONSHIP RESULTS
ROUND 1
Guyana Harpy Eagles beat Barbados Pride by 183 runs
Windward Islands Volcanoes drew with Trinidad & Tobago Red Force
Leeward Islands Hurricanes drew with Jamaica Scorpions
ROUND 2
Barbados Pride beat Jamaica Scorpions by 6 wickets
Trinidad & Tobago Red Force drew with Leeward Islands Hurricanes
Windward Islands Volcanoes drew with Guyana Harpy Eagles
FULL MATCH SCHEDULE
GNS – Guyana National Stadium, Guyana
BLCA – Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad
QPO – Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad
ROUND 3: 15 to 18 March
Jamaica Scorpions v Windward Islands Volcanoes at GNS
Trinidad & Tobago Red Force v Guyana Harpy Eagles at BLCA
Leeward Islands Hurricanes v Barbados Pride at QPO
ROUND 4: 22 to 25 March
Guyana Harpy Eagles vs Jamaica Scorpions at GNS
Trinidad & Tobago Red Force v Barbados Pride at QPO
Leeward Islands Hurricanes v Windward Islands Volcanoes at BLCA
ROUND 5: 29 March to 1 April
Guyana Harpy Eagles v Leeward Islands Hurricanes at GNS
Trinidad & Tobago Red Force v Jamaica Scorpions at BLCA
Barbados Pride v Windward Islands Volcanoes at QPO
Headley Weekes Tri-Series
All matches to be played at CCG, Antigua
Match 1: 19 to 22 April: Team Headley v West Indies Academy
Match 2: 26 to 29 April: Team Weekes v West Indies Academy
Match 3: 3 to 6 May: Team Weekes v Team Headley
Barbados Pride soar into CG United Super50 final after commanding 153-run win over T&T Red Force
Barbados Pride delivered a clinical performance to storm into the CG United Super50 Cup final, as they hammered defending champions Trinidad and Tobago Red Force by a massive 153 runs in their semi-final clash at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy on Wednesday.
This victory propelled the Pride—who last tasted glory in the 2016-17 season and reached their last final in 2017-18—into contention for their seventh title.
Scores: Barbados Pride 339-7 (50 overs); Trinidad and Tobago Red Force 186 all out (36.3 overs)
After being sent in to bat, the Pride’s openers, Zachary McCaskie and Leniko Boucher, laid the foundation with a scintillating 142-run partnership. McCaskie, the more aggressive of the pair, entertained with a blistering 94 off just 82 deliveries, smashing six boundaries and six towering sixes.
However, his departure, courtesy of Mark Deyal, did little to disrupt the Pride’s momentum.
This, as Captain Raymond Reifer joined the fray with a brisk 65 and added another crucial 50-run stand with Boucher, who contributed a steady 69 off 84 balls in a knock that had seven boundaries. Reifer's 60-ball knock, which included six fours and a six, epitomized controlled aggression that applied further pressure to the Red Force bowlers.
Even when Boucher fell to Deyal and Kevin Wickham (14) went to spinner Khary Pierre, Reifer, and Roston Chase (43), on return from West Indies duties, added another 50 for the fourth wicket.
Chase’s quick-fire 31-ball knock, which had only two fours and a six, ensured the Pride capitalized on the foundation laid by the top order.
Reifer eventually became Deyal’s third scalp, and Chase went to Shannon Gabriel, but the damage was already done as the Pride were at 297-5 at that point. The lower order contributed the remaining runs to the daunting total.
Deyal stood out for the Red Force with figures of 4-53, but his efforts were insufficient to stem the tide.
Facing a mountain of runs, the Red Force faltered early and never recovered. The only bright spot in their reply was a 68-run second wicket partnership between Tion Webster and Amir Jangoo (16). Webster’s aggressive 56 off 47 balls, which featured eight boundaries and a six, gave fleeting hope before he became the fourth wicket to fall with the score at 91.
After Webster’s dismissal, Deyal (34) and Isiah Rajah (28) added a brief 53-run stand for the seventh wicket, but the Red Force were ultimately bowled out for a paltry 186 in just 36.3 overs.
Dominic Drakes led the Pride’s bowling charge with 3-24, with Chase (2-40) and Kemar Smith (2-42) also doing some damage.
The Pride’s dominance sets up a highly anticipated final against the winner of the Jamaica Scorpions versus Leeward Islands Hurricanes semi-final, scheduled for Thursday.
Finish well: Andre Coley eyes redemption, momentum as Windies gear up for Bangladesh Test
West Indies Head coach Andre Coley is exuding quiet confidence as his team prepares for their upcoming two-match Test series against Bangladesh.
With the matches—scheduled for November 22-26 in Antigua and November 30 to December 4 in Kingston—marking the final home series in the current World Test Championship cycle, Coley is determined to see the Caribbean side end the year on a high note after recent setbacks.
The West Indies are coming off a disappointing tour of South Africa, where they failed to capitalize on key moments and eventually lost that two-match series 1-0 after the first game ended in a draw. Reflecting on those matches, Coley stressed the importance of learning from the past and seizing the opportunity to close out this series on a strong note.
“Coming off the disappointment of the South Africa series, we put ourselves in a position to close out that series, and we didn’t. So the opportunity is there for us to do so against Bangladesh now, and it is very important for us to come up with a winning result on home soil,” Coley said in a pre-series interview.
“We’ve always had exciting and challenging series against Bangladesh, and this series offers a chance to create momentum as we head into tougher assignments in Australia and Pakistan,” he added.
Coley and his team, which includes players from the regional 50-over tournament and recent white-ball series, are currently in Antigua fine-tuning preparations ahead of Friday’s first day.
Despite initial weather disruptions, Coley pointed out that the team has had productive sessions, with all players fit and ready for action.
While West Indies boast a strong home record against Bangladesh, Coley is keen to keep his squad grounded. He recognizes the challenges posed by Bangladesh and the added intrigue of familiar faces on the opposition side, including Bangladesh Head coach Chandika Hathurusingha, a figure Coley knows well.
“Each match brings a different opportunity. We have players who’ve been successful against Bangladesh, both home and away, but we also have some new players who wouldn’t have played in any of those series. So it’s an opportunity for senior players and emerging players to show what they are capable of and what we are capable of as a team,” Coley noted.
The series against Bangladesh serves as a vital stepping stone beyond the larger context of the World Test Championship, as West Indies sit at the foot of the standings in ninth on 20 points.
Still, with four matches left in the cycle, Coley is focused on building a cohesive unit capable of competing at the highest level.
“This series is about putting everything together from the last year and a half and ending the year in good form,” he declared.
That said, the Jamaican highlighted the importance of fan support, especially during the festive season. Cricket remains a unifying force in the Caribbean, and Coley hopes that fans will rally behind the team.
“I know that the West Indian fans really want us to do well and have been supportive in their own way because cricket means a lot to the region and the fans are very passionate about the game. Despite the nature of our squad, emerging and experienced players, everyone in the squad wants to do well, so I want to encourage the fans to come out and support us and give us that extra boost of encouragement at home,” Coley ended.
Global Super League announces schedule change ahead of 2024 Tournament
The ExxonMobil Guyana Global Super League (GSL) has announced a schedule adjustment ahead of its inaugural tournament, which is set to take place at the Guyana National Stadium, Providence. The final will now be held on Friday, 6 December 2024, while the match between Hampshire Hawks and Victoria has been rescheduled to 10:00 AM on Thursday, 5 December 2024.
The tournament, featuring five teams—Guyana Amazon Warriors, Hampshire Hawks, Lahore Qalandars, Rangpur Riders, and Victoria—kicks off on Tuesday, 26 November 2024.
Sir Clive Lloyd, Chairman of the GSL, explained that the schedule changes were made in consultation with Cricket West Indies to avoid potential clashes with preparations for the West Indies' ODI series against Bangladesh.
“While the squads for the West Indies ODI series against Bangladesh have not yet been announced, we wanted to ensure that there was no chance of a clash between the conclusion of the GSL and the preparations for that series,” Lloyd said. “This decision has been made after discussions with Cricket West Indies to ensure the integrity of both the West Indies vs Bangladesh series and the GSL.”
Ticket holders for the affected matches can still use their existing tickets for entry. Those unable to attend the rescheduled games will be eligible for a full refund.
Revised Schedule for the 2024 Global Super League
26 November, 7:00 PM: Guyana Amazon Warriors vs Lahore Qalandars
27 November, 7:00 PM: Hampshire Hawks vs Rangpur Riders
29 November, 7:00 PM: Guyana Amazon Warriors vs Victoria
30 November, 10:00 AM: Hampshire Hawks vs Lahore Qalandars
1 December, 10:00 AM: Rangpur Riders vs Victoria
1 December, 7:00 PM: Guyana Amazon Warriors vs Hampshire Hawks
3 December, 7:00 PM: Victoria vs Lahore Qalandars
4 December, 7:00 PM: Guyana Amazon Warriors vs Rangpur Riders
5 December, 10:00 AM: Hampshire Hawks vs Victoria
5 December, 7:00 PM: Lahore Qalandars vs Rangpur Riders
6 December, 7:00 PM: Final – First Place vs Second Place
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