Director of Cricket at Cricket West Indies, Miles Bascombe, says the standard of play in the just-concluded West Indies Championship is showing encouraging signs of alignment with the evolving demands of international Test cricket.

Speaking after the Guyana Harpy Eagles secured their third consecutive four-day title with a draw against Trinidad and Tobago Red Force on Saturday, Bascombe praised the quality of cricket on display throughout the competition, particularly the emergence of fast bowlers and the improved application from batters.

“I think that it’s trending in the right direction,” Bascombe said. “Some quality fast bowlers are coming through, batsmen are putting down their heads, spending time at the wicket, showing some aggression, trying to move the game along. It’s trending the same way that we see Test cricket trending generally.”

He added that the developments are consistent with CWI’s long-term ambitions. “It’s good signs for what we want to do going forward in Test cricket. We have to model our style of play against what is happening in the international game, and I think I’ve seen enough signs to show that we can develop a Test team that will be able to compete against the best in the world.”

Guyana Harpy Eagles captain Tevin Imlach was equally pleased as he reflected on a campaign that saw his side go undefeated en route to lifting the trophy once again.

“It feels great,” Imlach said. “The guys worked hard throughout the season, and to see it come together in the end and come out victorious is brilliant. The guys played good cricket throughout, so it's a magnificent feeling. Well done to the guys.”

The Harpy Eagles came into the season as defending champions, a position Imlach said they approached with both humility and clarity of purpose.

“We really just wanted to take it a game at a time, learn from last year and build on that. We had a good season last year, did some good things, but we also wanted to see growth from the players,” he said.

That growth, he noted, came in the form of several young contributors stepping up. “We had young Kevin Anderson, Matthew Nandu—all these players came together and really grew from last year to this year. It's magnificent to see, both for Guyana cricket and West Indies cricket as well.”

The Guyana Harpy Eagles finished the season unbeaten, winning five of their seven matches and drawing the other two.