Rohit Sharma says India were willing to be bowled out for a low score in the first innings to avoid defeat in their 2-0 series sweep over Bangladesh.

The second Test was severely hampered by rain, with days two and three lost due to the weather, but the hosts eventually prevailed in a seven-wicket victory.

However, in their return to action on day four, India first dismissed Bangladesh for 233 before setting a record first-innings run rate for any men’s Test, declaring on 285-9, to put themselves in the driving seat on the final day.

In a dominant performance, they bowled the tourists out for 146, before reaching their target of 95 in just over an hour, claiming their 18th consecutive home Test series win.

And they certainly started fast on Monday. They scored at a rate of 8.2 runs per over through their 34.4 overs before declaring, the fastest-ever rate recorded by any team in the first innings of a men's Test.

In the first innings, Rohit got off to a flying start, hitting 23 off 11 balls, including successive sixes off the first two, but Yashasvi Jaiswal was the star, scoring half-centuries in both innings, and the captain said they decided the reward would be worth the risk.

"We had to think a lot [about] how the game can keep moving forward once we lost two-and-a-half days," Rohit said.

"When we came on day four, we thought, okay, let's try and get them out as quickly as possible and then see with the bat what we can do.

"Once they had got 230-odd, we said it was not about the runs we got, but it was about the overs we wanted to bowl at them. It meant we had to try and up the run-rate, and score as many as possible because the pitch did not have much for the bowlers.

"To make a game out of that pitch was a super effort from the bowlers, and then for the batters to buy into that thought of going and getting the runs as quickly as possible," Rohit said.

"It was a risk we were willing to take because when you're trying to bat like that, it is very easy that you can get bundled out for a low score as well.

"But we were ready with that factor as well, that even if we get all out for 100-150, we wanted to give ourselves a chance to be in the game and try and get a result."

Yashasvi Jaiswal got another half-century, helping India to a 2-0 series sweep over Bangladesh, claiming a seven-wicket win in what had looked like it would be an unlikely victory in a rain-affected second test.

After setting a new first-innings run-rate record on day four, having lost two days to rain, India followed it up with another strong performance on Tuesday.

Bangladesh started the day on 26-2, but with India's bowlers in fine form, they struggled to really get going, even with Shadman Islam bringing up a half-century.

Ravindra Jadeja (3-34) and Jasprit Bumrah (3-17) stunted any momentum as Bangladesh suffered a collapse of 7 for 55 and were bowled out for 146.

That left India with a target of 95, which they cruised to in just over an hour, despite losing three wickets in the chase.

Jaiswal set them on their way with a 45-ball 51, but it was Rishabh Pant (4) who hit the winning runs to get India over the line. 

Data Debrief: Clean sweep

While day five did not quite hit the record-breaking heights of day four for India, it was still a success as they earned an 18th consecutive Test series win at home. 

The 312 balls India batted for in this Test is just the second-fewest they have faced to win a Test match, behind the 281 against South Africa in Cape Town earlier this year.

Ravichandran Ashwin, who finished the series with 114 runs and 11 wickets and was named Player of the Series, has now received the award 11 times in men's Tests, the joint-most by anyone in the format alongside Muttiah Muralitharan.

Ashwin has won more Player of the Series awards than Player of the Match awards (10) in Tests.

After 30 matches in the preliminary phase, we have finally come to the portion of the 2024 Caribbean Premier League where a champion will be crowned…the playoffs.

The four-match spectacle, all to take place at the Providence Stadium in Guyana, is set to bowl off with the eliminator on Tuesday evening between the Trinbago Knight Riders and the Barbados Royals.

The loser of that encounter will unfortunately see their 2024 CPL campaign come to an end while the winner will advance to the second qualifier to face the loser of Wednesday’s Qualifier 1 between hosts, defending champions and league-phase table toppers, the Guyana Amazon Warriors and the St. Lucia Kings.

That game will take place on Friday and the winner will face the winner of Qualifier 1 in the final on Sunday.

The Kings are the only team in these playoffs yet to lift a CPL title, finishing as runners up in consecutive years in 2020 and 2021.

The Knight Riders will be looking to add to their record four titles, with the last one coming in 2020.

The Royals are two-time champions, with their wins coming in 2014 and 2019 when they were named the ‘Tridents.’

The Amazon Warriors won their first title last year after being beaten finalists five times from 2013-2019.

With all that in mind, let’s take a closer look at some of the key players for each franchise heading into the business end of the tournament.

Guyana Amazon Warriors

Shimron Hetmyer

The 27-year-old left-hander has had an excellent season with the bat for the defending champions. The former West Indies U-19 World Cup-winning captain scored 353 runs in 10 innings at an average of 39.22 and a phenomenal strike rate of 186.77.

He hit four fifties including a highest score of 91 against the St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots on September 3. Against the Kings, Hetmyer hit 58 in their second-to-last game of the league phase and will hope that form carries over to Wednesday’s game.

Gudakesh Motie and Imran Tahir

On those spin-friendly pitches in Guyana, the Amazon Warriors will need their spin twins Gudakesh Motie and Imran Tahir to shine with the ball. They’ve both been in excellent form this season with 31 wickets between them.

Motie’s 16 wickets have come at an average of 14.37 while Tahir’s 15 have come at 16.37.

St. Lucia Kings

Johnson Charles

The no nonsense right-hander has always had a reputation of being a hit or miss type of batsman. This season, he’s been doing more of the former. He scored the third most runs this season with 366 in 10 innings at an average of 40.66 and a strike rate of 152.50. He’s had scores of 19 and 12 against the Amazon Warriors this season and will be hoping to make a significant contribution against them on Wednesday.

Noor Ahmad

Still only 19-year-old, Afghanistan’s Noor Ahmad was the pick of the bowlers this season with a tournament-leading 18 wickets in 10 matches at an average of just 13.16. In his two outings against the Amazon Warriors, he recorded figures of 3-22 and 2-26 and should get a lot of assistance from the pitch in Guyana on Wednesday.

Trinbago Knight Riders

Nicholas Pooran

2024 has been a phenomenal year in T20 cricket for Nicholas Pooran. He recently broke Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan’s record for most T20 run scored in a calendar year and followed that up with a brilliant 101 in his team’s final league phase game against the Amazon Warriors on Sunday.

In total, Pooran finished with 413 runs in 10 innings at an average of 45.88 and a strike rate of 174.26. In his two games against Tuesday opponents the Royals this season, he recorded scores of 35 and 27.

Waqar Salamkheil

The second Afghan left-arm wrist spinner on this list, Salamkheil has been the Knight Riders’ strike bowler this season with Sunil Narine missing the final four games of the league phase. The 22-year-old took 15 wickets in 10 games at an average of 21.73 with his best figures of 3-13 coming against the Royals in Bridgetown on September 12.

Barbados Royals

Quinton de Kock

One of the premier T20 batsmen in the world over the last few years, the South African has shown his class all season for the Royals. His 434 runs in 10 innings at an average of 54.25 put him at the top of the list for most runs. The Royals have been heavily reliant on de Kock’s production this season as he is the only Royals batsman in the top 15. He also had the highest individual score this season, 115 against the Amazon Warriors in Bridgetown on September 13.

Maheesh Theekshana

In his first CPL season, the Sri Lankan mystery spinner has been the best performing bowler for the Royals. He played all 10 games, taking 15 wickets at an impressive economy of just 5.87 and an average of 15.26.

All the matches can be viewed live on Sportsmax and the Sportsmax app.

Cricket West Indies (CWI) on Monday announced the appointment of Lynford Inverary as its new Chief Operating Officer (COO) and Acting Chief Executive Officer (CEO). This decision was made by the Board of Directors during a meeting held in Port of Spain on September 28, 2024. 

With over a decade of experience at CWI in various roles, Inverary, an Antiguan national, born in Guyana, has played a pivotal role in driving the organization’s strategic and operational initiatives. Most recently, he spearheaded the formation of CWI's 2024-27 Strategic Plan, titled 'The Long Run', which outlines a comprehensive roadmap focused on improving governance, enhancing cricket development, optimizing operational efficiency, and ensuring long-term growth and sustainability for the organization. 

A graduate of the University of the West Indies, Cave Hill Campus, Inverary holds a First-Class Honors Bachelor of Science in Management with a major in International Business. He also earned a Master of Business Administration (MBA) from the University of South Wales.  

Dr. Kishore Shallow, President of CWI, remarked on the appointment noting, "Lynford brings a wealth of institutional knowledge and a deep understanding of CWI’s strategic goals, paired with an operational capacity to execute with precision. Over his decade-long tenure, he has consistently demonstrated exceptional leadership, guiding critical projects to successful completion while steering key initiatives with purpose and vision. His unyielding commitment and expertise leave us confident in his ability to lead CWI through this pivotal phase of growth and transformation."

Reflecting on his appointment, Lynford Inverary stated, "I am honored and grateful to the CWI Board of Directors for their vote of confidence in my ability to lead. I embrace this new challenge as a platform to continue contributing to the development of the sport that means so much to me and the people of the West Indies. I look forward to working with the Board, management, and staff to implement our four-year strategic plan, improve operational efficiency, and shape a strong future for West Indies cricket."

During his career at CWI, Lynford Inverary has led multiple high-impact projects, including contributions to the Wehby Report on Governance Reform, the 2018 -2023 Strategic Plan, and the development of the Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG) Business Plan and Master Plan. As Business Planning Manager, he has overseen the organization’s strategic planning process since 2018 and has contributed to critical business decisions, establishing himself as a leader within the organization. Inverary, has also previously served as Acting Corporate Secretary. 

Lynford Inverary’s appointment as COO will be effective from October 1, 2024, and his role as Acting CEO will commence on November 1, 2024, following the departure of Johnny Grave. 

India set a record first-innings run rate for any men's Test to keep their hopes of a series sweep over Bangladesh alive on day four in Kanpur.

Having seen two days lost due to rain, India quickly went on the attack on a surface suited to spin, with Jasprit Bumrah knocking Mushfiqur Rahim (11) over for the first of his three wickets, ultimately finishing with figures of 3-50 at the close of Bangladesh's three-and-a-half-day first innings.

Mohammed Siraj (2-57) and Ravichandran Ashwin (2-45) also doubled up after Akash Deep had done so at the start of the innings on Friday, with Bangladesh bowled out for just 233 runs.

It was with the bat, however, that India really impressed.

The hosts set records for the fastest men's Test side to reach 50, 100, 150, 200 and 250 runs, with none of the Sri Lankan bowlers able to slow them down.

Opener Yashasvi Jaiswal slogged 72 runs off just 51 balls faced before he was bowled cleanly by Hasan Mahmud, while there was also a quickfire half-century for KL Rahul, who hit seven fours and two maximums in his knock of 68 runs from 42 deliveries.

Virat Kohli fell narrowly short of his own half-century, scoring 47 from just 35 balls as Sri Lanka's expensive bowling continued, India ultimately declaring at 285-9.

The hosts likely required a couple of rapid wickets to give themselves time to seal victory on day five, but they got them through the brilliant Ashwin.

He trapped Zakir Hasan (10) lbw before crashing leg stump to dismiss Mahmud (4) with just five minutes of play remaining, leaving Bangladesh 26-2, trailing by 26 runs and surely playing for a draw.

Data Debrief: India set record pace

To say India were raring to get going with the bat on Monday would be an understatement. They scored at a rate of 8.2 runs per over through their 34.4 overs before declaring, the fastest rate ever recorded by any team in the first innings of a men's Test.

Now it is over to the bowlers to give them a chance to finish things off on Tuesday, and Ashwin – who took six wickets in the first Test – could be the man to lead them after scalping two huge wickets just before stumps.

The 30th and final regular fixture of this year’s Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL) saw reigning champions Guyana Amazon Warriors suffer a heavy 74 run defeat at the hands of Trinbago Knight Riders on home turf in Providence. Despite this loss the Amazon Warriors finish top of the table and will face the Saint Lucia Kings in Qualifier 1 on 2 October. The Knight Riders will face Barbados in the Eliminator match on 1 October.

Winning the toss and electing to bat first the Knight Riders innings got off to a rocky start as Warriors captain Imran Tahir bowled Shaqkere Parris with a perfect googly that completely bamboozled the batter and scudded into the stumps. Tahir wheeled away in celebration but it was to be the last thing his side would have to celebrate for a while on what turned out to be a bruising night.

Nicholas Pooran played one of the finest innings in the history of the CPL by striking a majestic century for the Knight Riders, finishing with 101 off just 59 balls with nine fours and eight sixes to his name. Jason Roy played the anchor role with 34 runs off 26 balls and watched on in awe as Pooran dispatched the Warriors stellar bowling line up to all parts of the Providence stadium.

After Player of the Match Pooran was eventually dismissed at the end of the 16th over – caught behind by Shai Hope off the bowling of Shamar Joseph – Knight Riders captain Kieron Pollard (19 off 13) and Keacy Carty (27 off 13) ensured the visitors made it past the 200 mark and set a challenging total of 211-5 for the Warriors to chase.

Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Shai Hope both got starts but failed to go on and make a decisive big score as the Warriors chase failed to ignite in the face of scoreboard pressure and smart bowling. Waqar Salamkeil’s left arm wrist spin and Terrance Hinds’ medium pace seamers proved the undoing of the home side, the middle overs seeing a bundle of wickets fall as each bowler picked up three wickets apiece.

When Moeen Ali fell with the Warriors score on 88-8 it looked as if the 2023 CPL champions were going to be handed an emphatic 100 plus run defeat but some late order resistance from Gudakesh Motie and Captain Tahir saw them up to a final total of 137 all out.

Nevertheless, it was a chastening 74 run defeat for the Warriors after looking so dominant in their previous four matches and a huge confidence boost to the Knight Riders ahead of next week’s tournament run in.

Ireland captain Paul Stirling is "over the moon" after securing their first-ever T20I victory over South Africa, beating them by 10 runs.

Brilliant performances from brothers Ross and Mark Adair set them on course to the win, as they drew the two-match series 1-1.

Ross Adair scored his maiden international century, combining with Stirling for a superb opening partnership of 137, leading the team to 195-6, their highest T20I score against South Africa.

Mark Adair then followed up that performance with an impressive stand in the field, finishing with 4-31, before Graham Hume's 3-25 rounded off the triumph.

And Stirling was thrilled with how Ireland performed on both sides, particularly in the field.

"At halfway, we wanted an extra 15-20 runs," he said.

"They squeezed us, and we felt under-par. There was less dew [on Sunday] and we managed to get over the line.

"You need time at the crease to get the pace of the wicket. That is what won us the game.

"With new batters coming in, you always have a chance. We are absolutely delighted [with the win]. It could have gone either way. Over the moon [with the result] and hopefully we can bring it into the ODIs."

South Africa started brightly, with both Reeze Hendricks and Matthew Breetzke getting 51 after Ryan Rickelton's opening 36.

However, they soon collapsed after that, with none of the other eight batters able to reach double figures as they finished on 185-9.

Captain Aiden Markram admitted that fine margins cost them on Sunday, but he still found positives to take from the series.

"We thought it was chaseable for sure," he said. "Small moments in the game.

"It comes down to execution and if you can win those moments. When you lose wickets regularly…you want a 20-30-run partnership. They made it tough for us.

"Each guy will have a certain area to improve. We never really stop learning. Ultimately, making better decisions and winning games for South Africa."

The two sides now turn their attention to the three-match ODI series, which starts on Wednesday at the Zayed Cricket Stadium.

Harry Brook focused on the positives as he saluted England's performances, despite their 3-2 ODI series defeat to Australia.

Australia clinched a 49-run victory by the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in the final ODI in Bristol.

England had recovered from 2-0 down in the series with Brook, who captained the hosts in Jos Buttler's absence, leading their charge with 110 not out and 87 in the third and fourth ODI respectively.

Brook (72) and Ben Duckett (107) put on a fantastic 132-run stand on Sunday to set a target of 310, though it proved academic as DLS came into play with the tourists on 165-2 with 29 overs remaining when rain stopped play.

However, the stand-in skipper believes the experience will benefit him and his team-mates in the long run.

"It's not just the present now, we're looking long-term," said Brook, who was named the ODI player of the summer.

"We're trying to build towards the bigger series and competitions. It's a new brand of cricket we're trying to play, and I think we've done that perfectly.

"Getting out of the power play, we didn't get the wickets we wanted, but outside of that, we've done really well."

On his own performance, he added: "It's nice to get on the board, score a few runs and contribute to some wins. I haven't played too much, but it's nice to finally get the tempo of ODI cricket.

"Captaincy has been good. It's something I might think about in the future, but I'll sit back and let Jos do it for now."

Australia clinched a 49-run victory on the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method in the final ODI against England to seal a 3-2 series win.

Having won the third and fourth ODIs to tee up a grandstand finish to the series in Bristol, England started well on Sunday.

England, inspired by Ben Duckett's second ODI century and Harry Brook (72), looked well set after storming to 202 before the latter was dismissed.

Yet the hosts slipped from 202-3 to 238-6 in less than 10 overs, with Duckett going for 107, and though Adil Rashid (36) steadied the ship, Australia were set a manageable target of 310 to win.

In total, eight wickets fell for 107 runs, all of them to spin, with Travis Head (4-28) doing the damage for the tourists, who subsequently set about making inroads into the target.

Head reached 31 from 26 balls before he was dismissed by Brydon Carse (1-36) in the eighth over, while Matthew Short had plundered his way to 58 by the time he was sent packing in the 13th.

Steve Smith (36 not out) and Josh Inglis (28 not out) subsequently took control before the rain closed in with Australia on 165-2 with 29 overs remaining, leaving them clear winners once DLS came into play.

Data Debrief: England's comeback falls short

The weather ultimately frustrated England, but they only have themselves to blame for another batting collapse. 

England have slipped to their first defeat in an ODI series of four games or more since a 3-2 loss to South Africa in February 2016, while this loss also snapped a run of three straight 50-over wins at the County Ground.

Australia, meanwhile, clinched their first win in an ODI series of at least four games since they beat Pakistan 5-0 in 2019.

Trinidadian wicketkeeper-batter Nicholas Pooran has etched his name in T20 cricket history by surpassing Pakistan’s Mohammad Rizwan for the most runs scored in a calendar year in T20 cricket. Pooran achieved this milestone on Friday, September 27, during the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2024, where he scored 27 off 15 balls for Trinbago Knight Riders in a match against Barbados Royals at the Brian Lara Stadium, Trinidad.

Pooran, 28, has accumulated 2,059 runs in T20 cricket in 2024, eclipsing Rizwan’s previous record of 2,036 runs set in 2021. While Rizwan reached his total in 45 innings at an average of 56.66 with one century and 18 fifties, Pooran has achieved his record-breaking tally with a faster strike rate of 160.63 compared to Rizwan’s 132.03. Pooran’s runs have come from across the globe, representing several franchises such as Durban Super Giants, Lucknow Super Giants, MI Emirates, MI New York, Northern Superchargers, Rangpur Riders, Trinbago Knight Riders, and the West Indies.

Despite his prolific run-scoring, Pooran is yet to notch a century in 2024, though he has come close with multiple scores in the 90s. He has, however, managed to rack up 14 fifties, underlining his consistency and ability to score quickly across formats. His overall average for the year stands above 42, solidifying his place as one of the most dangerous batsmen in T20 cricket today.

Pooran’s remarkable feat comes as no surprise, considering his explosive form in recent months. In the CPL 2024 alone, he has already amassed 312 runs from nine innings at an average of 39, with two fifties and an impressive strike rate of 175.28. His aggressive style of play and ability to take apart bowling attacks has been a standout feature, making him a key player in all his teams.

 This is the third time Pooran has crossed the 1,000-run mark in T20 cricket in a calendar year, having previously achieved the milestone in 2019 and 2023. His consistency in the shortest format of the game has solidified his reputation as one of the world’s top T20 batsmen.

 In comparison, Rizwan’s record-breaking year in 2021 saw him playing for Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Multan Sultans, and Pakistan, while Pooran’s 2024 exploits have spanned various leagues and teams. The two players’ contrasting styles are evident, with Pooran’s superior strike rate emphasizing his power-hitting abilities.

 Pooran currently leads the T20 run charts for 2024 by a significant margin, with South Africa's Reeza Hendricks in second place with 1,555 runs from 47 innings, followed by Pakistan’s Babar Azam with 1,480 runs from 35 innings, and Australian opener Travis Head with 1,442 runs from 39 innings.

 Pooran’s record-breaking achievement was capped off with Trinbago Knight Riders securing a 30-run victory over Barbados Royals, further cementing his role as one of the most influential players in the ongoing CPL season. As the year progresses, Pooran will undoubtedly look to build on his remarkable form and add more milestones to his already stellar T20 career.

Sri Lanka won by an innings and 154 runs in the second Test against New Zealand to complete a 2-0 series clean sweep.

The tourists fought hard on day four in Galle, but despite the efforts of Tom Blundell (60), Glenn Phillips (78) and Mitchell Santner (67), Sri Lanka got the job done in emphatic fashion.

Having been skittled all out for 88 in their first innings, chasing Sri Lanka's mammoth total of 602-5, New Zealand at least showed more fighting spirit on Sunday.

Sri Lanka simply had too much, though, with New Zealand bowled out for 360 when Santner's stand came to an end.

Debutant off-spinner Nishan Peiris sent Santner packing, and he took a starring role with 6-170 across the Black Caps' second innings, while he had earlier dismissed Phillips and Blundell.

Prabath Jayasuriya (3-139) helped round things off, as Sri Lanka claimed their third straight Test victory.

Elsewhere, there was no play on day three of India's second Test against Bangladesh due to a wet outfield.

Data Debrief: Back-to-back against the Black Caps

Sri Lanka have clinched back-to-back Test victories against New Zealand since November 2012.

They have also now won five of their last six Tests at Galle International Stadium, with their only defeat in that span coming against Pakistan in 2023.

New Zealand, on the other hand, have now won just one of their last 11 Tests on the road (D3 L6), with that victory coming in Bangladesh last December.

The top two sides in this year’s Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL) duked it out in Providence, with the reigning champions Guyana Amazon Warriors winning by a sizeable 35 run margin against their nearest rivals at the top of the table, Saint Lucia Kings.

Warriors captain Imran Tahir won the toss and elected to bat on home turf in Guyana. The daytime match wicket was thought to be a tricky one for free scoring, but the Warriors put on a confident display, breaching the 200 mark to finish on 207/7 from their 20 overs.

Shai Hope, with 56 off 31 balls, including five sixes and two fours, and Player of the Match Shimron Hetmyer, who topscored with a 30-ball 58 that had nine fours and a solitary maximum, led the way for the Warriors.

Faf du Plessis, with an unbeaten 92 off 59 balls batted through the entire inning, and at various stages he looked to be suffering from cramps as the Kings failed to chase down the target.

It was a true captain’s knock from the South African, who smashed seven fours and four sixes in over an hour and a half at the crease. Sadly for him, no other King's batsman could stick around long enough to give a better fight.

Only Alzarri Joseph (25* off 21 balls) allowed du Plessis to have some solidity at the other end and he set about hauling his side to a more respectable total and making sure that their net run rate was not too badly damaged. Finishing on 172/7 and batting out all of their overs in the end, the 35 run loss marked an achievement of sorts for the Kings after it earlier looked like they would go down by a considerable amount more.

With the win, the Warriors reclaimed the top sport in the standings on 14 points with a game in hand. They will take on Trinbago Knight Riders on Sunday in the final preliminary round fixture to determine the final placings heading into the playoff showdowns still to come.

Jofra Archer is “just happy” to be back playing for England after taking two wickets in their 186-run win over Australia to level the teams' ODI series.

The right-arm fast bowler has faced years of injury problems, including recurring stress fractures in his back and right elbow, but made his return to international action in June for the T20 World Cup.

Since then, he has also featured for Southern Brave in The Hundred and played four of England’s six white-ball matches during Australia’s tour.

He bowled Australia opener and captain Mitchell Marsh out and saw Glenn Maxwell caught by wicketkeeper Jamie Smith last time out, moving within four dismissals of a half-century of wickets in ODIs.

“I've been back to this rhythm for a little while now. I felt it in the World Cup and I've just been taking it series by series,” he told reporters afterwards. 

“The World Cup was a good check mark. This [fourth ODI] was a good check mark. The Caribbean will be another good check mark.

“I know I’ve been out, it’s been a while but I am playing cricket again and I’m just happy.”

The 2016 ICC Women's T20 World Cup win gets brought up in the group from time to time, mainly because it feels like it was so long ago. The older players often talk about the emotions surrounding that victory—not just what it meant for us but also for the younger girls watching as they were coming up through the system. As a team now, we're hoping to recreate that success, knowing how much of an impact it will have—not just on us but on cricket in the Caribbean, where the sport holds such huge significance.

We can see first-hand what we, as the older girls in the group, have done for the younger girls coming in now, and we would just love to be able to inspire another generation of girls coming up.

Looking at the present, we’re coming to a World Cup, and we want to win, who doesn’t? I think a World Cup is one of those tournaments, especially T20 World Cups, where, if you have some good performances on a big day, it can get you through the stages.

This is, if not our best, definitely one of our best squads that we have had at a T20 World Cup. We have seen a lot of our senior players really improve, like Shemaine Campbelle who has been so much more consistent lately. And players like Aaliyah Alleyne, who has stepped up and improved her game and has played more important roles in matches.

The thing that has been really good, is the camaraderie in the group, it feels like a massive, safe space and somewhere where everyone feels super comfortable. Even the young ones who have come into the group have been able to settle and gel really well with the older ones, and there is tremendous mutual respect, which is really good for us.

Spin tends to dominate World Cups, no matter where they're played. In women's cricket, especially, spinners frequently top the charts and rankings, so I believe spin will play a significant role. Fortunately, for us, we have got quite a few spinners in our arsenal, Karishma Ramharack, Stafanie Taylor, Afy Fletcher, Qiana Joseph, young Zaida James, and me.

We strongly believe that spin will play a major role, and the team has been selected with that in mind. Hopefully, as a spin unit, we can go out there and make a significant impact with the ball.

It’s hard to believe I’ve just reached 10 years in international cricket—it feels like the time has flown by, and in many ways, it still feels like I’m just starting out. I remember making my debut at Arnos Vale Stadium in St. Vincent and the Grenadines, walking onto the field, nervous and trembling, fulfilling a lifelong dream. Looking back now, 10 years have passed, and I’m now the captain of the West Indies—so much has changed since that day.

One area I’ve struggled with early on is maintaining consistency, but I have been able to improve vastly over the last couple of years. I feel like if I can keep up with the consistency I have now and the performances I have now, I can hopefully finish this game as one of the best. I think I still have a long way to go, so I am just taking it one step at a time and trying to perform well every time I go out on the park, and whatever comes from it, will come from it.