Half centuries from Leon Johnson, Anthony and Kevin Sinclair were the foundation of the Guyana Harpy Eagles’ 324 against Trinidad and Tobago on the opening day of their third-round West Indies Championship match on Wednesday.
Johnson scored 62, Bramble 52 and Sinclair 69 for Guyana that also got useful contributions of 44 from Kemol Savory and 46 from Keemo Paul.
Guyana benefitted from solid middle-order batting that saw partnerships of 97 between Savory and Johnson before both were dismissed in quick succession after taking the score from 33-3.
A partnership of 79 between Bramble and Sinclair followed before Sinclair and Paul added 88 for the seventh wicket.
Imran Khan was the best of the Red Force bowlers taking 4-80 while Bryan Charkes snared 3-85 for Trinidad and Tobago who were seven without loss at stumps, 317 runs behind.
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
All-rounder Kevin Sinclair and pacer Ronsford Beaton were the heroes as they batted 17.1 overs to salvage a draw for the Guyana Harpy Eagles against the Windward Islands Volcanoes at the Grenada National Stadium on Saturday.
The day started with the Harpy Eagles 35-0 off 14.3 overs, needing a further 259 runs to win their second straight game with Matthew Nandu on 18 and Tevin Imlach on 13.
The pair brought the score up to 54 in the 23rd over before Preston McSween dismissed Imlach for 25.
Kemol Savory joined Nandu at the crease and lasted 35 balls before falling to Kenneth Dember for seven in the 31st over.
Captain Leon Johnson made his way to the middle to join Nandu and the pair put on 55 for the third wicket before Johnson was dismissed by Darius Martin for 40 in the 46th over.
The 47th over saw Nandu bring up his half century off 112 balls. The 19-year-old struck 126 in their first-round encounter with the Barbados Pride.
The 51st over saw the Harpy Eagles lose their fourth wicket as Anthony Bramble went caught behind off McSween for three.
Just two balls later, 140-4 became 141-5 as Nandu was bowled for a well-compiled 60 off 123 balls.
Akshya Persaud, who replaced Chandrapaul Hemraj who retired hurt on day three, then combined with Sinclair to form a crucial 64-run sixth-wicket partnership. The partnership ended when Persaud was dismissed by Justin Greaves for a 62-ball 24 to leave the Harpy Eagles 205-6 in 70th over.
Between the 73rd and 74th over, Veerasammy Permaul (4), Shamar Joseph (0) and Nial Smith (0) all fell, bringing Ronsford Beaton to the crease to join Sinclair and try to save the match.
Sinclair brought up his fifty off 82 balls in the 79th over and the pair put together a masterful display of grit to bat out the last 17.1 overs to finish 250-9 off 91 overs.
Sinclair ended up 77* off 138 balls while Beaton made just one but, more importantly, faced 24 balls.
Preston McSween ended up with 3-58 from 21 overs while Justin Greaves and Kavem Hodge took two wickets, each.
Scores: Windward Islands Volcanoes 294 off 80.5 overs (Alick Athanaze 141, Ryan John 51*, Sunil Ambris 47, Veerasammy Permaul 4-70, Ronsford Beaton 2-50, Kevin Sinclair 2-66) and 168 off 56.3 overs (Justin Greaves 27, Sunil Ambris 26, Preston McSween 25, Shamar Joseph 5-41, Ronsford Beaton 3-35)
Guyana Harpy Eagles 169 off 63.1 overs (Veerasammy Permaul 53, Kevin Sinclair 23, Justin Greaves 5-24, Ryan John 2-52) and 250-9 off 91 overs (Kevin Sinclair 77*, Matthew Nandu 60, Leon Johnson 40, Preston McSween 3-58, Justin Greaves 2-35, Kavem Hodge 2-36)
A maiden First-class five-wicket haul from pacer Shamar Joseph gave the Guyana Harpy Eagles a fighting chance going into day four against the Windward Islands Volcanoes at the Grenada National Stadium.
The Windwards began day three 48-2 off 17 overs in their second innings, leading the Harpy Eagles by 173 runs with Kavem Hodge (3) and Sunil Ambris (18) at the crease.
The second ball of the day saw Hodge fall to Ronsford Beaton after failing to add to his overnight total.
Justin Greaves joined Ambris at the crease and the pair put on a further 37 runs for the fourth wicket before Ambris fell caught behind off the bowling of Shamar Joseph for 26 in the 30th over.
Not long after, with the score on 101, Greaves went in the exact same way as Ambris for 27 in the 34th over.
Ryan John and Tevyn Walcott added only two runs before John was dismissed by Joseph for one in the 36th over.
Walcott was joined at the crease by Kimani Melius and the pair added 15 runs before Walcott became the seventh man to fall, going for 23 to leave the Volcanoes 118-7 in the 40th over.
Regular opener Melius, who made a career-best 192 in round one, batted at eight after being off the field with a groin injury and could only manage six runs before falling to Joseph with the score on 129 in the 42nd over.
Preston McSween and Kenneth Dember then put on the second highest partnership of the innings with 33 for the ninth wicket before McSween fell to Beaton for 25 with the score on 162 in the 54th over.
Dember was the last man to fall, going leg before wicket to Verrasammy Permaul for 15 as the Volcanoes were bowled out for 168 in 56.3 overs, meaning the Harpy Eagles would need 294 runs to record their second outright win of the season.
Shamar Joseph took a career-best 5-41 from 12 overs while Ronsford Beaton took 3-35 from 15 overs.
Rain then brought an end to the day’s proceedings with the Harpy Eagles on 35-0 off 14.3 overs requiring a further 259 runs on the final day for victory.
Matthew Nandu (18) and Tevin Imlach (13) are the batsmen at the crease. Chandrapaul Hemraj earlier retired hurt while on three.
Scores: Windward Islands Volcanoes 294 off 80.5 overs (Alick Athanaze 141, Ryan John 51*, Sunil Ambris 47, Veerasammy Permaul 4-70, Ronsford Beaton 2-50, Kevin Sinclair 2-66) and 168 off 56.3 overs (Justin Greaves 27, Sunil Ambris 26, Preston McSween 25, Shamar Joseph 5-41, Ronsford Beaton 3-35)
Guyana Harpy Eagles 169 off 63.1 overs (Veerasammy Permaul 53, Kevin Sinclair 23, Justin Greaves 5-24, Ryan John 2-52) and 35-0 off 14.3 overs (Matthew Nandu 18*, Tevin Imlach 13*)
Justin Greaves produced a five-wicket haul to put Windwards Islands Volcanoes in command against Guyana Harpy Eagles on day two of their second-round West Indies Championship match at St George’s on Thursday.
After being bowled out for 294, Windwards bowled Guyana out for 169. Batting a second time, Windwards were 48-2, a lead of 173 heading into the third day.
Resuming from their overnight score of 292-8, Windwards added only two runs before being bowled out for 294. Ryan John remained not out on 51.
Greaves, Darius Martin and Preston McSween then combined to reduce Guyana to 28-4 with Kemol Savory scoring 20 of those runs. It was a position from which Guyana never truly recovered.
Greaves ripped out the middle order dismissing the recalled Leon Johnson for five and Anthony Bramble for 21 to leave Guyana tottering on 69-6.
Kevin Sinclair and Veerasammy Permaul offered some resistance with a seventh-wicket partnership of 61 that ended when John dismissed Sinclair for 23.
Guyana added 39 more runs for the last four wickets with Permaul being last man out before he was caught and bowled by Kenneth Dember for 53.
Ronsford Beaton who shared in a last-wicket stand of 24 was unbeaten on 10 when the end came.
Greaves finished with the impressive figures of 5-24 from 18 overs while John picked up 2-52.
Batting a second time, Windwards lost the wickets of Jerlani Robinson for three and first-inning century maker Alick Athanaze for 11 before Sunil Ambris, on 18 and Kavem Hodge 13, ensured there was no further loss on the day.
Beaton and Nail Smith have a wicket each for Guyana.
Alick Athanaze scored his first century of the season as the Windward Islands Volcanoes ended Day 1 of their second-round match of the West Indies Championships on 292-8 in their match against Guyana Harpy Eagles at St George’s.
Athanaze scored 141 from 220 balls in an innings that included 16 fours.
Thanks mainly to Ronsford Beaton, the Windwards were in early trouble at 26-3 with Jerlani Robinson (4), Kimani Melius (2) and Kavem Hodge (14) all back in the hutch.
However, Athanaze, who was by then at the wicket, found himself a useful partner in Sunil Ambris.
Together, they put on 76 for the fourth wicket. After Ambris was bowled for 47 by Kevin Sinclair, Athanaze and Justin Greaves added 89 for the fifth wicket.
Greaves’ contribution was 21 when he was dismissed by Veerasammy Permaul. The biggest stand of the innings, 90, was to come between Athanaze and Ryan John before the former would eventually be dismissed by Permaul.
By then, the Windwards had recovered nicely to 290-7.
Ronsford Beaton has taken 2-50 was supported by Kevin Sinclair, who has figures pf 2-64 and Permaul 2-70
John was unbeaten on 50 when the rains came.
The Guyana Harpy Eagles have a 9.8-point lead at the top of the table after round one of the 2023 West Indies Championship.
The Harpy Eagles, who won five straight titles from 2015-2019, have 20 points after hammering defending champions Barbados Pride, who are last with 4.8 points, by 183 runs in round one at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Ground.
The Trinidad & Tobago Red Force and the Windward Islands Volcanoes are second and third with 10.2 and 8.4 points, respectively, after playing to a draw at the St. George’s Cricket Ground in Grenada.
Fourth is occupied by the Leeward Islands Hurricanes with 7.4 points after narrowly missing out on an outright win over the Jamaica Scorpions at Coolidge. Their round one opponents are fifth with 6.2 points.
Round two gets underway on February 8 with Jamaica facing Barbados at Coolidge, the Leeward Islands facing Trinidad & Tobago at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium and the Grenada National Stadium hosting Guyana and the Windward Islands.
Pacer Nial Smith took his third five-wicket haul in first-class cricket to lead the Guyana Harpy Eagles to a 183-run win over the Barbados Pride on day four of their first round West Indies Championship encounter at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium in Antigua on Saturday.
The Harpy Eagles started day four on 91-8, leading the Pride by 242 runs with Veerasammy Permaul (11) and Smith (0) at the crease.
Permaul added some valuable lower-order runs before he was dismissed by Chaim Holder for 33 before the Harpy Eagles declared their innings at 126-9 after 44.1 overs with Smith finishing not out on 12.
Needing 277 to win, Barbados lost their first wicket in just the second over as Smith removed first innings half-centurion Sheyne Moseley for a duck with the score on five.
It was 9-2 just an over later as Zachary McCaskie was dismissed by Shamar Joseph for four.
Jonathan Drakes and Shamarh Brooks tried to revive the innings with a 21-run third wicket partnership before Brooks was dismissed by Ronsford Beaton for 12 in the 17th over with the score on 30.
The Pride then lost three wickets for just three runs as Nicholas Kirton, SHamarh Springer and captain Shane Dowrich all fell without scoring to leave them teetering at 38-6 in the 21st over.
A 33-run seventh wicket partnership between Drakes and Akeem Jordan delayed the inevitable for a while before Jordan was dismissed by Smith in the 32nd over for 20.
Drakes was next to go for a fighting 99-ball 36, caught off the bowling of Smith in the 34th over with the score on 78.
Keon Harding (7) and Jair McAllister (4) were the final two wickets to fall as the Pride were eventually bowled out for 94 in 36 overs.
Smith finished with figures of 5-31 off 10 overs while Ronsford Beaton and Veerasammy Permaul took two wickets each.
Scores: Guyana Harpy Eagles 371 off 121.1 overs (Matthew Nandu 126, Kevin Sinclair 43, Veerasammy Permaul 37, Jair McAllister 3-43, Chaim Holder 3-72) and 126-9 declared off 44.1 overs (Veerasammy Permaul 33, Matthew Nandu 16, Akeem Jordan 3-18, Keon Harding 3-37)
Barbados Pride 220-9 off 91.2 overs (Sheyne Moseley 65, Shamarh Brooks 51, Shemar Springer 35*, Veerasammy Permaul 4-53, Kevin Sinclair 3-65, Shamar Joseph 2-33) and 94 off 36 overs (Jonathan Drakes 36, Akeem Jordan 20, Nial Smith 5-31, Ronsford Beaton 2-11, Veerasammy Permaul 2-18)
Spirited late spells from pacers Akeem Jordan and Keon Harding helped the Barbados Pride set up an interesting final day of play on Saturday against the Guyana Harpy Eagles in their first round West Indies Championship fixture at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Stadium in Antigua.
Friday’s day four started with the Pride’s overnight pair of Shamarh Brooks and Keon Harding adding a further 54 runs to their overnight 105-3 before Harding was dismissed by Veerasammy Permaul for 24 in the 63rd over.
That wicket brought Nicholas Kirton to the crease but he did not last long before getting dismissed by Kevin Sinclair for two in the 66th over.
Brooks and new batsman Shemar Springer took the Pride to lunch without the loss of any more wickets, finishing 166-5 off 67 overs with Brooks on 47 and Springer yet to get off the mark.
Brooks brought up his fifty shortly after lunch but failed to kick on, being dismissed by Permaul for 51 with the score on 178 in the 71st over.
It quickly became 178-7 after Sinclair removed Akeem Jordan for a duck.
The Pride only batted with 10 as captain Shane Dowrich was unable to bat.
Springer made a crucial 35 not out as Chaim Holder (13) and Jair McAllister (2) both fell as the Pride ended their innings 220-9 off 91.2 overs, trailing Guyana by 151 runs.
Veerasammy Permaul finished with 4-53 from 26.2 overs while Kevin Sinclair took 3-65 in his 24 overs.
The beginning of the Harpy Eagles’ second innings was not ideal as Tevin Imlach was dismissed by Jair McAllister for a duck in just the second over with the score on three.
The tight opening spells by McAllister and Jordan paid dividends when Jordan trapped Kemol Savory in front for a duck in the seventh over to leave the Harpy Eagles 4-2.
First innings centurion Matthew Nandu was then joined by captain Leon Johnson and the pair added some respectability to the total with a 38-run partnership before Johnson became Keon Harding’s first victim for 12 in the 17th over.
Next it was Shemar Springer’s turn to get in on the fun, dismissing Anthony Bramble for one to leave the Guyanese reeling at 49-4 in the 20th over.
Kevin Sinclair also failed to significantly trouble the scorers before he became Harding’s second victim, falling for one in the 23rd over.
The 25th over saw wicket number six fall as Nandu was removed by Harding for a 77-ball 16.
Three overs later, Chanderpaul Hemraj went caught behind off the bowling of Akeem Jordan for 15.
Shamar Joseph became Jordan’s third wicket, going for four in the 32nd over to leave the score at 90-8.
The Harpy Eagles ended the day 91-8 off 33 overs with Permaul (11) and Nial Smith (0) at the crease. They have a lead of 242 runs heading into day four.
Scores: Guyana Harpy Eagles 371 off 121.1 overs (Matthew Nandu 126, Kevin Sinclair 43, Veerasammy Permaul 37, Jair McAllister 3-43, Chaim Holder 3-72) and 91-8 off 33 overs (Matthew Nandu 16, Akeem Jordan 3-18, Keon Harding 3-37)
Barbados Pride 220-9 off 91.2 overs (Sheyne Moseley 65, Shamarh Brooks 51, Shemar Springer 35*, Veerasammy Permaul 4-53, Kevin Sinclair 3-65, Shamar Joseph 2-33)
Former West Indies Under-19 opener Matthew Nandu struck 126 on debut as the Guyana Harpy Eagles ended day two of their West Indies Championship match against the Barbados Pride at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in a strong position.
The Harpy Eagles started day two on 205-5 with Nandu (70) and Kevin Sinclair (28) at the crease.
The pair added 25 runs to the overnight score before Sinclair was dismissed for 43 in the 85th over, bringing Vice-Captain Veerasammy Permaul to the crease to join Nandu.
The pair continued to fight off the Barbados bowling, reaching 273-6 in the 102nd over when Nandu, who represented the West Indies at the 2022 ICC Under-19 World Cup in the West Indies, brought up his maiden first class 100 off 295 balls.
The partnership reached 90 when Permaul was dismissed by Keon Harding for 37 off 95 balls in the 112th over with the score on 315.
Nandu was next to go in the 118th over, eventually falling for a marathon 126 off 335 balls after putting on a further 39 runs with Shamar Joseph.
Joseph (20) and Nial Smith (9) were the final two to fall as Guyana made an impressive 371 off 121 overs.
Pacer Jair McAllister took 3-43 off 18.1 overs while spinner Chaim Holder took 3-72 off 36 overs.
In reply, Barbados openers Zachary McCaskie and Sheyne Moseley put on 69 before McCaskie was dismissed by Kevin Sinclair in the 24th over for 26.
Jonathan Drakes joined Moseley at the crease but didn’t last long as he became Permaul’s first victim for a duck.
Moseley brought up his fifty off 86 balls in the 29th over.
Moseley and Shamarh Brooks put on a 32-run third wicket partnership to bring the score up to 102 before Moseley went off the bowling of Shamar Joseph for 65.
The Pride ended the day 105-3 with Brooks on 10 and Keon Harding on three. They trail the Harpy Eagles by 266 runs.
Scores: Guyana Harpy Eagles 371 off 121.1 overs (Matthew Nandu 126, Kevin Sinclair 43, Veerasammy Permaul 37, Jair McAllister 3-43, Chaim Holder 3-72) Barbados Pride 105-3 off 39 overs (Sheyne Moseley 65, Zachary McCaskie 26)
The match between Windward Islands Volcanoes and Trinidad and Tobago Red Force is interestingly poised at the end of day two of their West Indies Championship match at St George’s on Wednesday.
At stumps, the Windwards batting a second time are 62-0, just 12 runs behind after Trinidad and Tobago scored 315 in their first innings in reply to the Volcanoes 243.
Tevyn Walcott top-scored with 87.
Trinidad and Tobago owed their first innings lead to late order 50s from Amir Jangoo, who top scored with 86, Tion Webster’s 79 and Terrance Hinds’ 52.
The trio managed to rescue their side from 82-5 in the 41st over. However, Webster and Jangoo put on 138 for the sixth wicket, which was followed by a 78 run stand between Hinds and Jangoo, which established a lead.
Ryan John was the chief wicket-taker with the impressive figures of 5-18.
At stumps, Kimani Melius is unbeaten on 39 and Jerlani Robinson on 20.
Over at North Sound, Guyana Harpy Eagles were 205-5 at stumps on the opening day of their match against the Barbados Pride thanks to an unbeaten 70 from Matthew Nandu.
Akeem Jordan has so far taken 2-34 while Chiam Holder has snared 2-36.
Meanwhile, the Leeward Islands Hurricanes were in a spot of bother against Jamaica at Coolidge Cricket Ground. At stumps they were 163-6.
Jahmar Hamilton is the top scorer so far but the dangerous Rahkeem Cornwall is not out on 28 and Jeremiah Lewis, 17.
Abhijai Mansingh has taken 2-27 for the Scorpions.
Cricket West Indies (CWI) has announced the match schedule and venues for the first two rounds of the West Indies Championship, the region’s first-class four-day red ball tournament, which will be played in Antigua and Grenada.
The tournament will open with the Windward Islands Volcanoes hosting the Trinidad & Tobago Red Force at the Grenada National Stadium (GNS). This match will start on 31 January and will continue on 1 to 3 February.
In Antigua, defending champions the Barbados Pride will start their bid for a third straight title when they face Guyana Harpy Eagles in the feature match at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium (SVRS) on 1 to 4 February. The third contest will see the Leeward Islands Hurricanes hosting the Jamaica Scorpions at the Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG) from 1 to 4 February.
The second round will be played from 8 to 11 February when the Barbados Pride will meet the Jamaica Scorpions at CCG; Trinidad & Tobago Red Force travel to face the Leeward Islands Hurricanes at the SVRS, and the Guyana Harpy Eagles take on the Windward Islands Volcanoes at the GNS.
The third round of the West Indies Championship resumes on 15 March with the final round concluding on 1 April when the 2023 Champions will be crowned and presented with the Headley Weekes Trophy. The final three rounds will all be played in Trinidad and the venues will be announced at a later date.
Roland Holder, CWI’s Manager of Cricket Operations said: “We are happy to announce the match schedule and venues for the first two rounds of the West Indies Championship, our flagship regional tournament on the annual calendar. The six teams have been preparing diligently for the upcoming season and we expect to see keen competition this year as they battle for the Headley Weekes trophy. From the tournament, the best performers also have the reward of playing for Team Weekes and Team Headley in the new tournament announced by CWI scheduled for April and May.”
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.
Team Headley and Team Weekes are named in honour of West Indies pioneers and legendary batting greats George Headley and Sir Everton Weekes, whose names are also honoured on the Trophy for the winners of the West Indies Championship. All three matches will be played from 18 April to 6 May at CCG in Antigua.
Every West Indies Championship match will be streamed live on the Windies Cricket YouTube channel. Fans can follow each and every game from their mobile devices, computers or connected TVs, including access to live ball-by-ball scoring on the Windiescricket.com live match centre.
2023 WEST INDIES CHAMPIONSHIP MATCH SCHEDULE
All matches start at 10am Eastern Caribbean time (9am Jamaica time)
GNS – Grenada National Stadium, Grenada
SVRS – Sir Vivian Richards Stadium, Antigua
CCG – Coolidge Cricket Ground, Antigua
ROUND 1:
31 January to 3 February - Grenada
Windward Islands Volcanoes v Trinidad & Tobago Red Force at GNS
1 to 4 February - Antigua
Barbados Pride v Guyana Harpy Eagles at SVRS
Leeward Islands Hurricanes v Jamaica Scorpions at CCG
ROUND 2:
8 to 11 February – Grenada and Antigua
Windward Islands Volcanoes v Guyana Harpy Eagles at GNS
Leeward Islands Hurricanes v Trinidad and Tobago Red Force at SVRS
Jamaica Scorpions v Barbados Pride at CCG
ROUND 3:
15 to 18 March in Trinidad – Venues to be confirmed
Trinidad and Tobago Red Force v Guyana Harpy Eagles
Jamaica Scorpions v Windward Islands Volcanoes
Leeward Islands Hurricanes v Barbados Pride
ROUND 4:
22 to 25 March in Trinidad - Venues to be confirmed
Trinidad & Tobago Red Force v Barbados Pride
Guyana Harpy Eagles vs Jamaica Scorpions
Leeward Islands Hurricanes v Windward Islands Volcanoes
ROUND 5:
29 March to 1 April in Trinidad - Venues to be confirmed
Trinidad & Tobago Red Force v Jamaica Scorpions
Guyana Harpy Eagles v Leeward Islands Hurricanes
Barbados Pride v Windward Islands Volcanoes
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
SQUADS (Rounds 1 and 2)
Barbados Pride: Shane Dowrich (Captain) Camarie Boyce, Shamarh Brooks, Jonathan Drakes, Keon Harding, Chaim Holder, Akeem Jordan, Nicholas Kirton, Jair McAllister, Shayne Moseley, Zachary McCaskie, Shamar Springer, Kevin Wickham; Vasbert Drakes (Head Coach)
Guyana Harpy Eagles: Leon Johnson (Captain), Veerasammy Permaul (Vice Captain), Chandrapaul Hemraj, Matthew Nandu, Kemol Savory, Tevin Imlach, Anthony Bramble, Kevin Sinclair, Nial Smith, Ronsford Beaton, Akshaya Persaud, Ashmead Nedd, Shamar Joseph; Ryan Hercules (Head Coach)
Jamaica Scorpions: Paul Palmer jr (Captain), Jamie Merchant, Alwyn Williams, Aldaine Thomas, Leroy Lugg, Kirk McKenzie, Romaine Morris, Abhijau Mansingh, Patrick Harty, Akim Fraser, Marquino Mindley, Gordon Bryan, Ojay Shields; Andrew Richardson (Head Coach)
Trinidad & Tobago Red Force: Darren Bravo (Captain), Amir Jangoo, Imran Khan, Jason Mohammed, Terrance Hinds, Jyd Goolie, Jeremy Solozano, Yannic Cariah, Bryan Charles, Vikash Mohan, Uthman Muhammad, Tion Webster, Khary Pierre; David Furlonge (Head Coach)
Windward Islands Volcanoes: Alick Athanaze (Captain), Jerlani Robinson, Kavem Hodge, Keron Cottoy, Sunil Ambris, Justin Greaves, Tevyn Walcott, Kenneth Dember, Preston McSween, Teddy Bishop, Daurius Martin, Kimani Melius, Nicklaus Redhead; Shirley Clarke (Head Coach)
Leeward Islands Hurricanes (provisional squad): Jahmar Hamilton (Captain), Mikyle Louis, Kieran Powell, Colin Archibald, Terance Warde, Jeremiah Louis, Keacy Carty, Ross Powell, Kofi James, Damion Williams, Kelvin Pitman, Hayden Walsh jr., Rahkeem Cornwall; Stuart Williams (Head Coach).
Jamaica Scorpions captain Rovman Powell believes his unbeaten 105 against Guyana Harpy Eagles on Thursday night was one of the best he has played in his career.
Powell smashed seven fours and three sixes in a mature knock that steered the Scorpions to 322-7 in pursuit of the Harpy Eagles 318-9. It was the highest successful chase of the season and the best score by any team in the 2022 CG Insurance Super50 competition.
He shared in a crucial fourth-wicket partnership of 103 with Alwyn Williams who made 45 and then stands of 34 and 37 with Dennis Bulli (17) and Odean Smith (19), respectively before an unbroken 37-run eighth-wicket alliance with Jeavor Royal, who was on 18 at the end after hitting the match-winning six off Nail Smith.
In his post-match comments after his first List A century of the season and his fourth overall, the 29-year-old all-rounder rated his match-winning knock highly.
“I think it is one of my better 100s,” said Powell, who arrived at the crease with Jamaica 101-3 following the dismissal of Brandon King for a well-played 64.
“I got a very good start. It was a very good wicket to be honest and so once I paced the innings and stayed at the wicket we would win.”
He praised King for his half-century, his second of the season, that set up the victory for the Scorpions team that will face the star-studded defending champions Trinidad and Tobago Red Force in the final on Saturday.
“It was very important,” he said of King’s 64. “It was important that someone get us off to a flying start and I think Brandon did that. It was just unfortunate that he couldn’t go a little longer.
“We were looking to get to 100 in 15 or so overs for the middle order to settle in and push around the ball and I think Brandon’s innings really set that up nicely.”
Wary of the quality of their opponents in Saturday’s final, Powell said it was essential for the Scorpions to improve in all three areas – batting, bowling and fielding – if they are to have any chance of dethroning the Trinidadian unit.
“Trinidad plays the best 50-over cricket in the Caribbean for a while now so it’s important for us to play very good cricket and improve batting, bowling and fielding,” he said perhaps referring to King dropping Shimron Hetmyer early in his innings. The West Indies middle order batsman went into top score for the Harpy Eagles with 86.
“Today (Thursday) we dropped a few catches. In the final, we cannot drop Trinidad’s big players like that.”
A magnificent 105 not out from captain Rovman Powell led the Jamaica Scorpions to a three-wicket victory over the Guyana Harpy Eagles in the second semi-final of the CG Insurance Super50 Cup at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Thursday.
The Harpy Eagles won the toss and decided to bat first. Openers Anthony Bramble and Kemol Savory put on 39 before Bramble was removed for 22 by Jeavor Royal in the 10th over.
Savory was next to go for 15, caught by Brandon King off the bowling of Nicholson Gordon at the end of the 11th over.
Tevin Imlach and captain Leon Johnson then put on a brief 33-run partnership before Imlach became Odean Smith’s first wicket for 20 to leave the Harpy Eagles 76-3 off 18.5 overs.
That wicket brought Shimron Hetmyer to the crease to join Johnson and the pair brought up the hundred for Guyana in the 24th over.
Johnson got a reprieve in the 23rd over when he was dropped by King on 22 with the score on 92-3 but his luck ran out when King made up for his earlier mistake to catch Johnson off Dennis Bulli for 30 to leave the Harpy Eagles 113-4 in the 26th over. The Scorpions could have removed new batsman Sherfane Rutherford in the same over but King dropped his second catch of the day at slip.
Hetmyer brought up his 10th List A fifty off 47 balls in the 31st over. The same over also saw him and Rutherford carry Guyana past 150.
The pair continued to pepper the Scorpions bowling and brought up Guyana’s 200 in the 38th over with Hetmyer cruising on 69 and Rutherford on 44. With a boundary off Odean Smith in the 40th over, Rutherford brought up his 50 off 41 balls and brought up the 100-partnership between himself and Hetmyer off 84 deliveries. Two balls later, Rutherford was dismissed for 56 to leave the Harpy Eagles 219-5.
Hetmyer was finally dismissed by Odean Smith in the 44th over for a well-played 86 off 76 balls to leave Guyana 250-6.
Guyana was 296-6 off 47.1 overs when rain started. Kevin Sinclair (33) and Romario Shepherd (21) were the not out batsmen. After a break of about 20 minutes, the Harpy Eagles brought up their 300 off 47.5 overs, their first score of 300 in this year’s tournament.
Eventually, after the wickets of Shepherd (28), Gudakesh Motie (0) and Veerasammy Permaul (0), Guyana was able to post 318-9 from their 50 overs. Kevin Sinclair ended 45 not out from 32 balls. Odean Smith ended with 5-65 from his nine overs for the Scorpions while Nicholson Gordon provided some good bowling at the death to finish with 2-55 from his eight overs.
Jamaica’s reply did not get off to the best of starts as Chadwick Walton was removed for just 11 in the fourth over with the score on 23.
Brandon King and Andre McCarthy then combined and put the Guyana bowling to the sword, with King bringing up his second fifty of the tournament off just 34 balls as the pair brought the score up to 83-1 after 11 overs.
The partnership was broken in the 13th over when McCarthy was trapped in front by Gudakesh Motie for 22 to leave the Scorpions at 92-2.
The 15th over was then a bittersweet one for the Jamaicans as they brought up their 100 but, on the other hand, also lost Brandon King for 64 from just 49 balls to be left 101-3.
Alwyn Williams (24) and Rovman Powell (31) were the batsmen at the crease when the Scorpions brought up their 150 after 22 overs. Powell brought up his fifty off 38 balls with a boundary off Nial Smith in the 28th over to move the score up to 188-3.
The Scorpions brought up their 200 through an Alwyn Williams six off Kevin Sinclair in the 30th over. Similar to when the 100 was brought up, Williams was then dismissed off the very next ball for 45 to leave the score at 204-4 after 29.4 overs.
Jamaica lost their fifth wicket when Peat Salmon went caught behind off the bowling of Motie for eight with the score on 214 from 32.2 overs.
Powell and Dennis Bulli moved the Scorpions score up to 248-5 before Bulli was dismissed for 17 by Nial Smith in the 38th over. Powell then hit Smith for a boundary in the same over to move up to 77 and move the Scorpions past 250.
With the Scorpions needing 34 from 37 balls, Sherfane Rutherford dismissed Odean Smith for 19 to leave score at 285-7 after 44 overs.
A Jeavor Royal six in the 47th over brought up the 300 for the Scorpions, leaving them needing just 14 runs to win from 22 balls.
Captain Powell then brought up a magnificent 100 off just 89 balls including seven fours and three sixes, his fourth List A hundred, leaving Jamaica needing 10 more runs off the final three overs to advance to the final.
Needing only three runs to win from the last two overs, Jeavor Royal hit Nial Smith for a six to bring the Scorpions to 322-7 off 48.1 overs, sealing an excellent three-wicket win.
Powell ended 105 not out while Motie led the Harp Eagles bowling with 3-48 from his 10 overs.
The Jamaica Scorpions will now play the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force in Saturday’s final at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium.
The Guyana Harpy Eagles became the first team to advance to the semi-finals of the 2022 CG Insurance Super50 Cup when they defeated the Combined Campuses and Colleges by 129 runs at the Queens Park Oval in Trinidad & Tobago on Saturday.
The Harpy Eagles were bowled out for a formidable 266 in 47.3 overs thanks to an 88-ball 75 from Tevin Imlach including only one four and two sixes.
Opener Kemol Savory also got a half-century with 69 and Kevin Sinclair contributed 27.
Matthew Forde (2-41 from nine overs), Amari Goodridge (2-55 from 9.3 overs), Romario Greaves (2-65 from 10 overs) and Isaiah Ali (2-39 from nine overs) were the wicket-takers for the CCC.
In reply, only former West Indies captain Denesh Ramdin (32 not out) and opener Kirstan Kallicharan (32) were able to provide any resistance for the CCC as they were bowled out for 137 in just 36.1 overs.
Kevin Sinclair completed a solid all-round performance with 3-26 from his 10 overs while Nial Smith took 3-21 from 6.1. Gudakesh Motie and Romario Shepherd took two wickets each.
Guyana finished Zone A with 16 points from their six outings and will be joined in the last four by the winner of the ongoing game between the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force and the Windward Islands Volcanoes.
SportsMax is the Caribbean sports channel of choice, committed to providing sporting content of the highest quality to the Caribbean, delivered by a team of highly innovative, passionate and qualified professionals.
(876) 619-7629
digitalmedia@sportsmax.tv
