New format, same result for the West Indies Women as Sri Lanka continued their dominance over their Caribbean counterparts with a win in the first of three T20 Internationals in Hambantota on Monday.

Returning skipper Hayley Matthews brought some respectability back to the Windies batting but it wasn’t enough in the end as the tourists made 134-8 from their 20 overs after being put in to bat by the hosts.

Matthews led the way with a run-a-ball 30 while Aaliyah Alleyne also contributed with 26 off 22 balls including three fours.

Sri Lanka skipper Chamari Athapaththu was excellent with the ball on her way to a career best 4-29 from her four over spell while Inoshi Priyadharshani provided excellent support with 3-28 from her four overs.

Vishmi Gunaratne and Harshitha Samarawickrama then each made 35 as the Sri Lankans stuttered to their target, eventually reaching 137-6 in the 19^th over.

Afy Fletcher took 2-29 from her four overs for the Windies.

This was Sri Lanka’s first win over the West Indies in T20Is since 2015. They also won the ODI series 3-0.

The second T20I takes place on Tuesday.

Full Scores:

West Indies 134 for 8 off 20 overs (Hayley Matthews 30, Chamari Athapaththu 4-29, Inoshi Priyadharshani 3-28) 

Sri Lanka 137 for 6 off 18.4 overs (Vishmi Gunaratne 35, Harshitha Samarawickrama 35, Fletcher 2-29)

The Jamaica Table Tennis Association is kickstarting their effort to resurrect the sport in the country from the ground up with the hosting a one-day rally for Preparatory and Primary Schools on Monday, June 24 at the Excelsior High School.

The rally, put on with support from the Sports Development Foundation and Optical Solutions International Limited, will include a total of 27 teams from 18 schools, an increase from last year’s 13 schools.

“This year I am overjoyed. We have never had such a vast turnout,” said Jamaica Table Tennis Association President, Ingrid Graham.

“We have over 150 young Table Tennis players who will be participating. It is way more than I expected. The children and coaches are overjoyed. This is something that has been in the making for a long time and it is showing you the positive way forward that Table Tennis is back, we’re alive and we’re here to stay,” she added.

Prior to last year’s staging, the tournament wasn’t held since 2019.

Graham told Sportsmax.tv on Saturday about the importance of having this tournament to foster the development of the country’s young players.

“Last year we decided that we have to get it going again because all of our juniors, they have moved up to senior level and some maybe stopped playing,” she said.

“We had to do that in order to encourage the sport in the schools and the development of Table Tennis moving forward,” she added.

Graham says this commitment to youth development goes beyond the sport of Table Tennis.

“It is very important to give these young people a chance in life whether it’s in sports or academics or whatever area they choose. Sometimes they are going through some phases in their lives and they are not able to speak to their parents or guardian in the way that they would speak to us. So, reaching out to these youngsters, we are trying to say that there are so many things you can do. We are trying to steer them away from the path of going negative and towards something positive,” she said.

“We are trying to create avenues that will provide for our youngsters. We have quite a number of kids involved in Table Tennis now who are from the inner city. They don’t have it like that so it’s hard on us as an Association to help them in the capacity that we would like to help them but we are trying to do our best in that aspect and to guide them in the right path of development,” she added.

Other sponsors for Monday’s event include Supersonic Table Tennis Club, Kingston & St. Andrew Table Tennis Association, Western Sports, Skills Unlimited Table Tennis Academy, American Jewellery, GraceKennedy, Graham International and GEWO Jamaica.

For a long time, West Indies ODI skipper Shai Hope was looked at as a batsman who would struggle in the shortest form of the game because of what many described as an inability to score quickly.

Over the last couple years, however, Hope has rubbished those sentiments thanks to some destructive batting performances in the CPL as well as in leagues around the world.

His evolution as a T20 batsman was none more evident than during the West Indies’ game against the USA at the ICC T20 World Cup on Friday in his home country of Barbados.

Looking to bounce back from a loss to England in their first game of the Super 8 on Wednesday, the joint hosts dismissed their American counterparts for 128 after losing the toss at the Kensington Oval.

The West Indians then needed only 10.5 overs to reach 130-1, with Hope finishing 82* off just 39 balls. In a brilliant display of power hitting, Hope hit eight sixes and four fours on the way to his highest score in T20 Internationals.

“Clinical,” was how Hope described the team’s performance on Friday in a post-match press conference.

“Especially coming off the loss that we had a couple days ago. It's great to see the guys understood the assignment today and we played the cricket that we wanted to play. It's important for us to continue in this vein because we see what's at stake now. But yeah, very happy with the bounce back that we did today and there's a lot more cricket to play and we're looking forward to it,” he added.

On his own individual performance, Hope was happy to perform in front of his home crowd.

“Yeah, it was an amazing crowd. It's nice to see everyone came out and support us today. Something that we get in the Caribbean when we're doing well, we tend to see a lot more supporters out there. So that means we must be doing something right if you've got a solo crowd. But yeah, the crowd was rocking today,” he said.

“I thought that the support was amazing. Again, I'm from Barbados so playing in front of this lovely crowd meant a lot more to me. Scoring some runs and winning the game for the team felt even more special so I'm very happy to do that,” Hope added.

At the start of the tournament, Hope was on the outside of the XI looking in. He missed the first three games before coming into the side ahead of Roston Chase in the third game against Afghanistan where he 25 batting at number four.

The 30-year-old was then left out once again for the Super 8 opener against England. A side strain suffered by Brandon King during that game meant Hope was given an opportunity at the top of the order against the USA, an opportunity that he grabbed with both hands.

“Yeah, it's a great feeling. Again, whatever the team requires, that's me. Unfortunately, King had to leave us. Hopefully, he recovers quickly. But yeah, I had to go at the top this time around and the aim was just to get off to a good start. You see the importance of finishing the game early as well. So yeah, I had a good time in the middle, good surface and I enjoyed batting tonight,” he said.

“Just have to stay ready in a tournament like this. There's a reason why we have 15 players. All of them need to be ready whenever the time comes,” he added.

Finally, Hope issued a plea to the fans of the West Indies to continue supporting them on their journey to a third ICC T20 World Cup title.

“Keep rallying. That's our motto. We always talk about rallying around the West Indies. That's exactly what we need to keep doing. The team rallying around each other. The fans need to do the same. We're out there fighting for each and every one of us. So, you understand the importance and the magnitude of the tournament. We're playing a home World Cup, something that I'm sure a lot of cricketers over their careers may not get the opportunity to do. We understand the importance of this in particular and we know how much the fans really want us to win so we're fighting, we're doing it for them and it's great to see the support I hope that it continues for the rest of the tournament,” he said.

The West Indies will take on South Africa in their last Super 8 match on Sunday in Antigua.

A disappointing first innings batting effort proved too much to overcome for the West Indies Academy as they went down by 72 runs to Emerging Ireland on day four of their first of two four-day encounter at The Green in Comber on Friday.

Chasing 344 for victory on Friday, the tourists were eventually dismissed for 271 in 56.4 overs.

Openers Kadeem Alleyne and Ackeem Auguste did the bulk of the scoring with a 151-run opening wicket partnership but their wickets in quick succession dashed the hopes of the West Indians pulling off a successful chase.

Alleyne fell narrowly short of a maiden first class hundred with an 84-ball 93 including nine fours and four sixes while Auguste hit a patient 82-ball 47.

Joshua Bishop was also a key contributor with the bat with 42 off 40 balls including six fours and a pair of sixes.

Leg spinner Gavin Hoey was the pick of the Emerging Ireland bowlers with 4-81 from 19 overs while Matthew Humphreys and Liam McCarthy took 3-44 from 8.4 overs and 3-49 from 17 overs, respectively.

Earlier in the game, Emerging Ireland batted first and posted 283 from 91.3 overs in their first innings after being put in to bat before the West Indies Academy replied with a disappointing 214 in 49.1 overs.

The Irish responded to that with 274 off 74 overs in their second innings leaving the West Indies Academy needing 344 for victory.

The second Four-Day game takes place from June 25-28 in Belfast.

Full Scores:

Emerging Ireland 283 off 91.3 overs (Christopher De Freitas 88, Morgan Topping 45*, Thomas Mayes 42, Johann Layne 4-84, Nyeem Young 3-73) & 274 off 74 overs (Cade Carmichael 92, Stephen Doheny 41, Gavin Hoey 37, Johann Layne 5-39, Onaje Amory 2-88)

West Indies Academy 214 off 49.1 overs (Nyeem Young 48*, Kadeem Alleyne 47, Jordan Johnson 33, Thomas Mayes 4-61, Liam McCarthy 3-62, Matthew Humphreys 2-44) & 271 off 56.4 overs (Kadeem Alleyne 93, Ackeem Auguste 47, Joshua Bishop 42, Gavin Hoey 4-81, Matthew Humphreys 3-44, Liam McCarthy 3-49)

The Caribbean region’s best young golfers are set to descend upon Jamaica’s Caymanas Golf Course soon to participate in the 36^th staging of the Caribbean Amateur Junior Golf Championship.

Teams will start arriving in Jamaica on July 1 with the competition set to take place from July 3-5 with the first tee time set at 7:00 AM local time.

There will be eight competing countries and these include hosts Jamaica, defending champions Puerto Rico, the Dominican Republic, the Bahamas, Barbados, Trinidad & Tobago, Bermuda and the Cayman Islands.

Among these countries, there will be approximately 85 participants taking part in the championships split into the Boys and Girls 18 & Under, Boys & Girls 15 & Under and Boys & Girls 13 & Under categories.

The official media launch for the junior golf showcase was held at the Jamaica Pegasus Hotel in Kingston on Thursday.

“The hosting of this prestigious event represents not only a celebration of golf, but it also fulfils our mandate by providing a platform for our junior golfers to hone their skills in addition to being a testament to the spirit of sportsmanship, camaraderie and youthful exuberance that thrives in our Caribbean region,” said President of the Jamaica Golf Association, Jodi Munn-Barrow, at Thursday’s launch.

Lead sponsors of the July 3-5 championships are BCIC Insurance Company Limited and their CEO, Peter Levy, expressed happiness to be a part of this competition.

“It’s an opportunity for us to reaffirm BCIC’s commitment to youth development through our title sponsorship of this prestigious event,” he said.

“BCIC has always believed in the power of sport to shape our society and we see this partnership as an investment in the dreams and aspirations of young golfers across the Caribbean,” he added.

Also on hand to give a glimpse of what to expect from the course itself was Caymanas Golf Club General Manager, Peter Lindo.

“Our picturesque little course in St. Catherine eagerly awaits the talented young golfers who will be representing their countries. Our course superintendent, Mr. Jerry Hardy, and out groundskeepers have been working meticulously preparing the course taking every measure possible to present optimal playing conditions,” he said.

“We’ve had some unusually hot dry weather up until last week and that little spell of rain has given us an even greener landscape. One of the challenges we’ve had over the years is the deterioration of our bunkers and Jamaica Aggregates Limited were very kind in donating sand which will go a very long way in the resuscitation of the bunkers,” he added.

Other main sponsors for the championship include Sandals Foundation, R&A, Fleetwood, ORCA Golf, Caribbean Golf Association, CMK Bakery and Digicel Business.

West Indies fans were left perplexed when pacer Obed McCoy was left out of the XI to play England in their opening Super 8 encounter at the Daren Sammy Cricket Stadium in St. Lucia on Wednesday.

The Vincentian left-arm quick took 3-14 from three overs in the last group stage game against Afghanistan at the same venue after coming into the team for Romario Shepherd who left the squad to attend the birth of his second child.

Historically, McCoy’s eight wickets in three games at the venue is the third most among active cricketers with only Pakistan Saeed Ajmal with 11 wickets in five games and Hayden Walsh Jr with 12 wickets in five games ahead of him.

Despite these statistics, McCoy was left out of the team that suffered a brutal eight-wicket loss on Thursday.

Shepherd, who came back into the side in place of McCoy, conceded 41 runs in two overs.

His last over was belted for 30 runs by Phil Salt who finished 87*.

West Indies Captain Rovman Powell defended the call to leave McCoy out of the side.

“I think when you're selecting a team and you have players that are playing good you will always have to make the tough decision. We sat down as a selection group and thought that the team that played today is our better team to face England and it just didn't work out tonight,” Powell said in a post-match press conference.

The hosts will next take on joint hosts the USA in Barbados on Friday before facing South Africa in their final Super 8 game in Antigua on Sunday.

Despite Wednesday’s loss, the West Indies still have their fate in their own hands as wins in those two games will see them having a good chance of making it to the last four.

“I think our destiny is still in our own hands. It's just for us to continue to play good cricket. And once we do that, we think we'll be ok,” Powell said.

National 110m hurdles record holder Omar McLeod continued his resurgence this season with a winning effort at the Paavo Nurmi Games, a Word Athletics Continental Tour-Gold event in Turku, Finland on Tuesday.

The 2016 Olympic and 2017 World champion produced a season’s best 13.25 to win the final of the men’s sprint hurdles ahead of Belgium’s Elie Bacari (13.38) and Finland’s Elmo Lakka (13.43).

The 30-year-old earlier ran 13.29 to advance fastest from the heats.

The women’s sprint hurdles saw World Championships silver medallist Britany Anderson produce a season’s best 12.87 for sixth in the final after running 12.93 earlier in the heats.

The final was won by American World champion Nia Ali in 12.48 just ahead of Dutchwoman Nadine Visser (12.51). Ireland’s Sarah Lavin was third in 12.66.

This was McLeod’s third win in four events this season, with his previous two coming in Italy on May 15 and 19 with times of 13.37 and 13.47 at the Savona International Meeting and Lucca International Meeting, respectively.

Elsewhere, two-time World Championships triple jump silver medallist Shanieka Ricketts took the win in the women’s triple jump with a best jump of 14.17m coming in the first round of the competition.

Italy’s Dariya Derkach was second with 14.08m while Sweden’s Maja Askag was third with 14.06m.

Two-time World champion Anderson Peters threw 82.58m for fourth in the javelin throw behind India’s Neeraj Chopra (85.97m) and the Finnish pair of Toni Keranen (84.19m) and Oliver Helander (83.96m).

Sri Lanka Women secured an unassailable 2-0 lead in their three-match ODI series against West Indies Women with a dominant five-wicket win in the second encounter in Hambantota on Tuesday.

The West Indies, playing without their regular captain Hayley Matthews, were bundled out for a paltry 95 in just 31 overs after being put in to bat by the hosts.

Rashada Williams was the only West Indies batter to provide any meaningful resistance with 24 as Kavisha Dilhari, just as she did in the first match, starred with the ball with 4-20 from six overs.

Captain Chamari Athapaththu took 2-8 from two overs while Achini Kulasuriya took 2-16 from seven overs in support.

Sri Lanka then lost five wickets on their way to 93 in the 22^nd over to secure the series victory.

The successful chase was led by a run-a-ball 50 from Vishmi Gunaratne while Dilhari contributed 28.

Karishma Ramharack took 2-29 from 5.2 overs for the West Indies.

Full Scores:

West Indies Women 92 off 31 overs (Rashada Williams 24, Kavisha Dilhari 4-20, Chamari Athapaththu 2-8, Achini Kulasuriya 2-16)

Sri Lanka Women 93-5 off 21.2 overs (Vishmi Gunaratne 50, Kavisha Dilhari 28, Karishma Ramharack 2-29)

The standard of football coaching in Jamaica looks set to increase over the next few years thanks to the formation of the Wray & Nephew School of Football Coaching.

This partnership between the Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) and Wray & Nephew is a part of the Wray & Nephew Football Program and will oversee the training of 500 coaches at the Preparatory and Primary School level across Jamaica at the D-license level.

This comprehensive training will certify coaches in order for them to operate at all levels including at International standard fostering a new era of football excellence in Jamaica.

This initiative will also involve the renovation of the existing school of football located at the University of the West Indies.

“I’m very happy to introduce the Wray & Nephew School of Football Coaching,” said Managing Director at J. Wray & Nephew Ltd, Jean-Philippe Beyer last Thursday announcing the partnership at the brand’s headquarters in Kingston.

JFF Technical Committee Chairman Rudolph Speid, who is also the head coach of Jamaica Premier League champions Cavalier SC, is pleased about the continued effort to develop coaches in the country.

“This is a welcome sponsorship to the program. Three years ago, we didn’t have a C-licensed coach in Jamaica. Now, we have five A-licensed coaches and another six are doing their studies. There will be an A-licensing course starting on July 9 with approximately 20 local coaches in that class,” he said.

“We now have 100 B-licensed coaches in Jamaica, 200 C-licensed coaches and over 500 D-licensed coaches but those coaches were really building from the top. We have now embarked on a very ambitious program with the help of Wray & Nephew and the SDF (Sports Development Foundation) to certify 500 coaches at the Primary and Preparatory School level across Jamaica at the D-license level and then bring them up to the C-license level by July 2025,” he added.

Speid also emphasized the importance of developing a good coaching education program.

“If you look at it, all the national teams that do well, in Europe and South America for example, have the best coaching education programs in the world. That is what we are trying to emulate here in Jamaica,” he said.

Also on hand was President of the Jamaica Football Federation, Michael Ricketts, who thanked Wray & Nephew for continuing to invest in the country's football development.

"We just want to form an alliance as we try to move the sport forward and this is no ordinary announcement. This is what we're asking corporate Jamaica to do as part of building this nation of ours," he said.

Jamaica’s Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sports, the hon. Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange, also played a hand in the formation of the school of coaching through her ministry.

“We continue to strengthen our sporting culture by investing in sports and this includes providing and increasing access to quality education for our coaches,” she said.

“When private sector companies and Government partner in sports, sustainable growth and improvement in all levels become the key input,” she added.

So far, the experience at the 2024 ICC Men’s T20 World Cup has been a fantastic one for the West Indies.

The two-time champions and joint hosts have won all three of their matches in Group C against Papua New Guinea, Uganda and New Zealand and have already secured a spot in the Super 8.

A win over Afghanistan in their final Group Stage game at the Daren Sammy Cricket Stadium in St. Lucia on Monday will see them advance as winners of Group C.

Their opponents also have three wins in as many games and are currently top of the group with a superior net run rate, 4.230 to 2.596.

West Indies skipper Rovman Powell addressed the media on Sunday ahead of Monday’s encounter.

“Obviously, it's a top of the table clash. Afghanistan have been playing good T20 cricket and consistent T20 cricket. They have a lot of match winners. So, it's something that we have to come with our best game. As I said before, they're playing good T20 cricket. So, it's an opportunity for us to play against another world class side. Very good practice going into the Super 8 games,” he said.

The hosts have played their three games in Guyana and Trinidad & Tobago and are looking forward to playing at the Daren Sammy Stadium in St. Lucia, a pitch known as one of the better ones in the region for batting.

“Yeah, definitely. When we look on the schedule, all the batters were excited to come to St. Lucia. Traditionally, St. Lucia have been a place where batters like to bat. It's also an opportunity for bowlers to bowl good spells here, especially the fast bowlers. We think that St. Lucia offer 60 - 40 in terms of, from a batting perspective, to bowl. And so, if you are a bowler, or if you are a batter, you definitely can get something out of the St. Lucia wicket,” Powell said.

One major concern for the West Indies has been the form of opener Johnson Charles who has scored 44 runs in three games, so far, with all 44 of those runs coming against Uganda.

Powell says he expects Charles to come good at some point and is encouraging him to continue to be aggressive at the top of the innings.

“It's just a case of us telling him to be Johnson Charles, be his natural self. If he's an aggressive player, we expect him to play aggressive. But with that aggression, we know at some point he will fail and at some point, he will come good. So, it's for us now to support him, it's for us now to give him that additional backing that he needs and I think everyone is behind him to come good tomorrow or when he gets the opportunity in the future games,” he said.

Since the tournament, the regional side have climbed up to number three in the ICC T20 International rankings.

Naturally, a team playing a home World Cup will face pressure to perform well but this bump in ranking will only magnify that pressure.

Powell says the team is aware and ready for the challenge ahead.

“I think pressure is always there, especially when you're at home, especially when you're playing a World Cup at home. Pressure is always there, but it's for us as individuals to manage that pressure,” he said.

“I think for me as captain, when I started this journey 12 or 14 months ago, when I took over as captain, we were at eight or nine in the ranking. To see us at number three now in the world is a pleasing feeling. And it shows that not just myself, but the players are coming together and we're doing something right. I've never played in a West Indies team that is ranked number three in the world. So that for me is something special and hopefully, just hopefully, we can continue to climb those rankings,” he added.

Emerging Ireland secured a four-wicket win over the West Indies Academy to complete a 3-0 sweep of their 50-over series in Bready on Friday.

The tourists, after being out in to bat, were guilty of not using up their allotted overs as they were dismissed for 236 with all of seven overs to spare.

Ackeem Auguste led the way with a 68-ball 81 including 10 fours and two sixes while Joshua James hit 26* off 25 balls.

Skipper Gavin Hoey led the Irish charge with his leg-spin with 4-45 from his 10 overs while medium pacer Olly Riley took 3-38 from nine overs.

Emerging Ireland then needed only 39 overs to reach 238-6 and secure victory and a 3-0 series triumph.

Morgan Topping led the way for the hosts with 46 while Seamus Lynch hit 45* off just 28 balls including six fours and two sixes.

Chris de Freitas and Scott MacBeth also had solid contributions with 38 and 36, respectively.

Captain Nyeem Young took 3-56 from nine overs for the Academy.

The teams will now turn their attention to a pair of four-day games from June 18-21 in Comber and June 25-28 in Belfast.

The ties between Jamaica’s football and corporate Jamaica got stronger on Thursday as well-loved brand Wray & Nephew unveiled plans for a newly minted Wray & Nephew Football Programme.

The programme, inspired by the longstanding partnerships with the island’s most impactful sporting competitions, was developed to foster the technical advancement of football in Jamaica, with a special emphasis on coaching education and bolstering the journey of the Reggae Boyz and Reggae Girlz towards the World Cup.

The investment will be to the sum of approximately $200 million over the next three years.

“The Wray and Nephew Football Program has been created to support our commitment to advance football in Jamaica. To that effect, we have decided to increase and widen our support and investment in the beautiful game,” said Jean-Philippe Beyer, Managing Director at J. Wray & Nephew.

“Supporting football from grassroots programs to professional leagues is a privilege for us and I say this because, through this partnership, we are not only seeing the triumphs of our players and our coaches, we are also seeing the positive impacts their achievements have on their families and communities,” he added.

In addition to being the title sponsors of both the JPL and Major League, Wray & Nephew will also be the official spirit of the senior Reggae Boyz and Reggae Girlz, supporting them in their dream of qualifying for the World Cup.

Beyer also announced that Wray & Nephew are in the process of directly sponsoring some stadiums.

“We are still in discussions with a number of them but tonight I can announce that we are at the contract stage with Ferdi Neita Park and Waterhouse Mini Stadium,” he said.

Ferdi Neita Park is the home of Portmore United while Waterhouse Mini Stadium houses Waterhouse FC.

Jamaica Football Federation (JFF) President Michael Ricketts, who was also on hand on Thursday, has always pleaded for corporate Jamaica to get more involved in the country’s football and he was understandably elated that Wray & Nephew has done just that.

“When we get a positive response from our daily calls from corporate Jamaica to come on board and help us use the sport of football to socially impact the well-being of boys and girls in this country, I am absolutely delighted,” he said.

The Hon. Olivia ‘Babsy’ Grange, Jamaica’s Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, recognised the importance of the partnership between corporate Jamaica and sport.

“This evening, we add another to the many partnerships between Jamaican companies and sporting bodies, communities and the Government over the years,” she said.

“This partnership with a Jamaican-born company, J. Wray & Nephew Ltd, is a cause for celebration because, not only are we stronger together, but this partnership also highlights our shared passion for football and our vibrant sporting culture which, together, have brought so much joy to our people,” she added.

West Indies batsman Sherfane Rutherford rates his well-compiled half century against New Zealand at the ICC T20 World Cup on Wednesday as his best knock.

The 25-year-old came to the crease with the hosts teetering at 22-4 in the sixth over after bring put in to bat at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba.

On a pitch that he described as “tacky” and “spongy” in the post-match press conference, Rutherford took his time in the early part of his innings before accelerating to a top score of 68* to help the West Indies post a match-winning 149-9 from their allotted 20 overs.

Rutherford described the innings as perhaps the best of his career, so far.

“I will put it as my best knock. It’s a World Cup. This is my dream. I’ve always wanted to play in a World Cup and this one is going to stay close to my heart. Hopefully, I can continue to take out good innings like this for my team and for myself,” he said.

At the halfway point of the innings, the West Indies were 49-5 and Rutherford says head coach Daren Sammy’s advice was to bat time and take it deep.

“He was just telling me to take it deep. I was batting with Akeal (Hosein) so I told him to keep going but my role was to basically take it to the 15^th or 16^th over but after we lost wickets I just told myself to try and take it to the 20^th over and try and maximize those last two overs which they had to make up with two bowlers,” he said.

The Guyanese hard-hitter was recently a part of the Indian Premier League with the Kolkata Knight Riders and, despite not getting a game, he says he has been using that time to prepare for situations like the one he faced on Wednesday.

“I pattern my game off these situations. Even before the World Cup, I try to put myself in positions in the nets where I have to bat properly and then have to excel in the end so I think it’s good to see that my plans and my work are coming to show,” he said.

He faced a similar situation when the West Indies found themselves 79-5 batting first in the third T20I against Australia in Perth in February.

Rutherford and Andre Russell put on 139 for the sixth wicket with Rutherford finishing 67* off 40 balls.

He says the main thing he took from that innings was the importance of giving himself time at the crease.

“The innings in Australia is one that I kept close to me and, even though it was a good innings, I try to pick a few things out of it. One of the few things was give myself time. It’s always a process and when you look too far ahead you can forget about the process so, for me, it was just ball after ball, give myself time, run singles and get myself ready so that in the back end I can make up,” he said.

Finally, Rutherford made mention of the crowd at the Brian Lara Stadium.

“When batting I try not to worry about the crowd. I just try to look at what’s in front of me and focus on the process but it’s good to have some support. It’s good to have the home crowd with us and hopefully they can keep supporting us,” he said.

The West Indies will next take on Afghanistan at the Daren Sammy Stadium on June 17.

Cuban-born Spanish triple jumper Jordan Diaz Fortun produced a spectacular performance to win triple jump gold on day five at the European Championships in Rome on Tuesday.

The 23-year-old, who switched allegiance from Cuba to Spain in November 2022, produced a championship record and world-leading 18.18m to take gold ahead of Portugal’s Pedro Pablo Pichardo and France’s Thomas Gogois.

Diaz Fortun led the competition after the first round with a 17.56m jump before Pichardo, who also switched allegiance from Cuba in 2017, produced the world’s first 18m jump since 2021 with 18.04m to take the lead in the second round.

The Spaniard’s next two efforts were 17.82m in the second round and 17.96m in the fourth round after a third-round foul, finding himself just short of Pichardo’s mark heading into round five.

In that fifth round, he produced what is now the third-longest triple jump of all time with a breathtaking 18.18m, only trailing Christian Taylor’s 18.21m and Jonathan Edwards’s world record 18.29m.

Diaz Fortun’s jump also established a new European Championship record, eclipsing Edwards’s 17.99m set back in 1998.

Pichardo’s next three best jumps after his monstrous 18.04m in round two were 17.55m in round three, 17.47m in round five and 17.92m in round six.

Gogois produced a personal best 17.38m in the sixth round to secure the bronze medal.

Louisiana State University (LSU) sophomore Brianna Lyston has decided to shut down her 2024 season meaning she will not compete at the Jamaican National Championships from June 27-30 at the National Stadium in Kingston.

The 20-year-old announced her decision in an Instagram post on Sunday after competing at the NCAA Division I Outdoor Championships at Hayward Field in Eugene, Oregon.

“Thank you 2024, Breezy signing out,” she said.

This marks the end to an excellent second collegiate season for the former St. Jago and Hydel High standout.

Lyston enjoyed a perfect indoor season, going unbeaten in eight 60m races from January 27-March 9.

That included titles at both the SEC Indoor Championships as well as the NCAA Indoor Championships as well, establishing a personal best 7.03 at the latter.

Her season then moved outdoors where, in her first two 100m races of the season on March 30 and April 20, she produced wind-aided times of 10.87 and 10.84 at the Battle on the Bayou and the LSU Alumni Gold, respectively.

A month later at the SEC Championships, Lyston ran a personal best 10.91 to win the 100m title and 22.37 to finish fourth in the 200m.

Lyston secured 100m silver at the recently concluded NCAA Championships with a wind-aided 10.89 but she failed to advance to the final of the 200m after running 22.76 to finish fifth in her semi-final.

She also ran the opening leg on LSU’s silver medal-winning 4x100m quartet.