West Indies Championship - Keen interest still in final two matches

West Indies Championship – Keen interest still in final two matches

Mar 14, 2019 Sports

ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – There is still more than just passing interest with the final two matches in the West Indies Championship, starting tomorrow here and in Trinidad.
With the Guyana Jaguars having finished their schedule of matches for the season last round and accumulated 154.2 points – they have practically claimed the Headley/Weekes Trophy, symbol of West Indies first-class supremacy, for a fifth straight season.
The Jags are 23 points clear of Leeward Islands Hurricanes, their nearest rivals, who still have a mathematical chance of clinching the title, as they prepare to face a star-studded Barbados Pride at the Vivian Richards Cricket Ground.
At the same time – Trinidad & Tobago Red Force and Jamaica Scorpions will be aiming to finish the season strongly when they meet at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy.
The Hurricanes however, face the highly improbable, if not impossible task of gaining the absolute maximum 24 points against the Pride to be able to surpass the Jaguars and take home their fifth West Indies first-class title for the first time since they shared with the Jags 21 years ago.
It would take miraculously spectacular batting and bowling from the Hurricanes to gain all the points left on the table and pip the Jaguars for the title by just – one point.
And, the Hurricanes should not be ruled out, as they have the batting and bowling to get the job done, plus they are playing their best in almost a decade, are on familiar turf and beat the Pride in their first match at the start of the season last December, so they would relish a season sweep.
There also a few personal landmarks that could be accomplished by players on both sides in this contest:
• Hurricanes off-spinner Rahkeem Cornwall needs six wickets for 200 in the Championship and 84 runs to complete the double of 500 runs and 50 wickets for the season.
• Pride and WINDIES opener Kraigg Brathwaite requires 117 to become the 21st batsman overall and the sixth from Barbados to score more than 4,000 career runs in the Championship.
• Pride’s Jonathan Carter needs 23 runs to join veteran Windward Islands Volcanoes left-handed opener Devon Smith in the 700-run club for the season and 80 to reach 4,000 first-class career runs.
• Veteran Hurricanes pair of Devon Thomas and Montcin Hodge require 47 and 53 respectively, to also become members of the 700-run club for the season.
• Hurricanes batsman Keacy Carty has 515 runs and needs 85 to reach 600 runs for the season.
Squads; Hurricanes (from) – Rahkeem Cornwall (captain), Sheno Berridge, Nelson Bolan, Keacy Carty, Jahmar Hamilton, Montcin Hodge, Damion Jacobs, Alzarri Joseph, Kian Pemberton, Jaison Peters, Akeem Saunders, Devon Thomas, Terance Warde.
Pride (from) – Shamarh Brooks (captain), Kraigg Brathwaite, Jonathan Carter, Roston Chase, Miguel Cummins, Shane Dowrich, Keon Harding, Chaim Holder, Chemar Holder, Marquino Mindley, Shayne Moseley, Shamar Springer and Tevyn Walcott.
Umpires – Nigel Duguid (Guyana), Verdayne Smith (Jamaica)
Match Referee – Vanroy Burnes
Reserve Umpire – Bernard Joseph
Red Force (from) – Denesh Ramdin (captain), Yannic Cariah, Bryan Charles, Joshua Da Silva, Shannon Gabriel, Kyle Hope, Imran Khan, Jason Mohammed, Khary Pierre, Jeremy Solozano, Odean Smith, Anderson Phillip, Marlon Richards, Lendl Simmons and Daniel St. Clair.
Scorpions (from) – Paul Palmer (captain), Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Dennis Bulli, John Campbell, Akim Fraser, Assad Fudadin, Garth Garvey, Nicholson Gordon, Derval Green, Brandon King, Kennar Lewis and Jermaine Levy.
Umpires – Zahid Bassarath, Gregory Brathwaite (Barbados)
Match Referee – Michael Ragoonath
Reserve Umpire – Kashif Sandy

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