Title in the balance ahead of Four-Day Champs final round

THE 2024 Cricket West Indies (CWI) Regional Four-Day Championships title is in the balance entering the final round of matches, starting on Wednesday (April 17).

After a mini-slump, the Windward Islands Volcanoes returned to the top spot in the eight-team standings, with a tally of 90 points, after spanking West Indies Academy by 153 runs at the Coolidge Cricket Ground, Antigua.

The Leeward Islands Hurricanes, who were atop the table after five rounds of matches, slipped to fourth spot on 84.6 points after a nine-wicket defeat to Barbados Pride at the Queen’s Park Oval, St Clair, Trinidad. The Pride moved up to second place on 87.6 points.

The Guyana Harpy Eagles, winners in 2023, hammered the struggling Jamaica Scorpions by 212 runs at Sabina Park, Kingston, Jamaica to climb one place to third on 87.2 points.

Trinidad and Tobago Red Force got the better of Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC) by 123 runs at the Sir Frank Worrell Ground, St Augustine, Trinidad. The Red Force are in fifth place on 72.8 points, followed by the Scorpions (57), Academy (54.2) and CCC (26.6).

In the final round of matches in the 2024 tournament, the Volcanoes will meet the Hurricanes at the Queen’s Park Oval, the Pride will square off against the Academy at Coolidge, the Scorpions will host the Red Force at Sabina Park and CCC will entertain the Harpy Eagles at St Augustine.

Here is a look at the good, and the bad, for each of the performing teams in the sixth round (as far as individual displays are concerned) –

WINDWARD ISLANDS VOLCANOES

Good: Shamar Springer’s all-round display, as he scored 31 and 47 in the first and second innings respectively, and returned figures of two wickets for 65 runs (in the Academy’s first innings) and 4/30 in their second. Captain Alick Athanaze was the top-scorer in the Volcanoes’ second innings with 89, the only half-century knock in the match.

Pace bowler Gillon Tyson also had a good outing, with 5/50 in the first innings and 2/36 in the second.

Bad: Their top-order batting. Opener Jeremy Solozano could only post seven and one respectively and fellow left-hander Johann Jeremiah, operating at number three, made five and four. Debutant opener Stephan Pascal, the 2024 West Indies Under-19 World Cup skipper, did fairly better, with 26 and 14.

WEST INDIES ACADEMY

Good: Left-arm spinner Joshua Bishop’s consistency with the ball, as he continued to lead the bowling charts with 37, after taking 4/24 in the first innings and 4/78 in the second.

Bad: Joshua Dorne, the 2024 WI Under-19 batsman, who had the ignominy of a pair. Ironically, in each innings, he was trapped leg-before by pacer Ryan John for a third-ball duck.

BARBADOS PRIDE

Good: Dubbed by Machel Hewitt as “Thanos”, Roston Chase marked his return to the regional first-class competition with an awesome performance, with both bat and ball. With the bat, he blazed his way to 127 (87 balls, 10 fours and seven sixes) and, with his off-breaks, he snapped up a 10-wicket haul (3/47 and 7/67), as he opened the bowling with fellow all-rounder Raymon Reifer in both of the Hurricanes’ innings.

Also, there were contrasting from captain Kraigg Brathwaite (189 off 400 balls with 17 fours) and fellow opener Zachary McCaskie (101 off 148 balls with 12 fours and two sixes).

Veteran left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican is joint second on the bowling charts with 32 scalps, but he only captured one wicket in each innings. Pacer Shaquille Cumberbatch offered good support to Chase in the first innings, with 3/48, while Reifer had 2/19.

Bad: Fast bowler Jair McAllister continues to struggle to replicate his good season in 2023. In the first innings, he had 1/41 off nine overs and, in the second, 0/34 off five.

LEEWARD ISLANDS HURRICANES

Good: Mikyle Louis and Keacy Carty both getting past 50 in both innings. Opener Louis pushed his tournament’s aggregate to 549 after hitting 52 in the first innings and 80 in the second, while Carty struck 127 (232 balls, 12 fours) in his first knock and 69 in his second.

Veteran opener Kieran Powell also had a useful 52 in the second innings, while Jewel Andrew (53 in the first innings) and Hayden Walsh (60 in the second) were also among the runs.

Despite his lack of mobility, captain Rahkeem Cornwall extended his season’s tally with the ball to 32 after capturing 5/132 with his off-spin.

Bad: Jeremiah Louis, the season’s leading pace bowler (with 29 scalps) went wicket-less in this match. More concerning was the lack of productivity, with the ball, from Walsh. In the first innings, the leg-spinner had 0/59 off 13 overs and was unused in the second innings, with Carty’s military medium pace and Andrew’s unpractised off-spin given preference by Cornwall.

GUYANA HARPY EAGLES

Good: The tale of two wicketkeepers. The seasoned gloveman Tevin Imlach has decided to focus on his batting, at the number three spot. After sustaining a hand injury in the first innings which forced him to retire for bit, Imlach returned to compile an unbeaten 101 (169 balls, 11 fours and two sixes), and followed up with 44 in the second innings. Kemol Savory, who has donned the wicketkeeping gloves throughout the season, had a career-best 155 (309 balls, 16 fours and three sixes).

The wickets were shared by evergreen left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul (5/55) and fast bowler Isai Thorne (2/19) in the first innings; off-spinner Kevin Sinclair and left-armer Gudakesh Motie (3/32 each) and Thorne (2/30) in the second innings.

Bad: Tagenarine Chanderpaul’s inconsistency at the top of the order, with one and 11 in his respective knocks.

JAMAICA SCORPIONS

Good: Fast bowler Ojay Shields claiming 4/103 and off-spinner Pete Salmon 3/117 in the Harpy Eagles’ first innings, while the experienced pacer Derval Green had 2/39 in the second.

Bad: The batting. Not one batsman (batter is for baseball by the way) crossed 50. The Scorpions are playing all their matches at home, at Sabina

TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO RED FORCE

Good: A maiden first-class century from Amir Jangoo (218 off 238 deliveries with 15 fours and 10 sixes) while Jason Mohammed struck 157 (228 balls, 22 fours) as they featured in a fourth-wicket stand of 264 on the first day. Captain Joshua Da Silva contributed 79 and opener Kjorn Ottley chipped in with 47.

Fast bowler Anderson Phillip snapped up 5/71 in the first innings while off-spinner Bryan Charles had 2/30 and pacer Terrance Hinds 2/43. Charles, in the second innings, grabbed 4/46 and left-armer Khary Pierre 3/90.

Bad: Shannon Gabriel. In his first game of the season, he only bowled eight overs in the first innings before suffering a left knee injury.

COMBINED CAMPUSES AND COLLEGES

Good: Yannick Ottley’s 56 in the first innings and, in the second innings, useful hands from Damel Evelyn (73), Demario Richards (66 not out) and captain Shamarh Brooks (62).

Pacer Amari Goodridge took 5/92 in the Red Force’s first innings.

Bad: Roshon Primus’ return of 6-0-59-0 in the Red Force’s first knock, inclusive of five no-balls. Ouch!!

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