The Windward Islands Volcanoes are firmly in the drivers’ seat at the halfway stage of their 2024 West Indies Championship opening round fixture against the Jamaica Scorpions at Sabina Park in Kingston.

The Volcanoes started day two 157-2 off 41 overs trailing the Scorpions by just two runs and looking to build a substantial first innings lead on Thursday.

The pair at the crease for the Windwards, Johann Jeremiah and Sunil Ambris, carried the score up to 180 in the 52^nd over before Ambris was dismissed by Peat Salmon for a 75-ball 45.

The Scorpions then built some much-needed momentum going into the lunch break with the wickets of Jeremiah, Shadrack Descarte and Tevyn Walcott leaving the Volcanoes 219-6 at lunch, leading by 60 runs.

Jeremiah, who entered day two unbeaten on 66, eventually made 80 off 115 balls including 11 fours and a six while Descarte and Walcott made one and 20, respectively.

The post-lunch session, however, was anything but fruitful for the Scorpions as Shamar Springer and Ryan John, the pair who did most of the damage with the ball in the Scorpions first innings, repeated their exploits with the bat.

The pair batted excellently on their way to a 118-run seventh-wicket partnership that killed all the momentum the Scorpions may have built before lunch.

The partnership was finally ended when John went caught off the bowling of Gordon Bryan for 57 to leave the Windwards 328-7 off 97 overs at tea.

His knock lasted 85 balls and included five fours and three sixes.

Shortly after the resumption, Springer was next to fall for a well-compiled 131-ball 71 including seven fours.

Shermon Lewis and Darius Martin fell soon after as the Volcanoes were bowled out for 341 off 105.2 overs, a lead of 182 runs on first innings.

Pacer Gordon Bryan led the way with the ball for the hosts with 4-64 from 23 overs while Peat Salmon took 3-78 from 31 overs with his off-spin. Marquino Mindley also chipped in with 2-60 from 22.2 overs.

The Scorpions reply then got off to a less than ideal start as, for the second time in the contest, their top three failed to significantly contribute.

Carlos Brown and Kirk McKenzie both fell to Darius Martin in the second over of the innings without troubling the scorers before, seven overs later, the Scorpions were three down with just 34 runs on the board after Chadwick Walton was bowled by Martin for 20.

Nkrumah Bonner and Captain Jermaine Blackwood then tried to lead the Scorpions recovery with a 36-run fourth-wicket partnership before Blackwood went for 16 with just 15 minutes left in the day’s play.

In the end, the Scorpions were 76-4 at stumps, trailing by 106 runs with Nkrumah Bonner on 36 and Gordon Bryan on one.

Darius Martin has taken 3-29 off seven overs for the Volcanoes.

Full Scores: Jamaica Scorpions 159 all out off 41 overs (Romaine Morris 35, Peat Salmon 26, Ryan John 5-43, Shamar Springer 3-53) & 76-4 off 18 overs (Nkrumah Bonner 36*, Chadwick Walton 20, Darius Martin 3-29)

Windward Islands Volcanoes 341 all out off 105.2 overs (Johann Jeremiah 80, Shamar Springer 71, Ryan John 57, Sunil Ambris 45, Gordon Bryan 4-64, Peat Salmon 3-78, Marquino Mindley 2-60)

Jason Mohammed has so far posted the first century of the 2024 West Indies Championship, as Trinidad and Tobago Red Force closed day one in a good position at 215-4 in their opening contest against reigning champions Guyana Harpy Eagles at Conaree Cricket Centre in St Kitts.

Mohammed, who came to the middle with Red Force in a spot of bother, after Ronsford Beaton removed Cephas Cooper (eight) and Jyd Goolie (three), ended Wednesday’s first day unbeaten on 101.

The 37-year-old will resume his innings, which so far includes 11 fours, on Thursday with Vikash Mohan, who was also unbeaten on 20.

Beaton and Veerasammy Permaul, shared the four wickets, as the latter accounted for Amir Jangoo (27) and Tion Webster (49). Beaton so far has 2-39, while Permaul has 2-49.

Scores: Trinidad and Tobago Red Force 215-4 (81.2 overs); Guyana Harpy Eagles (Yet to bat)

Elsewhere, Windward Islands Volcanoes are on course to secure first innings honours over Jamaica Scorpions, as they closed day one on 157-2, after restricting their hosts to 159, at Sabina Park.

Johann Jeremiah, on 66, and Sunil Ambris, on 30, will resume batting for the Volcanoes on Thursday’s second day.

After asking the Scorpions to take first strike, Hurricanes seamers Ryan John and Shamar Springer produced clinical bowling efforts to rip through the opponents’ batting line up. John bagged 5-43 in 13 overs, while Springer had 3-53 in 10 overs, including two maidens.

Only Peat Salmon, with a 30-ball 26, including three fours and a six, and Romaine Morris’s 29-ball 35, including four fours and two sixes, had notable scores in the Scorpions’ sub-par effort.

The Volcanoes response started positively, with Kimani Melius (31) and Jeremy Solozano (26), both getting starts, but were unable to push on. Melius, who had six boundaries in his 32-ball knock, was removed by Abhijai Mansingh, while Salmon accounted for Solozano, who had five boundaries in his knock.

However, that was all the success the Scorpions would taste, as Jeremiah and Ambris took the bowlers to task and saw out the day.

Scores: Jamaica Scorpions 159 all out (41 overs); Windward Islands Volcanoes 157-2 (41 overs)

Meanwhile, no play was possible in the contest between Combined Campuses & Colleges Marooners and Barbados Pride at Chedwin Park, in Jamaica, due to a wet outfield caused by a ruptured water main.

A superb bowling performance by the West Indies Academy has put them in control against the Leeward Islands Hurricanes at Warner Park in St Kitts on the opening day of the 2024 West Indies Championship.

At stumps, West Indies Academy were 60-2, just 77 runs behind the Hurricanes, who were bundled out for a mere 137 thanks to the brilliant bowling efforts of the Academy’s bowlers.

Jeremiah Louis’ late-innings knock of 45 was the only thing that stood between the Hurricanes and complete humiliation as they were blown away by the bowling of allrounder Joshua James, who took 3-11 and Ashmead Nedd, who two wickets came at a cost of only three runs. Johan Layne weighed in with 2-18.

Nyeem Young was the least efficient of the bowlers conceding 52 runs from his 10 overs during which he took two wickets.

Terance Ward score of 28 and Jahmar Hamilton contribution of 22 were the only other noteworthy efforts in an otherwise woeful batting display from the Hurricanes.

Mbeki Joseph will resume on 30 and Ackeem Auguste 15 when play begins on Thursday.

The West Indies Championship 2024 is the region’s first-class four-day red ball tournament bowls off in Jamaica and St. Kitts and Nevis from 7-10 February, with four simultaneously contested matches.

The tournament will open with defending champions Guyana Harpy Eagles in a bid for a second successive title, taking on Trinidad and Tobago Red Force at Conaree Cricket Centre in St. Kitts, with the Leeward Islands Hurricanes hosting the West Indies Academy at Warner Park.

In Jamaica, the Scorpions will start their campaign when they face the Windward Islands Volcanoes in the feature match at Sabina Park. At the same time, the Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC)will take on the Barbados Pride at Chedwin Park.

The second round will be played from 14 to 17 February when Jamaica will meet the CCC at Sabina Park; Barbados will take on Windward Islands at Kensington Cricket Club; while over in St. Kitts, the Leeward Islands will face Guyana at Warner Park and Trinidad and Tobago will face the West Indies Academy at Conaree Cricket Centre.

The third round of the West Indies Championship will be played from 21-24 February after which there will be a break before the resumption of Rounds 4-5 from March 13-23 to be played in Trinidad and Antigua and Rounds 6-7 from April 10-20 to be played in Jamaica, Trinidad and Antigua. Every West Indies Championship match will be streamed live on the Windies Cricket YouTube channel.

TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE

Round 1

7 to 10 February: 

Jamaica Scorpions vs Windward Islands Volcanoes - Sabina Park, Jamaica

CCC vs Barbados Pride - Chedwin Park, Jamaica

Leeward Islands Hurricanes vs West Indies Academy - Warner Park, St. Kitts

Guyana Harpy Eagles vs Trinidad & Tobago Red Force - Conaree Cricket Centre, St. Kitts

Round 2

14 to 17 February: 

Jamaica Scorpions vs CCC - Sabina Park, Jamaica

Barbados Pride vs Windward Islands Volcanoes - Kensington Cricket Club, Jamaica

Leeward Islands Hurricanes vs Guyana Harpy Eagles - Warner Park, St. Kitts

Trinidad &Tobago Red Force vs West Indies Academy - Conaree Cricket Centre, St. Kitts

Round 3

21 to 24 February: 

Jamaica Scorpions vs Barbados Pride - Sabina Park, Jamaica

Windward Islands Volcanoes vs CCC - Chedwin Park, Jamaica

Leeward Islands Hurricanes vs Trinidad &Tobago Red Force - Warner Park, St. Kitts

West Indies Academy vs Guyana Harpy Eagles - Coolidge Cricket Ground (CCG), Antigua

Round 4

13 to 16 March:

Trinidad &Tobago Red Force vs Windward Islands Volcanoes - Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad

CCC vs Leeward Islands Hurricanes - Diego Martin Regional Complex, Trinidad

Guyana Harpy Eagles vs Barbados Pride - Sir Frank Worrell Cricket Ground at UWI Spec (UWI SPEC), Trinidad

West Indies Academy vs Jamaica Scorpions - CCG, Antigua

Round 5

20 March to 23 March: 

Trinidad &Tobago Red Force vs Barbados Pride - Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad

Leeward Islands Hurricanes vs Jamaica Scorpions - Diego Martin Regional Complex, Trinidad

Guyana Harpy Eagles vs Windward Islands Volcanoes - UWI SPEC, Trinidad

West Indies Academy vs CCC - CCG, Antigua

Round 6

10 to 13 April:

Jamaica Scorpions vs Guyana Harpy Eagles - Sabina Park, Jamaica

CCC vs Trinidad &Tobago Red Force - Chedwin Park, Jamaica

Leeward Hurricanes vs Barbados Pride - UWI SPEC, Trinidad

West Indies Academy vs Windward Islands Volcanoes - CCG, Antigua

Round 7

17 to 20 April:

Jamaica Scorpions vs Trinidad &Tobago Red Force - Sabina Park, Jamaica

CCC vs Guyana Harpy Eagles - Kensington Cricket Club, Jamaica

Leeward Islands Hurricanes vs Windward Islands Volcanoes - UWI SPEC, Trinidad

West Indies Academy vs Barbados Pride - CCG, Antigua

SQUADS LISTING

BARBADOS PRIDE -Kraigg Brathwaite, Shaquille Cumberbatch, Shane Dowrich, Jonathan Drakes, Chaim-Alexis Holder, Chemar Holder, Akeem Jordan, Jair McAllister, Zachary McCaskie, Shayne Moseley, Roshon Primus, Jomel Warrican, Kevin Wickham.

COMBINED CAMPUSES AND COLLEGES -Kirstan Kallicharan, Shatrughan Rambaran, Jonathan Carter, Shamarh Brooks, Demario Richards, Shaqkere Parris, Romario Greaves, Sion Hackett, Sadique Henry, Jediah Blades, Damel Evelyn, Zishan Motara.

GUYANA HARPY EAGLES -Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Raymond Perez, Matthew Nandu, Ronsford Beaton, Richie Looknauth, Veerasammy Permaul, Neiland Cadogan, Kevin Sinclair, Kemol Savory, Kevlon Anderson, Antony Adams, Ronaldo Alimohamed, Steven Sankar.

JAMAICA SCORPIONS -Jermaine Blackwood, Chadwick Walton, Carlos Brown, Romaine Morris, Marquino Mindley, Abhijai Mansingh, Derval Green, Nkrumah Bonner, Peat Salmon, Jeavor Royal, Ramaal Lewis, Gordon Bryan, Kirk McKenzie.

LEEWARD ISLANDS HURRICANES -Jahmar Hamilton, Rahkeem Cornwall, Mikyle Louis, Daniel Doram, Colin Archibald, Terence Warde, Jeremiah Louis, Joshau Grant, Ross Powell, Kofi James, Javier Spencer, Sheno Berridge, Karima Gore.

TRINIDAD & TOBAGO RED FORCE -Joshua DaSilva, Amir Jangoo, Imran Khan, Terrance Hinds, Jason Mohammed, Jyd Goolie, Jayden Seales, Anderson Phillip, Bryan Charles, Vikash Mohan, Cephas Cooper, Tion Webster, Khary Pierre.

WEST INDIES ACADEMY -Ashmead Nedd, Ackeem Auguste, Nyeem Young, Johann Layne, Carlon Bowen-Tuckett, Joshua Bishop, Mbeki Joseph, Kelvin Pitman, Rivaldo Clarke, Joshua James, Rashawn Worrell, Ramon Simmonds, Kadeem Alleyne.

WINDWARD ISLANDS VOLCANOES -Kimani Melius, Ryan John, Tevyn Walcott, Johann Jeremiah, Sunil Ambris, Shamar Springer, Shermon Lewis, Jeremy Solozano, Daurius Martin, Shadrack Descarte, Darel Cyrus, Kenneth Dember, Keron Cottoy.

West Indies Test players Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner and Kirk McKenzie headline a strong 13-member Jamaica Scorpions Squad for the opening rounds of the 2024 West Indies Championship.

Blackwood, 32, will captain the team and is looking to earn a recall to the West Indies Test outfit after he was dropped prior to their recent tour of Australia. Blackwood, who averages 30.18 in 56 Tests, played two games for the Scorpions in last season’s West Indies Championship, scoring 159 runs with two fifties in four innings.

Bonner, who averages 38 in 15 Tests with his last coming against Australia in December 2022, will be looking to bounce back from a rough season last year where he only scored 43 runs in four innings at 10.75.

McKenzie is coming off a promising tour of Australia that saw him produce scores of 50, 26, 21 and 41 against a superb Australia bowling attack and will be looking to score big runs for the Scorpions.

Leg-spinning all-rounder Abhijai Mansingh, whose performances with bat and ball last season saw him earn a call-up to the West Indies “A” team for their tour of South Africa, is also in the squad.

38-year-old Chadwick Walton, who last played first-class cricket in 2019, has also been named in the Scorpions squad as has former West Indies Under-19 Captain, Ramaal Lewis.

The Scorpions will open their campaign against the Windward Islands from February 7-10 at Sabina Park. They were last in last year's points table with 25.6 points.

Full Squad: Jermaine Blackwood (C), Nkrumah Bonner, Derval Green, Abhijai Mansingh, Peat Salmon, Jeavor Royal, Kirk McKenzie, Marquino Mindley, Gordon Bryan, Romaine Morris, Carlos Brown, Chadwick Walton, Ramaal Lewis

West Indies wicketkeeper Joshua Da Silva has taken the reins from Darren Bravo and will captain the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force for the upcoming West Indies Championship.

Having led the West Indies ‘A’ team on their tour to South Africa late last year, Da Silva isn’t new to the captaincy. However, he will have to also step up with the bat in the absence of Bravo, who was the leading batter for the Red Force last year.

Meanwhile, Bryan Charles was named vice-captain of the squad which includes fit-again pacers Jayden Seales and Terrance Hinds as well as veterans Imran Khan and Jason Mohammed.

T&T will open their campaign against defending champions Guyana Harpy Eagles at Conaree Cricket Ground in St Kitts from February 7-10 before facing the West Indies Academy at the same venue from February 14-17.

T&T will complete their St Kitts leg of the tournament on February 21-24 against the Leeward Islands Hurricanes at Warner Park before returning to Trinidad for two matches in March at Queen’s Park Oval.

On March 13-16, T&T will face the Windward Islands Volcanoes at the Oval before facing Barbados Pride at the same venue later that month.

The Red Force will then travel to Jamaica to face CCC from April 10-13 at Chedwin Park before ending their campaign against hosts Jamaica Scorpions from April 17-20 at Sabina Park.

The Red Force will leave for St Kitts on Sunday where they will play three matches starting next Wednesday.

RED FORCE SQUAD:

Joshua Da Silva (captain), Bryan Charles (vice-captain), Amir Jangoo, Imran Khan, Terrance Hinds, Jason Mohammed, Jyd Goolie, Jayden Seales, Anderson Phillip, Vikash Mohan, Cephas Cooper, Tion Webster, Khary Pierre.

Sebastien Edwards (manager), David Furlonge (coach), Rayad Emrit (assistant coach), Ruel Rigsby (physio), Shane Burnett (S&C coach).

Batsman Kevlon Anderson will captain the Guyana Harpy Eagles at the upcoming West Indies Championship.

The 23-year-old has scored 529 runs in seven First Class games at an average of 44.08.

On Saturday, the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) named a strong unit led by the former West Indies Under-19 batsman, consisting of a few familiar faces and a new crop of players.

Leg-pinner Steven Sankar is among the new faces in the squad, following a breakthrough year with the ball at the domestic level.

Opener Raymond Perez, following his immaculate batting form, which rolled over from 2023, will get his chance to play at the senior level.

All-rounder Ronaldo Alimohamed, returns to the squad after being an injury replacement in 2020 and having played 50-over cricket for Guyana at the senior level.

According to a release from the Guyana Cricket Board, Alimohamed, Perez and Sankar will likely make their debut.

Additionally, middle-order batsman Akshaya Persaud makes a return to the Harpy Eagles unit.

Matthew Nandu will be Anderson’s deputy as “they lead a well-balanced side featuring a few veterans among the new faces.”

Lead spinner Veerasammy Permaul, Anthony Adams, and West Indies’ latest Test player, Kevin Sinclair, will form a quality spin department.

Fast bowlers Ronsford Beaton, Nial Smith, and Alimohamed will make up the front-line seam unit, adding to their star-studded spin bowler batch.

Test opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Nandu, Sinclair, Perez, Anderson, and Persaud will look to carry the Eagle’s batting unit.

Kemol Savory will be the wicket-keeper for the first two rounds until Tevin Imlach returns from West Indies duties.

Savory is also expected to play a vital role in the batting department.

The Harpy Eagles Head Coach is Ryan Hercules with the Assistant Coach being Garvin Nedd. Ryerson Bhagoo is the Analyst, and Albert Clements is the Manager.

Meanwhile, this year’s Four-Day Championship will significantly increase prize money as the winning team will pocket US$250,000, while the runner-up will receive US$100,000.

Harpy Eagles open their campaign against Trinidad and Tobago Red Force when the Championship bowls off in St. Kitts on February 7.

SQUAD: Kevlon Anderson (C), Matthew Nandu (VC), Nial Smith, Veerasammy Permaul, Antony Adams, Kevin Sinclair, Ronsford Beaton, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Akshaya Persaud, Raymond Perez, Ronaldo Alimohamed, Steven Sankar and Kemol Savory.

Following his break over Christmas, Darren Bravo is back with the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force unit.

The Red Force players will get the first of just two opportunities to play competitively before the start of the West Indies Four-Day Championship when they play a three-day practice match in Preysal. Bravo is expected to be part of the action.

This was confirmed by Red Force coach and selection chairman David Furlonge on January 2.

He also told the Trinidad Express that Bravo would also play in next week’s North/South Classic, as well as the Four-Day Championship.

The confirmation comes after Bravo announced in November that he planned to “step away just for a bit” following being overlooked by the West Indies selectors for last month’s One-Day International series against England.

In an emotional post on social media platform Instagram, he said he had “taken some time to ponder and wonder” about his future in West Indies cricket, and while he was not “giving up”, believed a break would be the best move for his career.

He gave no clear indication of the length of the break, but said it was proving difficult to continue finding motivation amid the ongoing selection disappointments.

“At this point in my career it’s not easy or should I say it takes a lot to continue to find the energy, the passion, commitment and discipline to be able to perform to the best of my ability and put myself in a position to make my return to international cricket.”

Bravo, who last played for the West Indies in January 2022 in a T20 International against England, led the Red Force to victory in last November’s Super50 Cup, in which he was the leading run-scorer. Earlier in the year, Bravo also had the second-highest aggregate in the four-day competition.

Subsequent to his snub for the England ODI series, Bravo was contacted by director of cricket for Cricket West Indies (CWI) Miles Bascombe about going on the Test tour of Australia, but according to CWI, he declined the offer.

Speaking on the Mason and Guest cricket radio show in Barbados last Tuesday, Furlonge admitted he was “surprised” that Bravo had turned down the chance to tour, but added that, “I know he’s disappointed at not being selected in the 50 overs against England but we have to move on. Hopefully he gets back himself. He has made himself available for Trinidad. We’ll see how that goes from there.”

Furlonge also said: “I respect his decision, I know what he is going through...I believe he will have to start over and have another good year before he’s considered for (West Indies) selection again.”

Trinidad and Tobago Red Force fast bowler Jayden Seales seems set to miss the first three matches of the West Indies Championship, as he continues to nurse a shoulder injury.

With the championship scheduled to begin next month, Red Force coach David Furlonge confirmed the news, as he revealed that Shannon Gabriel is also on the mend.

Seales, who sustained a knee injury in December 2022, overcame that setback after a successful surgery, but was again placed on the sidelines by his current injury, which he sustained during the West Indies A team tour of South Africa late last year.

The injury ruled the 22-year-old out of selection for the current West Indies tour of Australia, and he will be out of action a little bit longer.

“They are coming along. Jayden will most likely be out for the first three games. They have been training every day while the three-day game was going on, so they are coming along, but we don’t think Jayden will be ready for the first three games of the season,” Furlonge shared in an interview with Trinidad Express.

Neither Gabriel nor Seales featured in the trial match at Preysal, but both were at the venue going through their paces and rehab work.

“We have a fitness test on Monday and then they will get ready for the North/South,” Furlonge noted.

On that noted, Furlonge pointed to the positives, as he highlighted a few players that shone during the three-day trial encounter and is anticipating similar efforts in the four-day North/South Classic which bowls off on Thursday at the National Cricket Centre.

“I think the contracted players did well and it shows that they have been putting in the work. We are coming together well.

“The top order batters [Kamil Pooran and Kjorn Ottley] got some runs but one or two other players didn’t get off. Hopefully in the next couple of weeks we can see everybody getting runs and big scores as we go into the tournament,” Furlonge said.

“The contracted bowlers did well but we also saw Aamir Ali getting some wickets as well, and Jacen Agard bowling well although he didn’t get wickets. So, it was good to see these young bowlers playing hard and defending a small total in the second innings.

“We want to see the game last four days and we want to see some good performances and consistency from the players. We also want to see the guys putting out the effort and playing with passion,” he added.

Trinidad & Tobago Red Force leg-spinner Imran Khan has hinted that the 2024 West Indies Championship could be his last.

A stalwart in regional cricket, the 39-year-old Khan has played 113 first-class matches, taking 450 wickets, a milestone he achieved in the final game of the 2023 West Indies Championship against Jamaica Scorpions at Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba.

Khan also had 71 wickets in 53 List A games. With the bat, Khan has 3,622 runs with a lone century of 125. He also has a half-century in List A cricket.

Asked if he was thinking about the time he has left in the game, “I haven’t set a time frame to step away,” was his response in an interview with the Trinidad Express recently.

“I’m still fit and wanting to play. I’ve always put Trinidad and Tobago cricket first for many decades however, I know the time will come soon for me to step down to make way for younger players, but I’ll still like to be around to share my experience and knowledge,” he said.

Khan made his first-class debut as an opening batsman in 2005 and was part of the 2006 T&T squad that won the regional first-class competition, the last time the country has done so to date.

“In 2024, I am looking forward to the four-day and possibly another Super50 tournament, maybe my last, and of course maintaining my fitness and ensuring that I continue to pass each fitness test will be key,” he said.

Despite his regional success, Khan never represented the West Indies at the highest level and accepts that, at 39, that dream is likely over.

“I guess the dream playing for West Indies is over, safe to say...but I’ll like to be around to share my knowledge. Now I’ll like to explore more franchise cricket. Clearly, I have what it takes to perform,” he said.

“Yes, I have achieved being one of the best all-rounders regionally; I have several accolades to prove that, but it always will hurt that I never got the opportunity to play for West Indies. I did everything required of me, but God has a better plan,” he added.

He most recently represented the Manipal Tigers in the Legends League T20 in India from November-December last year, taking nine wickets in five matches for the eventual champions.

Khan didn’t feature in the Super50 for the Red Force towards the end of 2024 and played four out of five matches for the franchise in the West Indies Championship at the start of the year, grabbing 13 wickets with a best of four for 47.

Off-spinner Bryan Charles was the top bowler for T&T in the four-day competition, taking 21 wickets in five matches.

“I wasn’t selected in the playing 11 for the first four-day game, but I used that to get mentally stronger, which showed in my performance with the bat and ball,” Khan explained.

Having missed the season opener, Khan scored 92, his 15th first-class half-century, against the Leeward Islands Hurricanes.

“I really wanted to score runs this year and I definitely did. Of course, not being selected for the squad for 50 overs was disappointing but I’m happy the team won,” said Khan.

“However, not being selected for that tournament, other doors opened...I had a great Legends League tournament finishing with most wickets and the title. I’ll say 2023 has been good to me,” he added.

Trinidad and Tobago Red Force coach David Furlonge said he will be having a conversation with Darren Bravo before the end of 2023 as the local franchise puts things in place ahead of the West Indies Championship season early next year.

Bravo captained the Red Force in the recent CG United Super50 Cup staged in Trinidad and emerged as the leading batter as the hosts clinched the title with an unbeaten run.

However, after being overlooked for the WI One-Day International squad for the recent home series against England, which the West Indies won 2-1, the 34-year-old announced that he was stepping away from the game “just for a bit”.

Furlonge confirmed Bravo’s decision to take a break, explaining that the stylish left-hander, who is contracted by the franchise, has taken his vacation entitlement and wasn’t due back until next year.

However, with plans already being drawn up for the next four-day tournament, Furlonge said he will have to speak with Bravo before the new year to see where the player is at.

After Bravo’s initial announcement on social media in late November, the Red Force coach, who is also chairman of the senior selection panel, was optimistic that the middle order batter would be available for the red-ball regional tournament.

However, it was reported that Bravo was contacted by Cricket West Indies director of cricket Miles Bascombe about going on next month’s Test tour of Australia but he declined the offer.

Meanwhile, Furlonge said: “He (Bravo) is not due back until next year but I will have a conversation before that.”

“We will need to know where we are at because we will have to name a captain who will be involved in selection and preparations for the four-day tournament coming up,” the Red Force coach continued.

“I will have to meet with him soon to get an update. He is still basically on vacation. He has not said anything about the four-day as yet. From a team point of view, we will want to know if he is available or not because he is the captain,” Furlonge added.

Bravo captained the Red Force in the previous West Indies Championship season and finished the season with 446 runs from five matches which included two centuries and one half-century.

The only other batter to score more runs than Bravo in the four-day competition was Alick Athanaze with 647 runs.

The Red Force finished fourth on the six-team standings with the Guyana Harpy Eagles clinching the first-class title, the Windward Islands Volcanoes coming in second and the Barbados Pride placing third.

The Leeward Islands Hurricanes finished fifth and Jamaica Scorpions were last.

Prior to the Covid-19 pandemic in 2020, fans of regional cricket were used to a first-class season consisting of each team playing ten games in a home and away format.

Since the return of the West Indies Championship in 2021, the format has been changed drastically.

Now, teams play each other only once, significantly reducing the amount of first-class cricket players around the region are getting to play.

CWI director of cricket, Jimmy Adams, is aware of the concerns raised about the amount of first-class cricket being played in the West indies in comparison to the rest of the world

“The format and structure of the First-Class regional tournament is something that is going to be reviewed coming out of this year,” said the former West Indies batsman.

“We do want to play more First-Class cricket but we also made a commitment to try to play as much higher standard first-class cricket as possible, which is the reason behind the Headley Weekes concept,” he added.

As stated by Adams, the Headley Weekes Tri-Series was introduced this year, with the West Indies Academy coming out victorious.

“We will be reviewing that addition to the season to see if there’s merit in continuing with it. We’re also considering whether we can add more teams to our regional tournament based on the performance of the Academy team in that tournament,” Adams said.

Another solution Adams offered up was the increase in the number of “A” team tours in the future. The West Indies “A” team are currently touring Bangladesh.

“We are conscious of building up more First-Class cricket. A large part of that is also going to revolve around “A” team tours and we have a commitment from CWI to adding regular “A” team series, home and away, for the next cycle which is about three to four years,” Adams said.

“It’s not something that you can put on paper and get a sign-off immediately, it’s ongoing negotiations with board to find windows where we can see teams or send teams away. Again, we are conscious of building up First-Class cricket but the priority is to make sure the standard of it is as high as possible,” he added.

From 2008-2012, Jamaica dominated red-ball cricket in the Caribbean, winning five consecutive Regional Four-Day titles. This feels like centuries ago.

In the recently concluded 2022/23 season of the West Indies Championship, the Scorpions failed to win a single game, finishing last with 25.6 points after recording four losses and a draw in five matches. This was following a fifth-place finish in the 2021-22 season.

The team was especially poor with the bat, scoring the second-lowest amount of runs in total in the season with 1803.

Individually, only two batsmen, Abhijai Mansingh with 248 and Leroy Lugg with 217, scored over 200 runs for the Scorpions. To put it in perspective, Alick Athanaze of the Windward Islands Hurricanes finished as top run-scorer with 647, 182 more runs than Jamaica’s two highest run-scorers combined.

It begs the question, what on earth has happened to the Scorpions batting in the longer format of the game?

“Aggression without proper selection and lack of a desire to bat long are two things that jumped out at me,” Jamaica Cricket Association CEO Courtney Francis told SportsMax.TV.

“The pride of playing for country, I am not seeing it. Even in dialogue with them, I don’t think they have an appreciation for what the sport has done for us as a people,” Francis added.

The Scorpions did start the year well, however, by winning the Regional Super50, their first since 2012 but, as Francis explains, that may have been detrimental to their hopes in the longer format.

“A significant number of the players who played that tournament were unavailable to play the 4-day tournament. We had persons playing at the highest level or playing all over the world,” he said.

“The significant influx of white-ball cricket,” is another reason for Jamaica’s downward spiral in the red-ball game according to Francis.

“If you notice, our players aren’t batting an extended number of overs. Some games are ending with a day to spare,” Francis added.

He went further, analysing a technical flaw he saw throughout the line-up.

“It seems like whenever the ball is bouncing, our batsmen don’t seem to cope with it properly. I am very confident that they would have had enough training. They’ve had the facilities here at Sabina Park and elsewhere,” he said.

Another contributing factor highlighted by Francis is the weakness of the Island’s premier two-day competition, the Senior Cup.

“Our Senior Cup competition is not competitive enough. In the Senior Cup, when certain teams play against certain teams, you might get a competitive game which is commendable but, there are a significant number of instances where games finish within a day and we’re not going anywhere with that. The transition from Senior Cup to first-class is not it,” said Francis before offering up a potential solution to that problem.

“In my view, we need to have a tier higher than the Senior Cup. I’ve recommended that we have the best 60 players in the country playing a four-team competition. You can hold trials to see who can get up there,” Francis added.

Francis then took issue with the complacency of contracted players, noting that their desire to improve seemingly dwindled after being rewarded.

“Persons who are on contracts now seem to not want to work hard enough because the contract is set for one year. If you notice, we have 15 persons on contract and of those 15 persons, maybe 40% of them did not feature in the Super50 and/or the West Indies Championship. That is something for us to take a different look at,” Francis said

“We can understand that persons are contracted from July so people may lose form and others come in for pay-for-play and stuff but that percentage is too high.

As selectors, coaches and administrators we have to come up with a different mechanism to ensure that we do not waste money. If you look at the numbers of a number of the players, we’re not getting a return on our investment” he added before noting that shorter term, incentive-based contracts may be the way forward to return Jamaica to winning ways in the longest format.

As Guyana Harpy Eagles bask in the glory of being crowned champions of regional first-class cricket, their captain Leon Johnson is feeling mighty proud of his team’s performance throughout the action-packed season.

The ebullient Johnson had the honor of raising the Headley-Weekes Trophy, capping off the final day of his professional career on Saturday the Guyana National Stadium. This came moments after his team performed a miracle with the ball to bowl out Leeward Islands Hurricanes on an eventful final morning. This kept them at the top of the table in the West Indies Championship.

Chasing 143 to win, the Hurricanes started the day on 81-1, and at 91-1, they looked set for a comfortable victory. However, off-spinner Kevin Sinclair with an incredible spell of bowling removed key Leewards batsmen and caused a collapse.

Johnson was overcome with emotion shortly after his team achieved the remarkable comeback and he received the Headley-Weekes trophy from Enoch Lewis, Cricket West Indies Director. He was full of praise for his team.

“This was a great performance … a great team performance and I’m massively proud of everyone who contributed towards us winning. We worked hard before the season, and we worked hard throughout this season. We were really tested in this final match, and we responded to the challenge with a magnificent win,” Johnson said.

“One of the great things about the season was the progress made by the young players in the team. As various time they stood up with major performances and that was great to see. We made progress. Also, tribute to the senior players who also led from the front, offered invaluable advice and made my job as captain easier on and off the field.

“Thanks to the fans and all those persons who backed us from start to finish. As a proud Guyanese I retire from the game lifting this prestigious trophy and also happy that I can bring smiles to the faces of the supporters.”

The Windward Islands Volcanoes completed a dominant 121-run win over the Barbados Pride on day four of their final round fixture at the Queen’s Park Oval on Saturday.

The Pride started the day 28-3 off 17 overs with Jonathan Drakes and Chaim Holder at the crease on nine and zero, respectively.

Drakes eventually went on to make a top score of 35 while Holder made nine and Kevin Wickham 11 as the Pride found themselves quickly on the back foot at 89-6 off 37.3 overs.

In the end, Kenneth Dember led the way with 5-26 off 13 overs as the Pride were dismissed for 114 in 47 overs.

Larry Edward finished with nine wickets in the match after taking 3-38 off 17 overs.