ST. JOHN’S, Antigua – Guyana Jaguars and Barbados Pride, the two front-running sides in the WICB Professional Cricket League Regional 4-Day Tournament, will be looking to forge further ahead in the sixth round of matches, starting on Friday.
With the season now halfway complete, the teams are now in the return leg of the Tournament and some will be looking to gain revenge on their opponents from the first leg of matches.
In North Sound, Antigua: Bottom-placed Leeward Islands Hurricanes will be hoping that home advantage will breed success for the first time this season, when they face chart-toppers Guyana Jaguars at the Vivian Richards Cricket Ground.
This is definitely the tale of two extremes: The Hurricanes have failed to win a match this season, sinking to a heavy defeat against the Pride on the road in the previous round, when the Jaguars made a huge statement, gaining a significant boost of confidence with a solid victory over the Jamaica Franchise on the road.
So current form and recent history strongly favour the visitors, as the Jaguars, whose 13-member squad is unchanged, have won five of their previous 10 matches including in the first round of this season’s tournament.
The Hurricanes, whose side is also unchanged, can take comfort in the knowledge that the last time the two teams met at this venue early last year, they landed a five-wicket knock-out punch to the Jaguars.
In Bridgetown, Barbados: The Pride will be looking to collect their fourth straight victory and prove what a difference a format makes when they host long-standing arch-rivals Trinidad & Tobago Red Force at Kensington Oval.
Pride and Red Force were truly last season’s top two sides – the home team lifted the NAGICO Super50 title and followed up with the R4Day crown, while T&T finished in the runners-up spot in both competitions.
This season however, the Pride struggled in the NS50 which the full-strength Red Force won – and it has been vice versa in the R4Day with the embattled visitors find the going tough as their hosts have recovered strongly from weather setbacks early in the season.
Current form and recent history are also on the side of the Pride. They seemed destined to win their tournament opener against the Red Force, but the weather intervened and prevented them from clinching a sixth straight victory over this same opponent.
Both sides are unchanged from the previous round.
In Kingstown, St. Vincent: Judging on recent results, the most competitive contest of the round could emerge, when the Windward Islands Volcanoes meet the Jamaica Franchise at the Arnos Vale Sports Complex.
Volcanoes breathed life into their season with a resounding victory over the Red Force in the previous round, at the same time that the Franchisers stumbled when they were dominated by the Jaguars.
Both teams need all the points they could acquire to keep the two front-running sides within reach, so expect a keen affair.
This will be the first time the two sides will meet at Arnos Vale in 15 years, but recent history favours the visitors, since they have won nine of the 20 matches in the same period, including the first round encounter this season on home soil.
Windwards are unchanged, but the Franchisers are the only side this round to make an adjustment, bringing Brandon King in to replace Shacaya Thomas.
Squads:
Windward Islands Volcanoes vs Jamaica Franchise
(AT THE ARNOS VALE SPORTS COMPLEX, ST. VINCENT)
WINDWARD ISLANDS VOLCANOES (from): Liam Sebastian (captain), Sunil Ambris, Alston Bobb, Johnson Charles, Craig Emmanuel, Andre Fletcher, Delorn Johnson, Keddy Lesporis, Mervin Matthew, Kenroy Peters, Shane Shillingford, Devon Smith, Tyrone Theophile
Squad unchanged
JAMAICA FRANCHISE (from): Tamar Lambert (captain), Carlton Baugh Jr, Dave Bernard Jr, Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Gavon Brown, Odean Brown, John Campbell, Jason Dawes, Damion Jacobs, Brandon King, Horace Miller, Marquino Mindley
IN–King; OUT–Shacaya Thomas
UMPIRES: Zahid Bassarath (Trinidad & Tobago), Steve O’Shaughnessy (England)
MATCH REFEREE: Selwyn Allen
STANDBY UMPIRE: Deighton Butler
Barbados Pride vs Trinidad & Tobago Red Force
(AT KENSINGTON OVAL, BARBADOS)
BARBADOS PRIDE (from): Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Tino Best, Carlos Brathwaite, Shamarh Brooks, Roston Chase, Kyle Corbin, Miguel Cummins, Shane Dowrich, Kirk Edwards, Shai Hope, Ashley Nurse, Kevin Stoute, Jomel Warrican
Squad unchanged
TRINIDAD & TOBAGO RED FORCE (from): Jason Mohammed (captain), Yannic Cariah, Derone Davis, Shannon Gabriel, Akeal Hosein, Steven Katwaroo, Imran Khan, Evin Lewis, Kjorn Ottley, Yannick Ottley, Marlon Richards, Jeremy Solozano, Daniel St. Clair
Squad unchanged
UMPIRES: Leslie Reifer Jr, Christopher Taylor (Jamaica)
MATCH REFEREE: Mervyn Jones
STANDBY UMPIRE: Troy Tudor
Leeward Islands Hurricanes vs Guyana Jaguars
(AT VIVIAN RICHARDS CRICKET GROUND, ANTIGUA)
LEEWARD ISLANDS HURRICANES (from): Devon Thomas (captain), Quinton Boatswain, Rahkeem Cornwall, Jahmar Hamilton, Colin Hamer, Montcin Hodge, Jeremiah Louis, Orlando Peters, Sherwin Peters, Austin Richards Jr, Akeem Saunders, Gavin Tonge, Hayden Walsh Jr
Squad unchanged
GUYANA JAGUARS (from): Leon Johnson (captain), Christopher Barnwell, Ronsford Beaton, Devendra Bishoo, Anthony Bramble, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Rajindra Chandrika, Narsingh Deonarine, Shimron Hetmyer, Keon Joseph, Veerasammy Permaul, Raymon Reifer, Vishaul Singh
Squad unchanged
UMPIRES: Patrick Gustard (Jamaica), Gregory Brathwaite (Barbados)
MATCH REFEREE: Vanroy Burns
STANDBY UMPIRE: Bernard Joseph