Shamar Joseph
Crown him with laurels galore. What more can be
said of Shamar Joseph’s inspirational debut Test Series
performance against the world champions Australia?
Having captured the prize scalp of Australia’s greatest
batsman of modern times Steve Smith off his very frst ball
in Tests, Joseph went on to record a five-wicket haul in the
Aussie first innings of the Series opener. That was merely
the appetizer, however, to his incredible unbroken spell of
fast bowling which yielded the remarkable figures of 7/68.
For his outstanding achievement,s Joseph was also named
as one of two nominees for the ICC’s January 2024 Test
Player of the Month.
West Indies Women’s Cricket Captain Hayley
Matthews captain Hayley Matthews won the
prestigious ICC Women’s T20I Cricketer of the
Year award on Wednesday, making her only the
second female cricketer from the Caribbean to
achieve this honor. The previous recipient from
the region was former captain Stafanie Taylor in
2015.
Matthews’ exceptional performances with
both the bat and the ball contributed to her
recognition for the award. In a competitive field,
she surpassed other top players, including Ellyse
Perry from Australia, England’s Sophie Ecclestone
and Sri Lanka’s Chamari Athapaththu from Sri
Lanka.
The West
Indies Test team.
Described as hopeless
and pathetic by former
Australian pacer Rodneyy
Hogg, the Kraigg Brathwaite-led West Indies Test team
used the stinging criticism
to motivate themselves
throughout its unforgettable
drought-breaking Test win
over Australia. Brathwaite’s
side pulled off one of the
most incredible wins in the
West Indies’ recent history,
defeating Australia by eight
runs and securing their first
Test victory on Australian
soil in 27 years.
There were jubilant and
chaotic scenes among
West Indies players after
the final wicket of the
match was taken by
Shamar Joseph, who took
seven wickets in just over
one session in one of the
greatest bowling spells by a
touring bowler on Australian
soil.
Kirk McKenzie
For emerging as the West Indies’ highest runs
scorer during the recently concluded two Tests
series against Australia. Batting at the pivotal
number three position, McKenzie’s enterprising
strokeplay earned him 138 runs from four
completed innings at an average of 34.50. His
runs also included his maiden first-class 50 which
was scored during the first innings of the opening
Test.
JANUARY 2024 DART:
The Barbados Cricket
Association Selection Panel.
Despite his having announced his retirement
from international cricket, the Barbados National
Selectors, however, found sufficient reason to unclude
Shane Dowrich in its squad to participate in the 2024
Caribbean Regional Four Day Championships. Dowrich
had earlier announced his retirement from international
cricket and his withdrawal from the West Indies squad for
the ODI series against England.
Dowrich made his Test debut against Australia in 2015
and went on to play 35 Tests. His only ODI came against
Bangladesh in 2019, and he was set to add to it in the
upcoming ODI series against England. His last outing for
the West Indies was against New Zealand in December
2020. The 32-year-old played 35 Tests, scoring 1570
runs with the best of 125 not out against Sri Lanka. As
a wicketkeeper, he also recorded 85 catches and five
stumpings.
His inclusion in the the Barbados Pride 2024 Regional Four
Day squad has been at the expense of other younger
wicket-keeper batsmen with much brighter futures.
Ricardo Clarke being the most prominent member of that
list.