BARBADOS PRIDE:
Played 7 Won 3 Lost 3. Preliminary Round Standing – 3rd!
Pride’s hopes of finishing as one of the tournament’s
top two teams at the conclusion of the
Preliminary Round Group stage were dented by
the inconsistencies of their senior batsmen, Only
three of the Pride’s West Indies representative
batters, Shai Hope (200), Shamarh Brooks (186)
and Kyle Mayers (184) finished with aggregates
of over 150. Mayers and Hope were the only two
of those with 40+ averages.
Roston Chase with 16 wickets was the only Pride
bowler to end the Preliminary Round with a
double-digit tally of scalps. Javed Leacock with
8 and Dominic Drakes on 7 were the next closest.
COMBINED CAMPUSES & COLLAGES:
Played 7 Won 2 Lost 2 No Results 3. Preliminary Round Standing – 6th!
Skipper Shayne Dowrich (234). Kadeem Alleyne (225),
Johann Jeremiah (211) and Jordan Johnson (140)
were the leading run-scorers for the Combined
Campuses & Collages (CCC) campaign, which
was adversely affected by rain, As many as three
of their seven scheduled matches ended as noresults.
As result of which failed to qualify as one
of the tournament’s four semi-finalists.
CCC’s bowling was led by Mansingh (11) Romario
Greaves (7) and Isiah Thorne (7) as the highest
wicket-takers. Both still in their early twentiesMansingh and Thorne’s returns should be particularly pleasing
to the West Indies Selectors as exciting future prospects.
GUYANA HARPY EAGLES:
Played 7. Won 4; Lost 2. NR 1.
Preliminary Round Standing – 4th!
Sherfayne Rutherfurd (248), Trevon
Imlach (233), Tage Chanderpaul
and Shimron Hetmeyer (156)
were the highest run-scorers for
the Guyana Harpy Eagles toward
their Preliminary Round second
place standing. Rutherford’s
49.60 average would also have
been particularly pleasing to
the West Indies Selectors as a
potential senior squad member
within the foreseeable future.
Not surprisingly the Eagles’ bowling was spearhead by
their productive wicket-taking spin trio of Kevin Sinclair
(14), Gudakesh Motie (11) and Vermasammy Permaul
(11). Seamer all-rounder Romario Shepherd wasn’t that
far behind with wickets captured in as many matches
played.
The Eagles’ all-round consistency with both at and ball
earned them a deserving place in the tournament semifinals.
They will be hoping to go even further. Indeed, all
the way to the tournament championship as a repeat of
the CPL T20 title success they enjoyed earlier this year!
JAMAICA SCORPIONS:
Played 7 Won 0 Lost 6. NR 1. Preliminary Round Standing
– 8th!
As the defending champions the Scorpions would not in
their wildest dreams ever have imagined that their 2023
Super50 campaign would derail as spectacularly as it
did. Only three of their batters. Nkrumah Bonner (195),
Chadwick Walton (226) and Skipper Rovman Powell (162)
finished the Preliminary Round with aggregates of over
150. Their respective averages of 33.16, 32-28 and 23.14,
however, spoke volumes of the overall ineptness of the
Scorpions’ batting.
As bad as the batting was, the bowling was even worse.
Shalome Parnell with seven wickets was the only Scorpions
bowler to capture more than five scalps during the entire
Preliminary Round. The Scorpions demonstrated inability
to capture relatively cheap opposition wickets was clearly
a major factor in their eventual cellular place Preliminary
Round points table standing!
LEEWARD ISLANDS HURRICANES:
Played 7 Won 4 Lost 2 NR 1. Preliminary Round Standing
– 2nd!
Led by the Preliminary Round’s leading run scorer, the
Barbadian-born, former West Indies U19 player Justin
Greaves, the Leeward Islands Hurricanes stormed into the semifinal
playoffs contention with a commendable four wins,
two losses Group Stage record. Greaves scored 328 runs
at an outstanding 109.33 average to lead the Hurricanes
batting, By so doing he also placed himself firmly in line for
a call-up to West Indies senior team ODI duty during next
months forthcoming English team Caribbean tour.
Greaves was very well supported by Kieron Powell (207)
and Jamar Hamilton (159). Hayden Walsh’s commendable
batting efforts, which produced 145 runs at an admirable
48.33 average, was just as good as his bowling.
Walsh took 16 wickets at a13.56 average to end the
Preliminary Round as the joint highest wicket-taker, beside
the Trinidad & Tobago Knight Riders spin duo of Sunil
Narine and Yanick Cariah. Coupled with his outstanding
fielding, as one of the very best in international cricket,
Walsh’s claims for a West Indies England Caribbean Tour
ODI recall must surely have been tremendously boosted
TRINIDAD & TOBAGO RED FORCE:
Played 7 Won 5 Lost 0 NR 2. Preliminary Round Standing
– 1st!
Trinbago’s incomparable 5 won lost 0 unbeaten
Preliminary Round record which deservedly earned
them to spot in the final point standings, was due to the
effective combination of huge totals batting and wickettaking
bowling. As many as for Trinbago batters, Skipper
Darren Brav (323) Kieron Ottey (259), Jason Mohammed
(214) and Yanic Cariah (165) recorded over aggregates.
Bowling for the Trinbagonians, Sunil Narine (16) and Cariah
(16) were both among the Round’s top wicket-takers.
Akeal Hosein also chipped in with 8 scalps captured at a
commendable 27.00 average
WEST INDIES CRICKET ACADEMY:
Played 7 Won 3 Lost 2 NR 2
To have won more matches than they lost,
albeit by just a slim margin of one, was indeed
a highly commendable outcome for the West
Indies Cricket Academy youngsters. Especially
playing as they were against far more seasoned
campaigners, many of whom have represented
the West Indies at the international ODI level.
Teddy Bishop’s (245) aggregate was the
highest for the Academy’s batters. He was ably
supported by Matthew Nandu (195), Nyeem
Young (175) and Kevin Wickham (164).
Young also featured as the Academy’s most
outstanding bowler and highest wicket-taker. His
12 wickets were taken at a paltry 17.58 average.
An all-round performance that must surely have
captured the West Indies Selectors attention.
Sufficiently so as to earn him his squad inclusion
for nest month’s forthcoming matches against
touring England.
WINDWARD ISLANDS VOLCANOES
Played 7 Won 1 Lost 5 NR 1. Preliminary Round
Standing – 7th.
Alick Athanaze (276) and Johnson Charles (194)
were the only two Hurricanes batters to post
over 150 aggregates by the conclusion of the
Preliminary Round. Although Jeremy Solanzo
(142) and Shamar Springer (139) were both
withing range.
The Hurricane’s bowling was similarly inadequate.
Darel Cyrus with 10 victims and Shermon Lewis’ 7 were
the only wicket-takers of note. The combined
inefficiency of the Hurricanes batting and
bowling, therefore, resulted in its seventh place
once above bottom completed Preliminary
Round points standing.