A double-century, a century, two nineties, an eighty-six as well as a pair of additional half-centuries! Those were the very encouraging batting scores emanating from the Team Weekes-WI Academy April 27-29, second match of the ongoing Cricket West Indies (CWI) 2023 inaugural Tri-Series for the Sir Everton Weekes-George Headley trophy. Batting performances which coming on the heels of the outstanding bowling that was on display during the previous week’s opening match, between the Academy and Team Headley, would have provided highly encouraging signs to all concerned. Especially the West Indies Test team Selectors.
As positively encouraging as the batting displays would have been, their respective proponents would have been even more so. The aforementioned double-century was scored by Jamaica’s still only twenty-two-year-old Kirk McKenzie while opening the Academy’s batting.
Now playing in just his sixth first-class match, McKenzie fashioned a 386ball innings that included twenty-six fours and one six. An innings which by the very compact, almost flawless, manner in which it was constructed would have been an absolute delight to behold for the West Indies Selection Chair, the Rt.Honourable Desmond Haynes and his fellow-Barbadian counterpart, Roland Butcher.
McKenzie’s innings would now most certainly have guaranteed him his seat on the West Indies A Team’s forthcoming flight to Bangladesh for its scheduled three, four-day, “Test” tour later this month. It should also have earmarked him as a potential West Indies Test opening batting replacement for skipper Kraigg Brathwaite in the not-too-distant future.
Perhaps even sooner, if Tage Chanderpaul’s current tenure as the West Indies Tests number two batsman justifiably comes under scrutiny. All this, of course, presuming that McKenzie can go on to further develop his demonstrated talents by consistently producing the type of big scores that will keep his name front and centre for the Selectors’ attention.
McKenzie’s superlative innings was almost duplicated by that of Kevin Wickham who also scored his maiden first-class century, a somewhat more sedate 121 that required 270 balls and was punctuated by nine fours and one six. The pair added a mammoth 258 in partnership for the Academy’s first innings fifth wicket. In the process sending the statically minded scrambling to see when last such a massive partnership had been recorded in Caribbean regional first-class matches.
It was the stuff of which the two former West Indies greats after whom the Series has been named, George Headley and Sir Everton Weekes, would have been justifiably proud. Known as they both were for having similar appetites for massive century-plus scores.
Also playing in only his sixth first-class match, the prodigiously talented just-turned-twenty, March 19 past having been the date for that joyous celebration, Barbadian-born Wickham finally came good in delivering the type of century innings that had been forthcoming for so long. Having come through the ranks of Barbados’ junior cricket age levels, Wickham has long since been designated by all who have seen him as a future West Indies Test player.
His Headley-Weekes Tri Series maiden first-class century would have now certainly reinforced his credentials in the eyes of the Selectors. As such he too will be expected to be on the flight to Bangladesh later this month.
As previously indicated, there were also two nineties scored in the match. The first of those was by Zachary McCaskie, the now twenty-six-year-old Barbadian-born opener playing in just his sixth first-class match as well.
McCaskie is another one of whom potentially great things have been spoken by those closely connected to Barbados’ cricket. He has taken much longer to confirm his talents at the first calls level than his most ardent supporters would have liked but having scored 427 runs including three half-centuries in his twelve innings batted this year, hopefully, this will now finally signal the breakthrough that everyone has been awaiting. He too should now be on the flight to Bangladesh as a steppingstone to even greater accomplishments very soon.
Of all the wonderful scores recorded during the Weekes-Academy match, the 148ball 92 that included eleven fours and two sixes struck by Brandon King would have been in the eyes of a greater majority of West Indies cricket fans, if not the Selectors themselves, arguably by far the most important. The importance of King’s innings lies in its apparent confirmation of the underlying belief many such supporters have been harbouring within recent times, that he can be the answer to the continuing woes the West Indies Test team has been experiencing in finding a suitable number three.
Throughout his innings, King batted with poise and composure that was an absolute joy to witness. In defence, he displayed an airtight technique that never looked capable of being breached. When on the attack, he demonstrated his full repertoire of runs-producing strokes that have made him such a stable member of the West Indies aggression-required white-ball ODI and T20I teams.
Countless West Indies cricket fans have been wholly dissatisfied by the demonstrated limitations of all those who were in most recent times cast into the role of the West Indies Test number three. Justifiably so, as none of the tried and proven failed pretenders to date has offered anything even remotely comparable to the exploits of some of the position’s previous occupants. The likes of George Headley, Everton Weekes, Rohan Kanhai, Lawrence Rowe, Alvin Kallicharran, Viv Richards, Richie Richardson and Brian Lara just to name a few!
Brandon King with his demonstrated astute shot selection, as well as his capacity to easily switch from defence to attack when necessary, is believed by many to be the most suitable candidate for the West Indies Test number three role. As such King’s supporters will now be hoping that his Tri Series ninety will serve as confirmation of that belief. Sufficiently so as to allow his inclusion in the West Indies starting XI for the first Test of the two-match Home Series against India this coming July.
Whether the Selectors Messrs, Haynes and Butcher will agree, however, remains to be seen. Their selection choices of late have far too often tended to be seemingly flavoured by an apparent bias towards some players who are of the same nationality as theirs. As such, as unsuitable for the role as most fans would consider him to be, Barbados’ Ramon Reifer could very well retain his place as the West Indies number three for the first Test against India.
Aside from King, Kevin Sinclair was another who, by his demonstrated lower-order batting capabilities, would have advanced his claims for West Indies Test squad inclusion in the foreseeable future. Perhaps even as soon as the India Series.
Sinclair struck an impressively breezy 126-ball 86 that included eleven fours and three sixes. He certainly would also have booked his A Team tour flight to Bangladesh.
The match also featured two additional half-centuries, the first by the veteran wicket-keeper batsman Jahmar Hamilton, and the second by Tagenarine Chanderpaul. The latter, hopefully, signalling a most welcome return to form for the West Indies incumbent number two batsman whose returns of late in terms of actual scores have been worryingly under par.
The Coolidge Cricket Center pitch used for the Weekes-Academy match was definitively batsman-friendly. The prevailing weather conditions were also oppressively hot and humid with at least one official heat warning having been issued during the week.
As such the bowlers found the going very hard, as evidenced by the recorded scores, 401 and 107/3 from Team Weekes, 435 all out by the Academy. There were, however, still some relatively impressive and encouraging performances by a few bowlers, particularly the seamers McKenney Clarke, Nayeem Young and Jair McAllister.
Clarke (3/107) and Young (3/91) both claimed threefors in Team Weekes’ first innings. McAllister, bowling at times with disconcerting pace, had a fourfor (4/84) when the Academy batted.
The match was regrettably again played in front of completely empty stands, even more so than the first fixture which had at least attracted a handful of spectators during its course. More evidence, if any is now still needed, of the unacceptable inadequacy of CWI’s promotional marketing. At least though the Selectors who were among the very few present would have been delightfully encouraged by all the wonderful batting that was on display!