Defending regional champs Barbados Pride defeat Jamaica by 10 wkts to retain top spot

The Barbados Pride, the West Indies Championship defending champions, moved 3.6 points clear of second-placed Trinidad and Tobago Red Force today, completing a 10-wicket win over the Jamaica Scorpions at Kensington Oval in Bridgetown.

The scoring format awards teams 12 points for a win with bonus batting and bowling points, which take into account everything from the size of your total to the number of wickets taken by fast bowlers.

Barbados were the first team to cross 400 this season as they posted 521 for 8 declared in the first innings of their Round 2 encounter. Jamaica did enough (328 & 233) to force the Barbadians to bat twice but it was hardly an inconvenience.

The host team wrapped up the match with a day to spare, with Sheyne Moseley (34 off 35, 7 x 4) and captain Kraigg Brathwaite (7 off 23) getting the required runs to finish on 42 without loss.

Barbados now have 40 points from successive wins over the Leeward Islands Hurricanes and Jamaica while the Red Force have 36.4 points after putting away Jamaica and the Windward Islands Volcanoes.

They are followed in the standings by Leeward Islands (21.6), the Guyana Harpy Eagles (20.6), Windward Islands (9.4) and Jamaica.

The regional four-day competition now goes on a break as Cricket West Indies hosts England for a three-Test series, which bowls off on 8 March.

Brathwaite, the West Indies captain and opener, leads all batsmen in the WI Championship by some distance as his first innings knock of 276 against Jamaica helped push his aggregate to 341 runs from four innings—at an average of 113.66.

After two rounds of competition, only two other batsmen have scored over 200 runs: Leeward Islands number three Devon Thomas (242) and Jamaica skipper and opener John Campbell (213).

Trinidad and Tobago pacer Anderson Phillip leads the wicket takers with 12 scalps at an average of 14.25, followed by compatriots Brian Charles (11) and Imran Khan (10)—both spinners—and Windward Islands spinner Kenneth Dember (10).

Match summaries

(At Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados)

Jamaica Scorpions: 328 (95.4 overs) (John Campbell 127, Paul Palmer 76, Nkrumah Bonner 49; Leroy Lugg 39; Raymon Reifer 6/23) & 56 for 1 (Jermaine Blackwood 24*) & 233 (86 overs) (Jermaine Blackwood 61, Jamie Merchant 47; Jomel Warrican 6/78, Chaim Holder 2/85)

Barbados Pride: 521 for 8 declared (Kraigg Brathwaite 278, Raymon Reifer 71, Jonathan Carter 68; Patrick Harty 5/111) & 42 for 0 (Sheyne Moseley 34*, Kraigg Brathwaite 7*)

Barbados win by 10 wickets

(At Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Tarouba, Trinidad)

T&T Red Force: 326 (116 overs) (Joshua Da Silva 73, Yannic Cariah 72, Jeremy Solozano 66, Terrance Hinds 57; Shermon Lewis 5/43)

Windward Islands Volcanoes: 98 all out (44 overs) (Alick Athanaze 33, Devon Smith 16; Anderson Phillip 4/32, Jayden Seales 3/31, Imran Khan 2/3) & 186 (Denis Smith 65, Shermon Lewis 33, Kenneth Dember 25*; Imran Khan 4/38, Anderson Phillip 3/31)

Trinidad and Tobago win by an innings and 42 runs

(At Queen’s Park Oval, Port-of-Spain, Trinidad)

Guyana Harpy Eagles: 116 all out (34.3 overs) (Anthony Bramble 38, Keemo Paul 20; Daniel Doram 3/16, Colin Archibald 3/29, Alzarri Joseph 2/26) & 265 (50.1 overs) (Anthony Bramble 58, Chandrapaul Hemraj 50, Gudakesh Motie 49; Alzarri Joseph 5/94)

Leeward Islands Hurricanes: 438 for 7 dec. (146 overs) (Terrance Warde 78*, Kieran Powell 74, Devon Thomas 72, Montcin Hodge 71; Nial Smith 3/100, Gudakesh Motie 3/119)

Leeward Islands win by an innings and 57 runs

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