
West Indies Cricket (CWI) has confirmed a host of top West Indies players who will be taking part in the February CG CG Super50 Cup, as the six teams complete their 15-member squads.
The six major cricket competitors will go head-to-head in 19 action-packed 50-over matches starting from Sunday, February 7. The tournament will reach an exciting climax when the new champions are crowned on Saturday, February 27.
Fans can watch the matches live from Coolidge Cricket Ground on ESPN Caribbean and live matches from Sir Vivian Richards Stadium on the CWI website and YouTube channel.
West Indies white ball captain Kieran Pollard will lead the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force, while Test captain Jason Holder will take charge of Barbados Pride.
West Indies cricket cream and a host of exciting young talent will take part including players such as Roston Chase (Barbados Pride), Shimron Hetmyer (Guyana Jaguars), Sheldon Cottrell (Jamaica Scorpions), Hayden Walsh Jr. (Hurricane Leeward), Nicholas Pooran (Trinidad and Tobago Red Force) and Andre Fletcher (Windward Islands Volcanoes).
While COVID-19-related restrictions mean that the 2019-2020 champions, the West Indies New Players, cannot defend their title, eight of those talented young winners of the 2019 tournament have found places in the competing franchise teams, including Keon Harding, Dominic Drakes and Justin Greaves (Barbados Pride), Kevin Sinclair (Guyana Jaguars), Ashmead Neath (Hurricane Leeward Islands), Jayden Seales (Trinidad and Tobago Red Force) as well as, Kimani Melius and Roland Cato (Windward Islands Volcanoes).
The tournament is set to kick off with excitement when the home team Leewards Islands Hurricanes host the architects of the Wind Islands Volcanoes at the beautiful Coolidge Cricket Ground on Sunday, February 7.
FROM THE CAMPS
Kieron Pollard (Captain of Trinidad and Tobago Red Force): I think we have a really good team in terms of youth and experience and we can go that step further and get it to the finals. In the last few years we lost out, reached the semi-finals and were beaten, once by CCC and once by Leewards. Hopefully, we have all the energy and all the gas in the tank and go all the way. This promises to be a very good tournament and I know that players will aim to impress and enhance their careers.
Jason Holder (Barbados Pride Captain): We are really looking forward to the first tournament of the year. It’s great to be back and there’s a lot of excitement in our camp. We focus on winning. It will be important to hold our nerve under pressure and act under pressure. The most consistent team always wins, and we have to look to be consistent and win for our country and our supporters.
Esuan Crandon (Head Coach of Guyana Jaguars): We have a very balanced squad. We will be boosted by the presence of Shimron Hetmyer and Romario Shepherd, two players with international experience who can be our game winners. Our training has been going pretty well and we know we have to play fearless cricket and take one game at a time. We will try to put it all together … we are very confident.
Andre Coley (Head Coach of Jamaica Scorpions): It is very important that we get off to a good start. It’s a shorter tournament than last time so we have to hit the ground running and build from there. We’ve put together a strong squad that we believe can be a winning team. Everyone is very ready to go and wants to play. It’s great to be back playing regional cricket for the first time since last year, so this CG Insurance Super50 Cup is a big deal for us.
Andrew Richardson (Head Coach of Windwards Volcanoes): Our preparations have been good. The players have done a lot of work and we’re in a much better physical and mental state … they definitely look a lot better than six months ago … we’re in a refined mood. Our batting looks good and one important factor is that we have to use the Powerplay headers when we are at the top and not have to play catch-up cricket. We are looking to win; we are always playing to win.
Stuart Williams (Head Coach of Hurricane Leewards): The players look extremely sharp and energetic during training. They are enthusiastic and want to go one better than the last tournament, where we reached the final but lost to the Emerging Players. This year we are preparing well; we leave no stone unturned, and with local knowledge that should work in our favor too. We have great talent and we want to see them grow as a team and as individuals.