A long-standing regional rivalry will be reignited when powerhouses Barbados and Jamaica lock horns in the first round of the West Indies Championship, taking place in Jamaica from April 12 to May 2.
Barbados Pride narrowly missed out on the 2025 title by just 5.4 points, despite a thrilling final-day victory over the Leeward Islands at Warner Park St Kitts. That agonising near miss has only intensified their hunger, fuelling a determined push to return to the summit of regional cricket when the Championship concludes on May 20.
The Barbadians have enjoyed a strong run of form against Jamaica in the first-class competition over the past decade. During that period, they have remained unbeaten against their archrivals, recording eight victories, including a commanding nine-wicket triumph at Kensington Oval in 2025.
Despite that dominant record, captain Kraigg Brathwaite insists his side will not take their opponents lightly. Reflecting on his last regional outing at Sabina Park where he scored a superb 142, Brathwaite emphasised the importance of focus and execution.
“Jamaica is always a competitive team at home. The way how they play cricket you always enjoy playing against them. However, as I always say, you cannot take any team for granted and we think they are a very good team, but we must come good as a unit and the guys are excited to do that against Jamaica,” said Brathwaite.
The trial matches gave a good indication of the form and temperament of the multiple time regional champions, with Shian Brathwaite and Kevin Wickham hitting centuries, while several other batters crossed the 50-run mark on several occasions.
Even with this high level of output in preparation, Brathwaite, who has 228 first class matches under his belt, is urging his players to stay in the present.
“Our coaches have really done the groundwork with the squad to make things a little easier for us in our preparation, with our programme and trial matches providing us with a great opportunity to look at all of the players who could have an impact at different stages of the season,” he said.
For the Jamaica Scorpions, having the chance to topple Barbados at home is an opportunity that captain John Campbell is relishing for the bilateral series. The visitors are seen as a daunting proposition, given the recent track record but once there is a chance, there is hope for Campbell.
“The guys have put in a high volume of work ahead of the season, not just training but training with intent since the Super 50 tournament. Everybody is trying to improve on their own game, especially the technical aspects, and together as a group that will serve us well,” he shared.
Campbell who finished 2025 as the team’s leading run scorer with over 500 runs, announced his readiness for the campaign with a double century in one of the trial matches and watched on to see other great performances during the build-up to the regional competition with centuries from Peat Salmon, Abhijai Mansingh and Carlos Brown.
“We’ve had a rivalry over the years. We are in a really good place right now as a group, with several practice matches under our belts and players putting up their hands and showing maturity with solid contributions,” Campbell said.
In the most recent meetings between the teams, the Jamaican franchise lost 23 of their 40 wickets to spin and this is a problem the captain wants to see combatted across the series.
“Over the years, we have lost plenty of wickets to spinners, so if we can eliminate those types of dismissals to the Barbadian spinners then we will be in a good space to compete and do well in the bilateral series,” Campbell said.
Jamaica Scorpions: John Campbell (captain), Brad Barnes, Carlos Brown, Javelle Glenn, Brandon King, Abhijai Mansingh, Kirk Mckenzie, Marquino Mindley, Romaine Morris, Jeavor Royal, Peat Salmon, Ojay Shields and Odean Smith.
Barbados Pride: Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Joshua Bishop, Jediah Blades, Leniko Boucher, Shian Brathwaite, Jonathan Drakes, Johann Layne, Kyle Mayers, Jair McAllister, Shayne Moseley, Shamar Springer, Jomel Warrican and Kevin Wickham.
(PR)
