“Farcical” is a strong word, but even that feels like an understatement of the absurdity that transpired at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium. However, that is the best way to describe the just-abandoned West Indies Championship match 4 played in North Sound, Antigua. It typifies this absurd excuse of a Four-Day Championship.
As you are all aware, I previously described this new format of the 2026 West Indies Four-Day Championship as nonsensical, but seeing a First-Class fixture collapse and be abandoned after three days is the cherry on top of a very stale cake. In two days and a bit, all 27 wickets to have fallen were to the faster bowlers and not a single one to a spinner. The batsmen managed a meagre 446 runs across two-and-a-half innings at a gentle pace. It was evident from the first delivery on day one that the pitch was underprepared, yet it took a terrifying blow to Jeremiah Louis’ helmet for the officials to finally concede that the surface was a health and safety hazard.
The Red Force now find themselves in a precarious position through no fault of their own. Given the tournament structure (a baffling Ferris wheel of repetitive matchups, playing three matches against the same opposition), the Force was expected to win all the games against the Leeward Islands Hurricanes and thereby at least share the top position at the end of round two. As it stands now, the Red Force could be as low as third place going into the final round against their now familiar and favourite opponents, the Leeward Island Hurricanes. However, playing the game at the batting-friendly Antigua Recreation Ground (ARG), they may very well need a victory as, depending on the outcome of the game between Jamaica Scorpions and Barbados Pride, both teams could finish above the Red Force, and once again, T&T will have to wait until next year for regional glory.
In hindsight, if Cricket West Indies (CWI) wanted to save money, the solution was staring CWI in the face. Why not host all six teams in Antigua? With Coolidge, the ARG, and a theoretically prepared North Sound, you could easily run a legitimate five-match round-robin. Now, my little maths is trying to simplify things, meaning that if all six teams are at one particular venue, then they can actually play five matches and have a straight round robin, with the winner being the team that accumulated the most points at the end of Round five. We’d get a definitive champion based on points; no need for a final, and zero travel overhead.
I have to be missing something. Perhaps my “little math” is too logical for the CWI, who seem determined to feed us a diet of rubbish while ignoring common sense. I am not sure which other territories have the capacity and first-class venues to have three games going on simultaneously. I can speak right here for Trinidad – the Oval, Brian Lara Academy, UWI Spec, and even Diego Martin Recreational Ground. It would mean the teams would move around, play against different opposition, and test themselves against each other to see which is the best team and players to come out of the tournament.
On the field, the results have been as predictable as a tailender attempting a flamboyant reverse-sweep on the first ball of a saving-the-match innings. The Guyana Harpy Eagles continue to feast on the hapless Windward Islands Volcanoes, and the Red Force were halfway through a demolition job on the Hurricanes before the officials pulled the plug. The only genuine tension exists between the Jamaica Scorpions and Barbados Pride, a rivalry that actually feels like first-class cricket, with those games going right down to the wire. If in the final encounter, the Pride were to defeat the Scorpions, it could be a real toss-up for second and third.
King Sammy has a Herculean task ahead of him for the upcoming Test series. How do you select a squad based on such skewed data? Let’s start with the Red Force bowlers on lively pitches against the batting of the Leewards. Anderson Phillip has scalped 9 wickets, and Jayden Seales 13, but can we truly judge them on pitches that resemble a minefield? Meanwhile, Amir Jangoo has scored a double century, which should catch the Kings’ eyes.
Looking for openers, look no further than John Campbell (34, 126, 96) and Kirk McKenzie (31, 135, 114), never mind all against Barbados. Then, Barbadian Kevin Wickham (153, 108 not out and 105) all against Jamaica. Gudakesh Motie (16 wickets in 4 innings) and Sunil Ambris (107 not out out of a score of 209) have also shown the temperament required for the long form.
The truth be told, I really can’t grasp this tournament. Without the litmus test of quality spin or varied conditions, we aren’t “learning” anything. It’s glorified club cricket played in the Savannah, just with nicer kits. If I do not like playing spinners as a batsman, then if I am playing a team that lacks quality spinners, I should always make runs. In other words, a good player is tested against all types of quality bowlers, be it spin or pace, and also plays in different conditions.
Actually, I do not know how the King will select his final Test team because, based on early performance, Jangoo, McKenzie, Campbell and Wickham should pick themselves, and then does Phillip force his way into the Test team with no Alzarrie Joseph or Kemar Roach taking part in the championship.
Let me end on a positive note. I must give recognition to a genuine success story. Huge congratulations to the T&T Under-16 netball team for defending their title at the Jean Pierre Caribbean Championships. Well done to the players, coaches, and all who assisted the women in winning the tournament. Since last year, the netball administrators deserve so much credit for bringing netball back into the spotlight in T&T’s sporting history. Let us hope they get the support so netball can thrive on to bigger and better things.
