… Tournament bowls off April 20 in St Vincent

ST JOHN’S, Antigua (CMC) – Title-holders Trinidad and Tobago will meet arch-rivals Barbados in the opening game of this month’s Women’s Regional Super50, in a tournament designed to further strengthen the West Indies Women’s squad for their campaign in the ICC World Cup in June.

Selectors will be using the April 20-30 showpiece in St Vincent to identify possible new talent which can supplement the existing West Indies squad for the June 24 to July 23 50-overs tournament in England.
Josina Luke, the WICB project officer for women’s cricket, underscored the importance of the Regional Super50 to the selection of the West Indies World Cup squad.
“Having reached the final of the last ICC Women’s World Cup and following up by winning the World T20 title, a lot is expected of our women’s team at this year’s World Cup in England, so we’ve got to have the right combination of players that will give us a strong side that will be tough to beat,” Luke said.

“The success of our women’s team over the last few years should hopefully burn on the inside of the players during the regional tournament, inspire all of them and make them hungry to be a part of another successful campaign on the World stage, when they see the excitement and benefits that were generated, especially after our team won the World T20 title.”

She added: “They should all be eager to play well and the players should see this upcoming regional tournament as an opportunity to get into the selection frame.
No one is ever guaranteed a spot in any squad, so it’s about the players putting in the hard work as they prepare for the tournament over the new few weeks and doing it on the field when the time comes.”
All of the West Indies Women’s stars will be on show as the likes of batting stars Stafanie Taylor of Jamaica, Deandra Dottin of Barbados and Merissa Aguilleira of Trinidad and Tobago suit up for their respective sides.

T&T, who be led by Aguilleira, clash with Barbados at Sion Hill in the opening round, with Jamaica meeting Leeward Islands at Park Hill and Windward Islands taking on Guyana at the Arnos Vale Sports Complex.
Each team will play the other once in a five-round round-robin format, with the top two teams advancing to the final.
Last year’s tournament in Guyana was wrecked by rain.

Itinerary
Thursday, April 20
Barbados vs Trinidad & Tobago – Sion Hill
Leeward Islands vs Jamaica – Park Hill
Windward Islands vs Guyana – Arnos Vale Sports Complex

Saturday, April 22
Windward Islands vs Leeward Islands – Park Hill
Trinidad & Tobago vs Guyana – Sion Hill
Jamaica vs Barbados – Arnos Vale Sports Complex

Monday, April 24
Guyana vs Barbados – Park Hill
Jamaica vs Windward Islands – Sion Hill
Leeward Island vs Trinidad & Tobago – Arnos Vale Sports Complex

Wednesday, April 26
Guyana vs Leeward Islands – Sion Hill
Barbados vs Windward Islands – Arnos Vale Sports Complex
Trinidad & Tobago vs Jamaica – Park Hill

Friday, April 28
Windward Islands vs Trinidad & Tobago – Arnos Vale Sports Complex
Barbados vs Leeward Islands – Sion Hill
Guyana vs Jamaica – Park Hill

Sunday, April 30
The Final – Arnos Vale Sports Complex