PCL: Guyana Jaguars to open title defence against Hurricanes; Trelawny to host matches

Two West Indies Championship matches will be played at Jamaica’s Trelawny Stadium next year.

It will be the first time in 11 years that the ground will be staging four-day matches in the Championship, which begins on Thursday, January 9.

Cricket West Indies has scheduled the fifth-round match between Jamaica Scorpions and Leeward Islands Hurricanes from February 13 to 16 at the venue, along with the sixth-round match between the Scorpions and Guyana Jaguars from February 27 to March 1.

CWI Director of Cricket, Jimmy Adams, said the stadium is scheduled to stage a Twenty20 International in two years’ time and this was part of the process to get the ground in shape.

“It will be good to see the Trelawny Stadium hosting regional cricket again after so many years with this effort from the Jamaica Cricket Association to build its capacity in western Jamaica,” said Adams.

Only one West Indies Championship match has been played at the ground in the past, when current West Indies Team Operations Manager Rawle Lewis led Windward Islands to a three-wicket victory over Jamaica in 2009.

The ground has staged five other first-class matches – two involving international teams touring the Caribbean, and three involving West Indies A and counterparts from Sri Lanka and England.

The stadium was completed in 2007 before the ICC Cricket World Cup 2007 and can seat 25,000.

Adams said he was excited about the forthcoming West Indies Championship season and working with the new West Indies senior selection panel – under chairman Roger Harper – to identify the next wave of players to stake their claims for the West Indies Test team.

“A new season is always an occasion for optimism as we expect performances from both established and rookie players within the system,” said Adams.

“I’m sure the new Selection Panel under Roger Harper will be keen to cast their eyes over this competition which will wrap up our 2019-20 cricket season.”

Guyana Jaguars are the five-time, defending champions of the Championship. They open the tournament on the road, when they travel to Antigua to face Leeward Islands Hurricanes at the Vivian Richards Cricket Ground in a day/night contest played with a pink ball.

The Championship marks a decade since CWI were the first member of the ICC, cricket’s world governing body, to play a pink-ball match in its first-class competition, when Guyana and Trinidad & Tobago played from January 15 to 18, 2010.

Pink-ball matches have now become a standard part of the Championship and each team will play two of these games – home and away – under the tournament format.

The other first round matches feature: Trinidad & Tobago Red Force battling Scorpions at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Trinidad, and Windward Islands Volcanoes tackling Barbados Pride at the Arnos Vale Cricket Ground in St. Vincent.

MATCH SCHEDULE

(Play in all matches start at 10 am daily, except where indicated)

Round 1

January 9 to 12

Hurricanes vs Jaguars – Vivian Richards Cricket Ground, Antigua (2 pm daily)

Red Force vs Scorpions – Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad

Volcanoes vs Pride – Arnos Vale Cricket Ground, St. Vincent

Round 2

January 16 to 19

Scorpions vs Volcanoes – Sabina Park, Jamaica

Pride vs Jaguars – Kensington Oval, Barbados

Red Force vs Hurricanes – Brian Lara Cricket Academy

Round 3

January 23 to 26

Jaguars vs Red Force – Guyana National Stadium, Guyana (9:30 am daily)

Scorpions vs Pride – Sabina Park

Volcanoes vs Hurricanes – Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, St. Lucia (2 pm daily)

***BREAK***

Round 4

February 6 to 9

Jaguars vs Scorpions – Guyana National Stadium

Hurricanes vs Pride – Warner Park, St. Kitts

Volcanoes vs Red Force – Windsor Park, Dominica

Round 5

February 13 to 16

Scorpions vs Hurricanes – Trelawny Stadium, Jamaica

Pride vs Red Force – Kensington Oval

Volcanoes vs Jaguars – Grenada National Stadium, Grenada

***BREAK***

Round 6

February 27 to March 1

Scorpions vs Jaguars – Trelawny Stadium, Jamaica

Pride vs Volcanoes – Kensington Oval

Hurricanes vs Red Force – Warner Park

Round 7

March 5 to 8

Red Force vs Pride – Brian Lara Cricket Academy

Volcanoes vs Scorpions – Grenada National Stadium

Jaguars vs Hurricanes – Guyana National Stadium

Round 8

March 12 to 15

Red Force vs Volcanoes – Brian Lara Cricket Academy (2 pm daily)

Hurricanes vs Scorpions – Vivian Richards Cricket Ground

Jaguars vs Pride – Guyana National Stadium (2 pm daily)

***BREAK***

Round 9

March 26 to 29

Pride vs Scorpions – Kensington Oval (2 pm daily)

Hurricanes vs Volcanoes – Vivian Richards Cricket Ground

Red Force vs Jaguars – Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad

Round 10

April 2 to 5

Jaguars vs Volcanoes – Guyana National Stadium

Scorpions vs Red Force – Sabina Park (2 pm daily)

Pride vs Hurricanes – Kensington Oval