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By Neto Baptiste
The Coach of the Antigua and Barbuda senior men’s cricket team, Pernel Watley, believes the squad is a well-balanced one that could challenge for top honours in the Leeward Islands Mixed Format Tournament while also providing exposure for some of the younger players.
Watley was speaking ahead of the team’s opening match against St. Maarten on Saturday (October 25) in the 50 overs format at the St. Paul’s Sporting Complex.
“We have four seamers and we have a lot of batters with experience, first-class level, West Indies level. We have some young spinners in Glenton Williams, Micah McKenzie, and you still have people like the captain, Jimbo Cornwall, Kadeem Henry, so I think it’s quite balanced,” he said.
The Antigua Master Blasters will face Nevis on October 26 at the Conaree Cricket Ground before wrapping up their 50 overs schedule on October 27 against Anguilla at Warner Park.
Watley reiterated the need for players to seize the opportunity they have been given by performing to the best of their ability.
“We’re looking for people to enhance their skills, to be better players, to not just thinking about Leewards but to do well enough that they can leave this tournament with some kind of form to get onto the Leewards team and then, hopefully, the West Indies selector will have a look at them.
“What normally happens when I go to the West Indies tournament, the selectors will come around and say to you, ‘Coach, I’m having a look at so-and-so player’, and you say to them, ‘look, the selector is inquiring about you, you need to put down your foot, do X, Y, Z, because they have an eye on you’,” the coach said.
Following the 50 overs format, the tournament will break for one day before each team contest back-to-back two-day matches. Antigua and Barbuda’s two-day campaign begins on October 29 when they face Montserrat at Conaree and concludes with their clash against St Kitts which starts on October 31 at Warner Park.
Full squad: Rahkeem Cornwall (C), Karima Gore (VC), Kofi James, Tyrone Willams Jr., Elroy Francis Jr., Jewel Andrew, Bartlette Henry, Ishmael Peters, Glenton Williams, Micah McKenzie, Kelvin Pitman, Javier Spencer, Michael Greaves, and Kadeem Henry.
The team will be coach by Purnell Watley with Purnell Joseph as assistant coach/manager. Dane Gustave will travel as statistician.
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