The Cricket West Indies Regional Under-19 Championship has seen Barbados emerge as an undisputed early force, after the side locked in its fifth straight win on Monday with a dominant seven-wicket triumph over Jamaica. Held at the Bethesda Ground in Antigua, the 50-over match got off to a brutal start for Jamaica, who won the toss and opted to bat first. The Caribbean side collapsed far earlier than expected, being bowled out for just 107 runs in 27.5 overs, with Geovanni Grey posting the highest individual score of just 27.
Barbados’ bowling attack was unstoppable throughout the innings, with young paceman Zarell Harding delivering the most devastating performance, claiming four key wickets for only 24 runs. Supporting Harding, Justin Parris chipped in with three wickets for just 17 runs, leaving Jamaica’s batting lineup unable to build any meaningful momentum.
In response, Barbados’s batting unit made light work of the modest target, reaching the required 108 runs in just the 15th over for the loss of three wickets to seal the victory. Jordan Graham anchored the chase with a quickfire 29 runs, while captain Gadson Bowens contributed a solid 21 and Kemar Dixon added 19 runs to close out the win without any late drama.
This unbeaten run extends Barbados’s perfect start to the 2024 campaign, which kicked off on July 11 with a commanding 114-run win over the Windward Islands. Two days later, they delivered an even more lopsided result, beating the Leeward Islands by 258 runs, before securing a 63-run victory over Guyana in the third round on July 15. They followed that up with a six-wicket win over Trinidad and Tobago just three days ago on July 18 to carry their momentum into Monday’s clash.
In the other Championship fixture held on the same day, the Windward Islands bounced back from their opening round defeat to Barbados to claim a resounding 219-run win over Guyana. Batting first, the Windward Islands posted a competitive total of 315 for 9 in their allocated 50 overs, before bowling Guyana out for a paltry 96 runs to wrap up the massive victory.