分类： sports

Cricket West Indies has announced Brandon King as captain for the upcoming three-match T20 International series against Afghanistan, marking the final competitive outing before the selection of the squad for next month’s ICC T20 World Cup. The 16-member team will compete at the Dubai Cricket International Stadium from January 19-22, 2026.

The appointment comes as regular skipper Shai Hope, along with key players Roston Chase, Akeal Hosein, and Sherfane Rutherford, remain unavailable due to ongoing commitments in South Africa’s SA20 tournament. King brings previous leadership experience to the role, having captained the West Indies during their home T20 series against South Africa earlier in 2024.

Notable inclusions feature the return of Shamar Joseph and explosive batsman Evin Lewis, both having successfully completed return-to-play protocols after recovering from injuries. The squad also introduces exciting newcomer Quentin Sampson, who earned his maiden international call-up following an outstanding performance as Breakout Player of the 2025 Caribbean Premier League.

Four Barbadian players have secured spots: Shamar Springer, Matthew Forde, Ramon Simmonds, and Justin Greaves. Meanwhile, established stars including Rovman Powell, Jason Holder, and Romario Shepherd have been strategically rested as part of the team’s workload management strategy.

Pace bowler Alzarri Joseph continues his rehabilitation from a late-2025 injury and, while showing promising progress, has been excluded from this series as a precautionary measure following medical assessment. His fitness will continue to be monitored ahead of World Cup selection.

Head Coach Daren Sammy emphasized the dual purpose of the Afghanistan series, describing it as both a final tuning opportunity before the global tournament and a platform for reintegrating players returning from extended absences. The squad is scheduled to depart the Caribbean on January 14 and arrive in the UAE two days later for preparation.

Full Squad: Brandon King (captain), Alick Athanaze, Keacy Carty, Johnson Charles, Matthew Forde, Justin Greaves, Amir Jangoo, Shamar Joseph, Evin Lewis, Gudakesh Motie, Khary Pierre, Quentin Sampson, Jayden Seales, Ramon Simmonds, Shamar Springer, Shimron Hetmyer.

Tour Schedule:
– 1st T20I: January 19, 2026 @ Dubai Cricket International Stadium
– 2nd T20I: January 21, 2026 @ Dubai Cricket International Stadium
– 3rd T20I: January 22, 2026 @ Dubai Cricket International Stadium

In a breathtaking conclusion to the South American Open Golf Championship, Peru’s Luisamariana Mesones emerged victorious after a tense sudden-death playoff against Barbados’ Emily Odwin on Sunday at Buenos Aires’ Nordelta Golf Club. The tournament culminated in high drama as the two competitors finished regulation play tied at 280 strokes after 72 holes, forcing an extra-hole decider that captivated spectators.

Odwin, Barbados’ 2025 Senior Female Athlete of the Year, demonstrated remarkable consistency throughout the competition, shooting under par across all four rounds (71, 69, 70, 70). The Southern Methodist University student-athlete appeared destined for victory after recording five birdies through the first 13 holes on Sunday, building a commanding lead. However, a disastrous double bogey on the 16th hole followed by a bogey on the final hole opened the door for her Peruvian rival.

Mesones mounted an impressive comeback after struggling initially with a first-round 73 (+1). The Peruvian showed tremendous composure, improving her performance with each subsequent round (70, 69, 68). Her critical birdie on the 17th hole during the final round created the tie that forced the playoff.

The competitors remained deadlocked after the first playoff hole, but Mesones ultimately prevailed on the second attempt, securing the title from a field of 63 golfers. This marked Odwin’s second playoff defeat in recent months, having experienced similar heartbreak at November’s Women’s Amateur Latin America championship in Mexico. Despite the setback, the 21-year-old from St James continues to build an impressive amateur resume, including a sixth-place finish at the 2025 Australian Amateur Open and her historic achievement as the first Barbadian to compete in the U.S. Women’s Open last year.

Cricket West Indies (CWI) has announced a strategic departure from other cricketing nations by postponing its final squad selection for the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup. The decision means the team roster will remain undecided until the conclusion of a three-match T20 International series against Afghanistan, scheduled for January 19-22.

Miles Bascombe, CWI’s Director of Cricket, clarified the organization’s position in a recent television interview. He revealed that the official World Cup squad will be formally announced within 48 hours following the final match against Afghanistan on January 22nd. This timeline places the West Indies among the last teams to confirm their tournament lineup.

While most participating countries have already disclosed their provisional squads for the February 7-March 8 tournament co-hosted by India and Sri Lanka, the West Indies submitted only the mandatory provisional list to the International Cricket Council (ICC). Bascombe explained that CWI explicitly informed the ICC about their intentional delay, preferring to use the Afghanistan series as a final evaluation period rather than risk subsequent changes to an early announcement.

The director emphasized the strategic advantage of having competitive matches against both Afghanistan and South Africa preceding World Cup warm-up games. This approach allows selectors to assess player form and team dynamics under actual match conditions before finalizing their tournament roster, potentially providing a competitive edge through more informed decision-making.

A significant stride toward gender parity in sports administration was made recently as the Barbados Olympic Association (BOA) hosted a dedicated Women’s Leadership Workshop. The event, titled ‘Re-Presenting Female Leaders in Sport’, brought together thirteen aspiring and current female leaders from various local sporting organizations.

Marsha Boyce, a scholar in the esteemed Commonwealth Sport Women Leaders Programme for the 2024-2025 cycle, coordinated the initiative. The workshop received foundational support from both Commonwealth Sport and its regional body, Commonwealth Sport Barbados. Boyce articulated the primary objective of the intensive one-day session: to equip participants with the tools to identify their innate strengths and cultivate additional competencies essential for effective leadership within their respective sporting associations.

The urgent necessity for such initiatives was underscored by stark statistics. Boyce revealed that as of October 2025, a mere 13.3% of presidents across Barbados’s National Sporting Federations were women. She emphasized that this disparity is not a localized issue but a pervasive global trend, noting that Commonwealth Sport data indicates approximately 75% of executive positions in international sport are occupied by men. “Projects like this are necessary to encourage female administrators to step forward into the leadership roles they are more than capable of fulfilling,” Boyce stated, highlighting the program’s role in addressing the critical representation gap at the decision-making level.

Ryan Brathwaite, Commonwealth Sport’s Regional Development Manager for the Caribbean and the Americas, also addressed the attendees. He expressed his gratification in witnessing the workshop’s delivery and praised Boyce for translating her learning from the flagship Commonwealth Women Leadership Programme into “meaningful action.” Brathwaite elaborated on the programme’s structure, which provides 16 women leaders from across the region, including the Caribbean and Barbados, with a 12-month scholarship and dedicated mentorship to shape and strengthen their leadership potential.

Adding a profound philosophical perspective, BOA President Sandra Osbourne challenged the participants to examine their motivations for seeking leadership. She cautioned against simply replacing male leaders with female ones and urged a deeper commitment. “Leadership is more than a title, it’s a commitment to take responsibility, to lift others up, to build a culture where unity of purpose and talent – not gender – determine success,” Osbourne asserted. She encouraged the women to seek various positions of influence, reminding them that impactful leadership exists at all levels and is ultimately about using one’s influence as a force for good.

The highly anticipated CG United Women’s T20 Blaze competition commences Tuesday in St. Vincent with defending champions Guyana set to clash against Windward Islands in the tournament opener. This initial match at Arnos Vale Ground forms part of a competitive triple-header schedule, followed by Jamaica versus Leeward Islands, culminating with a historic rivalry showdown between Trinidad and Tobago and Barbados.

The round-robin T20 Blaze will exclusively utilize the Arnos Vale venue before attention shifts to the Super50 Cup, which will be hosted across three locations: Sion Hill, Park Hill, and Cumberland. Daily matches will begin at 9:30 a.m., with each squad playing three games to determine the ultimate champion through final rankings. Guyana enters the competition seeking to defend their maiden regional title earned last year through an undefeated campaign that concluded with a dramatic Super Over victory against Jamaica. Meanwhile, Trinidad & Tobago arrives as current Super50 champions after defeating Barbados by seven wickets in the 2025 final.

Miles Bascombe, Cricket West Indies’ Director of Cricket, emphasized the strategic significance of these tournaments. “These competitions serve as a crucial foundation for an exceptionally demanding year in Caribbean women’s cricket,” Bascombe stated. “The CG United Women’s Super50 Cup and T20 Blaze establish essential competitive benchmarks as we prepare for an intensive international schedule featuring major bilateral series and the ICC T20 World Cup. Robust regional competition remains fundamental to our high-performance pathway, and we anticipate these tournaments will again identify and develop players ready for international success.”

Following the domestic season, the West Indies Women’s team will embark on a packed international calendar, hosting Sri Lanka for a white-ball series in late February before confronting Australia in a comprehensive all-format series in March. The summer schedule further intensifies with a tri-nation series involving Ireland and Pakistan, building toward the pinnacle event—the 2026 ICC Women’s T20 World Cup—for which the regional squad has been undertaking extensive preparation.

The Barbados squad, led by captain Aaliyah Alleyne, features experienced players including Shakera Selman, Shamilia Connell, and a blend of emerging talent ready to challenge for supremacy.