‘Top order didn’t come to the party’

The disappointment could be heard in the voice of Jamaica Scorpions head coach Andrew Richardson following his team’s recent showing in the second round of the West Indies Championship against Barbados in Antigua and Barbuda.

The Scorpions suffered a humiliating six-wicket loss within three days against the Barbados Pride at Coolidge Cricket Ground, and that defeat means that the Jamaican franchise is in last place in the six-team tournament with just 10 points.

The Guyana Harpy Eagles are the early front-runners with 28.6 points, and with that formidable lead, the Scorpions will need to play out of their skins in the remaining three rounds to have any hope of a successful campaign.

When contacted to comment on the team’s most recent performance, coach Andrew Richardson could hardly hide his disappointment.

“Our inexperienced top order didn’t come to the party, very simple. They didn’t show the sort of form that they showed in the trial games, and it is clear that there are technical and tactical issues that we need to tweak, and we will remedy them before the next round of matches,” Richardson said.

The Scorpions side is without a number of their senior players, namely Nkrumah Bonner, Brandon King, Jermaine Blackwood, Roman Powell, and Odean Smith, who have been involved with the senior West Indies team or T20 franchises.

The Super 50 champions are also without former captain John Campbell, who scored in excess of 500 runs last season to lead the team’s batting. Campbell is serving a four-year ban from the sport for a doping violation.

So far this season, the Scorpion’s batting has been led by rookie all-rounder Abhijai Mansingh, who tops the team’s run charts with 145 in two innings with a top score of 62 not out against the Leeward Islands Hurricanes.

Another young player, opener Kirk McKenzie, is second in runs scored, with 103 in two matches with a highest score of 56. All-rounder Jamie Merchant rounds out the top three with 92 runs with a top score of 47.

The Scorpions’ bowling has once again held its own, with left-arm spinner Patrick Harty leading the way with nine wickets in two matches with a best bowling effort of four for 23 against Barbados, with Mansingh right behind with eight wickets and a best effort of three for 47 against the Hurricanes.

The Jamaica Scorpions will next face fourth-place Windward Islands Volcanoes in Trinidad on March 15, and Richardson is keen on getting things right before the remaining fixtures.

“I have all faith that we can turn things around because the team is way better than what we have shown,” Richardson concluded.