Collymore sees promise in Henry
Published:Friday | January 22, 2021 | 12:10 AMLennox Aldred/Gleaner Writer
West Indies assistant coach Corey Collymore says Jamaican all-rounder Chinelle Henry can develop into something special in the international women’s game.
Collymore, Henry, and the rest of the West Indies women’s squad are now in Antigua at a preparation camp for the upcoming international schedule, which includes the ICC Women’s World Cup qualifiers in Sri Lanka in July.
Since her debut for the West Indies against New Zealand seven years ago, Henry has only claimed seven Twenty20 (T20) International and three One-Day International (ODI) wickets in 29 and 11 games, respectively, for the regional side.
Her exploits with the bat have not set the world alight either, with the lower-order right-hander racking up modest numbers of 114 runs in 10 ODI innings and 168 runs in 24 T20 knocks.
Collymore, who is responsible for the fast bowlers in the camp, says Henry can develop into a genuine all-rounder once she puts in the work.
GOOD PROSPECT
“I think Henry is a very good prospect,” he said. “Herself and Aaliyah Alleyne have the skills to be two good all-rounders and be permanent fixtures in this team
“She has got the skills at the moment. Her bowling seems to her be her stronger suit, but I think with continued work over some time, she can develop into something special.”
The camp at the Coolidge facility in Antigua is the first face-to-face engagement for new head coach Courtney Walsh and the women’s team. Collymore says there is a lot of work to be done for the women’s programme to get back to the sort of form that saw them win the T20 World Cup in 2016.
“Judging from the England series, I think our overall game definitely needs some serious work,” he said. “We are not saying it will take five years, but we need a pool of players we can put some consistent work in with, and then we can be able to choose a squad that we can go forward and bring some of those performances back from 2016.”
Former Jamaica Scorpions head coach Robert Samuels, Ryan Austin, and Steve Liburd are assisting Walsh with the women’s programme.