COACH of the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force David Furlonge said all matches for the remainder of the 2024 West Indies Four-Day Championships are must-win matches if they are to stay alive in the title race. Red Force will face Barbados Pride in round five at the Queen's Park Oval in St Clair from 10 am on March 20.
Furlonge said with three rounds left Red Force must win every match. "We are positive...if we want to be in with a chance to win the tournament we have to win every game. We have to go in, play positive cricket and look to bowl them out twice." The teams are closely bunched in the standings as third-placed Jamaica Scorpions and sixth-placed Guyana Harpy Eagles are only separated by four points.
Pride and Red Force are only separated by one point in the standings. Fourth-placed Pride have a record of two wins and two losses for a total of 48.2 points.
Red Force are fifth in the standings with two wins, one loss and one draw and have amassed 47.2 points.
Red Force are coming off a six-wicket win in their last match over leaders Windward Islands Volcanoes at the oval. Red Force needed to chase 186 on the final day of the match last Saturday.
Left-handed Jyd Goolie cracked 90 not out, before being forced to retire hurt with a hamstring injury.
Tion Webster and Anderson Phillip also had brilliant performances for the Red Force. Fast bowler Phillip picked up a five-wicket haul in the first innings and Webster cracked 107 not out to guide Red Force to 294 in response.
Pride will be eager to bounce back following their 33-run defeat to Guyana Harpy Eagles at Coolidge Cricket Ground, Antigua.
Pride have experience in their team with the likes of captain Kraigg Brathwaite, all-rounder Jason Holder and fast bowler Kemar Roach in the squad.
Asked about Goolie's replacement on the squad, Furlonge said, "We don't have the final XI just yet, but we have brought back Cephas Cooper in the squad. He just made 176 (not out) for his club on the weekend, so Cephas has come in for Jyd." Cooper made the massive score for PowerGen in the TT Cricket Board National League premiership I competition.
Furlonge likes the quality the Red Force batsmen have demonstrated this season as Webster, Jason Mohammed and Goolie have all scored hundreds. "Hopefully we could continue in that same vein. If somebody else could score a century (that will be great). It will good to see Vikash Mohan carry on from his fifties. He has two fifties, but he has not carried on from there."
Three other matches will bowl off on March 20.
Fixtures:
TT Red Force vs Barbados Pride, Queen's Park Oval
Guyana Harpy Eagles vs Windward Islands Volcanoes, Coolidge Cricket Ground
West Indies Academy vs Combined Colleges and Campuses, Sir Frank Worrell Memorial Ground, St Augustine
Leeward Islands Hurricanes vs Jamaica Scorpions, Sabina Park
Standings:
Team*GP*W*L*D*MP*BP*TP
Volcanoes*4*3*1*0*36*31.4*67.4
Hurricanes*4*3*1*0*36*28.2*64.2
Scorpions*4*2*2*0*24*26.2*50.2
Pride*4*2*2*0*24*24.2*48.2
Red Force*4*2*1*1*2
