Champs Barbados face Jamaica, Taylor

KINGSTON: Barbados will come up against West Indies pacer Jerome Taylor when they meet Jamaica at Sabina Park today in the third round of the Carib Beer Series. The 19-year-old is returning from injury but veteran Nehemiah Perry is out of Jamaica’s team this weekend to face the double-crown champions and tournament leaders in a key encounter. Taylor and pace partner Daren Powell, who both missed Jamaica’s first two Carib Beer games because of lower back strains, have been passed fit by doctors but Perry is sidelined with a hamstring strain. The Barbados side arrived in Kingston yesterday and skipper Courtney Browne has stayed away from any predictions that they would repeat as champions.

“We are taking one game at a time. We are not going to make any predictions this year,” Browne told reporters, after his side hammered the Windwards on Sunday by an innings and 90 runs inside three days. “We are going to try to improve our batting especially, our bowling, our fielding, we will try to improve all our areas and we will keep trying to go from strength to strength.” Last year, the Barbadians became the first ever regional double-crown champions in four-day cricket, when they captured the Carib Beer Cup — for a record 18th four-day title — and added the International Challenge Trophy a few weeks later. The Jamaicans are third in the standings with 15 points, trailing Barbados, with maximum 24 points, and Trinidad and Tobago (18). The Observer reported yesterday that wicketkeeper/batsman, Carlton Baugh, arrived home from the West Indies tour of South Africa on Wednesday night and will make himself available for selection for the game.

Squads — BARBADOS: Courtney Browne (capt), Sherwin Campbell, Martin Nurse, Shawn Graham, Ryan Hinds, Floyd Reifer, Sulieman Benn, Antonio Mayers, Tino Best, Ryan Nurse, Pedro Collins, Mwanghi Broomes, Calitos Lopez.
JAMAICA: Gareth Breese (capt), Brenton Parchment, Keith Hibbert, Carlton Baugh, Donovan Pagon, Mario Ventura, Tamar Lambert, David Bernard, Andrew Richardson, Evon McInnis, Lorenzo Ingram, Ryan Cunningham, Dwight Mais, Odean Brown, Maurice Kepple.