Jackson faces axe in semi-final

Opening batsman Andy Jackson may well miss out when Trinidad and Tobago take on Barbados in the semi-finals of the regional Red Stripe Bowl one-day cricket tournament at Kaiser Oval on Friday.

Manager of the team Omar Khan speaking to Newsday yesterday said as much yesterday. “Andy is an explosive batsman but has really played badly throughout the tournament so far. We persisted with him after his early failures because of the type of batsman he is. We thought that with the field restriction in place for the first 15 overs, he would have taken advantage and get us some quick runs. “However this has not materialised and the selectors will need to sit down and seriously look at the composition of the team. We not have played wicket keeper Gibran Mohammed and Jackson has taken the gloves but we may now have to revert to Mohammed and change the top of the order batting line-up,” Khan said.

In last Sunday’s close loss to the Jamaicans, skipper Daren Ganga was sent in to open the innings with Jackson and regular opener Imran Jan who has struggled was pushed down the batting order. Khan added that he has been able to source the statistics from Zone “B” where the Barbadians played and the management team are currently studying it and coming up with the plan for the semi-finals. “We just cannot go into a semi-final without a concrete plan. The coach will definitely come up with a line of attack for the players to execute and hopefully they can go out there and bring us a win.” “This is a virtual final and who ever wins this match, I think will go on to claim the title. The boys have left Sunday’s loss behind and are now eager to go out there and give the Barbadians a licking,” he said. Trinidad and Tobago play Barbados in the second semi-final, following the Jamaica/Guyana clash on Thursday.