Sidelined West Indies fast bowler Jerome Taylor has been named in a Jamaica Scorpions 14-man squad for the upcoming WICB Regional Super50 Tournament to be hosted jointly by Barbados and Antigua and Barbuda.
Taylor, who was axed by the West Indies after a series of below par showings, will lead the Scorpions pace bowling unit, which also includes recent West Indies A recruit Reynard Leveridge, left-arm seamer Gavin Brown, and West Indies all-rounder Rovman Powell.
Meanwhile, hopes that opener Chris Gayle would make a return were dashed when it was announced yesterday that he will miss the tournament due to a foot injury.
The Scorpions batting will be led by Jermaine Blackwood, wicketkeeper Chadwick Walton and Powell. It will also feature in-form West Indies A opener John Campbell, Andre McCarthy, Devon Thomas, and enterprising, young batsman Brandon King.
NEW PLAYER
The team, which will again be led by new four-day captain Nikita Miller, also features one new overseas player in United States opener Steven Taylor.
The left-hander, who plays for Melbourne Cricket Club and represented Barbados Tridents in the Caribbean Premier League Twenty20, was recently named in the ICC America’s team. However, after impressing the national selection panel, he was drafted by the Scorpions.
There was also a place in the squad for little known St Ann Cricket Association off-spinner Damani Sewell, who will be looking to make his regional debut.
The Scorpions, current leaders of the regional four-day tournament, have been drawn in Group B and will play their preliminary round matches in Barbados. The group is completed by last year’s beaten finalists Barbados Pride, Guyana Jaguars, Combined Campuses and Colleges Marooners and ICC Americas.
Group A, which will be contested in Antigua, will feature home team Leeward Island Hurricanes, title-holders Trinidad and Tobago Red Force, West Indies Under-19s, Windward Islands Volcanoes, and English County side Kent.
Jamaica Scorpions Squad: Nikita Miller (captain), John Campbell, Steven Taylor, Jermaine Blackwood, Brandon King, Andre McCarthy, Chadwick Walton, Devon Thomas, Damion Jacobs, Jerome Taylor, Reynard Leveridge, Rovman Powell, Gavan Brown, Damani Sewell.