Jamaica plays host to the Windies Women’s Championship which bowled off on June 10 in Kingston with the T20 Blaze competition.
Veteran Jamaican bowling all-rounder Roshana Outar is hoping that home-field advantage will bring success for the host, who won both the T20 and Super 50 titles when the tournament was last held in Jamaica 2012. “We have not won either competition in a while, and I believe this year is our year, the team has been bonding and preparing well and I don’t see why we can’t win both titles this time around.”
Outar, a member of the Melbourne CC which recently won the women’s club championship in Jamaica, is keen to get back to winning ways with the national team after claiming five straight regional titles between 2010-2015. “We won five years in a row, that is one of my proudest moments in cricket, I know it is going to take some doing to repeat that feat, but I believe once we play to our true potential, we should come out on top.”
This edition of the regional competition will truly be a test for the diminutive bowler who is still recovering from shoulder surgery. “I had surgery in January, and since then I have been doing constant physical work to get back to full fitness, I am feeling good at the moment and ready and rearing to go.”
The little dynamo says she has been dubbed somewhat of a mentor in the team as she regularly motivates and encourage other players in the squad. “From time to time I will go around and have one on one conversations with my teammates, I will give them an encouraging word when the chips are down, and I really take pride in knowing I impacted them at some point.”
Having been around the game for many years, Outar is keen on putting her Physical Education Degree earned from the Mico University to work, as she aims to get into the field of coaching. “I want to try something different, maybe coaching would be an avenue for me since the female game is expanding, we are going to need more coaches to sustain and build the game for the future.”
Outar has been representing Jamaica since 2006 and credits her involvement and love for the game to her family. “My brother (Rasheed Outar) was the one who actually got me interested in the game, I use to follow him to cricket camps, and from then I fell in love with the game of cricket.” Outar aka ‘Whoopie’ is 25-year-old, lists Shivnarine Chanderpaul as her favourite cricketer, loves to indulge in seafood, and reading is one of her favourite things to do.
The St. Catherine based player has high praises for the players’ body which continues to raise the profile of players. “I am so pleased to see WIPA highlight us players and putting us out there from the social media standpoint, also, from the educational workshops to the scholarship initiatives, all these things are great for women’s cricket and cricket on a whole in the West Indies.”
With the ICC Women’s T20 Championship being staged in the Caribbean later this year, Outar hopes the Windies Women can defend their title on home soil. “To win the tournament at home would be a big boost for women’s cricket, right now we need all the support and exposure we can get, so a victory would go a far way in achieving that.” Outar also had some encouraging words for young cricketers wanting to get into the game. “First of all, you have to love the sport and be dedicated, hard work is the only true way to real success, and once you are committed, the sky is the limit.”
-WIPA