Fudadin-less Scorpions set to battle Jaguars today

Scorpions have surged into third place in the championship table following two wins, including a seven-wicket victory over the Jaguars on the road in the fourth round. The Jags’ defence of their title hit a further snag, when a strong second-innings batting performance from Volcanoes held them to a draw in the previous round.

Team Guyana Jaguars
Assad Fudadin is dropped after poor form (Brandon Corlette photos)
Team Jamaica Scorpions

This sets up the battleground for an intense contest between the two sides, with the Scorpions eyeing a third successive win to keep their surge on course and the Jaguars seeking to get back on track. The Scorpions’ will to win is enhanced by the reality that they have won their last two matches against the Jags, including the corresponding fixture last season, when they clinched an eight-wicket triumph.
They will be hoping the change of scenery from Sabina Park in the Jamaica capital of Kingston does not affect the trend and that they can complete a season sweep and stop the Jaguars from returning the favour of a defeat on home soil. Both teams have been forced to make changes to their line-ups, but the Scorpions appear to be the harder hit.
Hardworking pacer Derval Green has been sidelined with injury; off-spinner Peat Salmon, the hero of the previous match between the two sides, has been suspended from bowling by Cricket West Indies (CWI) because of a suspect action; and Guyanese left-hander Assad Fudadin, whose intimate knowledge of the opposition could be useful, has been omitted because of poor form.
The Guyanese in the four matches he played this season has scored only 83 runs in eight innings. This season, he has a poor average of 10.37 with a high score of 34.
The 34-year-old left-hander played a total of 110 First-Class matches, with six centuries and 24 half-centuries to his name with an average of 29.42. Since his First-Class debut in 2004, Fudadin has 5208 runs. He also played three Test matches for the West Indies. Fudadin’s scores this 4-Day season are: 09, 34, 07, 09, 03, 19, 02 and 00.
Jaguars have brought spinner Gudakesh Motie and Akshaya Persaud in to replace Test leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo and Shimron Hetmyer, who has flown to Sri Lanka to be part of the West Indies Twenty20 International squad for their imminent series against the hosts.
This will be a memorable match for Jaguars’ left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul, if he plays. He will be appearing in his 100th match in the championship for the visitors, becoming only the sixth player in domestic West Indies First-Class matches to have achieved this landmark. A number of other players stand on the threshold of personal milestones which could be accomplished in the match, if they play:
Nkrumah Bonner (Scorpions) has taken 45 championship wickets and needs five more for 50
John Campbell (Scorpions) has scored 2910 championship runs and needs 90 more for 3000
Keon Joseph (Jaguars) has taken 91 championship wickets and needs nine more for 100
Motie has taken 96 championship wickets and needs four more for 100
Raymon Reifer (Jaguars) has taken 142 championship wickets and needs eight more for 150, and
Vishaul Singh (Jaguars) has scored 2998 championship runs and needs two more for 3000.

Squads:
Scorpions (from): John Campbell (Captain); Jermaine Blackwood; Nkrumah Bonner; Gordon Bryan; Dennis Bulli; Nicholson Gordon; Patrick Harty Jr; Jamie Merchant; Marquino Mindley; Paul Palmer Jr; Denis Smith; Alwyn Williams and Oraine Williams.
IN – Bryan, Bulli, A Williams; OUT – Assad Fudadin, Derval Green, Peat Salmon
JAGUARS (from): Leon Johnson (Captain); Christopher Barnwell; Anthony Bramble; Tagenarine Chanderpaul; Chandrapaul Hemraj; Keon Joseph; Veerasammy Permaul; Akshaya Persaud; Raymon Reifer; Kevin Sinclair; Vishaul Singh and Nial Smith.
IN – Motie, Persaud; OUT – Devendra Bishoo, Shimron Hetmyer (CWI)