Jaguars bouyed by returning Windies trio

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (CMC):

The Guyana Jaguars will be near full strength for their third-round domestic first-class clash with the Barbados Pride next week with the return of the Windies trio of Chandrapaul Hemraj, Sherfane Rutherford and Raymon Reifer.

However, while they have been named in the 13-man squad, the youthful pair of batsman Shimron Hetmyer and all-rounder Keemo Paul, along with leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo, will miss the game for varying reasons.

"Keemo Paul injured his finger during the last match in Bangladesh, while Devendra Bishoo was still in the USA at the time of selection, and Shimron Hetmyer has requested to be rested," the Guyana Cricket Board was quoted as saying.

All three are key players for the Jaguars and will be missed against a Pride outfit likely to feature several of their international players.

Batsman Hemraj and all-rounders Rutherford and Reifer will however add value to the unit, which has won both of their games in the tournament to top the tables.

Selectors, meanwhile, have dropped batsman Trevon Griffith, wicketkeeper Tevin Imlach, and all-rounder Akshaya Persaud to make way for the Windies trio.

Jaguars and Pride meet at the Kensington Oval in Barbados on Friday.

SQUAD: Leon Johnson (captain), Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Vishaul Singh, Christopher Barnwell, Raymon Reifer, Anthony Bramble, Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, Veerasammy Permaul, Clinton Pestano, Keon Joseph and Gudakesh Motie.