Cricket

Kemar Roach is set to make a triumphant return to the West Indies Test side for their upcoming home series against South Africa. The experienced fast bowler missed the recent tour of England due to a knee injury sustained during the County Championship.Roach's return bolsters a West Indies bowling attack that has been depleted by the absence of Alzarri Joseph, who has been rested for this series. Wicketkeeper-batter Joshua Da Silva has been appointed as the new vice-captain in Joseph's stead."We have decided to rest our vice-captain Alzarri Joseph for this series," explained head coach Andre Coley. "Alzarri has had a considerable workload recently, and this break will allow him to recuperate and return to peak performance."Coley has emphasized the importance of managing Joseph's workload, stating that "it always helps to have a period of time away from the game to work on your individual skills."Offspin-bowling allrounder Kevin Sinclair remains sidelined due to a fractured left forearm suffered during the England tour. However, uncapped offspinner Bryan Charles, pace-bowling allrounder Justin Greaves, and left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican have been included in the 15-member squad.Jeremiah Louis and Akeem Jordan, who were both part of the England tour, have been omitted from the squad. Zachary McCaskie, Kirk McKenzie, and Akeem Jordan have also been left out."The selection process for this squad was led by our Head Coach, Andre Coley," said Miles Bascombe, CWI's director of cricket. "This is pending the implementation of our new selection process, which will be rolled out in the coming days."West Indies will be eager to bounce back from their 3-0 whitewash in England, which has left them languishing at the bottom of the World Test Championship table. The two Tests against South Africa will be played in Port-of-Spain, Trinidad, from August 7 to 11 and in Providence, Guyana, from August 15 to 19.

Kemar Roach, the veteran West Indies fast bowler, has been ruled out of the upcoming Test tour of England due to a knee injury. Roach, who turns 36 on Sunday, sustained the injury while playing for Surrey in the County Championship.Roach has been a key member of the West Indies Test team for over a decade, taking 270 wickets in 72 matches. He has been particularly effective in England, claiming 61 wickets in 16 Tests.Roach's absence is a blow to the West Indies, who are already without injured all-rounder Jason Holder. However, the team has called up uncapped fast bowler Jeremiah Louis as a replacement.Louis, 24, has impressed for St Kitts and Nevis in recent years. He has taken 50 wickets in 12 first-class matches, including 18 wickets in the ongoing West Indies Championship.West Indies lead selector Desmond Haynes said: "Kemar's skill and experience in English conditions will be missed. However, this opportunity has been long in the making for Jeremiah Louis. He certainly has the skill and experience to make an impact in England."The West Indies are scheduled to play three Tests against England, starting at Lord's on July 10. They will also play a warm-up match against a County Select XI in Beckenham from July 3-6.

Kemar Roach, the veteran West Indies fast bowler, has hailed James Anderson as "one of the greatest" in history as the English legend prepares for his final Test match at Lord's this summer. However, Roach has also issued a challenge to his West Indies teammates to "ruin" Anderson's farewell by defeating England in the series.Roach's comments come after a strong start to the County Championship season, where he took 6 for 46 in Surrey's win over Warwickshire. His international teammates, Jayden Seales and Jason Holder, have also found form playing for Sussex and Worcestershire, respectively.With Shamar Joseph and Alzarri Joseph also in the squad, West Indies will have one of their strongest seam attacks in years when they face England in three Tests from July 10-30. Roach believes that a series win is achievable, despite the potential distraction of Anderson's farewell."It's a very highly talented and skillful group," Roach said. "We've not had the best of times over here in England, so it's more about focusing on us - not what they're going to do for him. He's going to get what he deserves. But it's all about us working hard to get what we deserve, which is a series win over here in England."Roach and Anderson have played against each other in 12 Tests dating back to 2012. "He's a great fast bowler, probably one of the greatest," Roach said. "It's sad to see him go, but we all know you can't play forever. He's done fantastically for England and he deserves whatever he gets."Anderson confirmed on Saturday that the Lord's Test will be his last. "First Test match against us… hopefully, we ruin it," Roach said, laughing. "He's highly respected. He's always given me great advice as well. He will go down as one of the greatest to ever do it. I wish him all the best after that Test match, and hopefully he enjoys whatever comes next."Roach believes that West Indies' seam attack is among the best he has played in. "With Shamar and Jayden Seales now - Alzarri as well - they have added a lot of X-factor to the bowling unit. On any given day, they can have a great spell and be devastating. That is what you want. You just want it as consistently as possible, to have those great days.""To have three guys like that in the team, a captain to have that to select, for any given day or any given surface [is great]. As a group, we are pretty confident. England is always our biggest series… We want to put up a good fight, put on a good show. We haven't won a Test series in England for quite a while so it is good to come with some confidence, and hopefully we can do it this time."Roach turns 36 next month, but his devastating spell for Surrey on Sunday evening proved that he remains a potent wicket-taking threat. He has spent the past two weeks working hard on his "balance at the crease" with bowling coach Jade Dernbach, and found prodigious reverse-swing to dismantle Warwickshire's batting line-up."I felt good," he said. "It's been a tough couple of weeks for me, trying to work on some things, but it's always good to get rewards for some hard work. As a fast bowler, you always want to see the stumps flying around. I'm building with Surrey. [I want to] get myself in good physical shape, the right mental space, and then when it gets to the West Indies tour, I will build on that.""I have no retirement time in sight. I think I can go as long as I want, but obviously it's all on performances. The older you get, you need to have performances to stay in the team. I've been doing well, but I just want to keep helping the youngsters so they're in a good space, mentally and physically. I'll be happy to see those guys going after me and breaking those records if they have to."Roach has two more games remaining in his fourth stint at Surrey, at home to Worcestershire and away at Hampshire, and has helped them secure an early lead at the top of the table in their bid for a third successive Championship title. "To get that win, moving us further up the top of the table, is a fantastic feeling," he said. "Let's continue the hard work, finish off and hopefully go for that trophy."

Surrey's dominance in the Vitality County Championship continued as they secured a comprehensive nine-wicket victory over Warwickshire at the Kia Oval. The win extended their lead at the top of the table to 21 points.Surrey's victory was set up by a strong first innings performance. Jamie Smith's superb 155, coupled with Sean Abbott's unbeaten 50, helped them post a formidable 464. Warwickshire's bowlers fought back, but Surrey's lower order held firm to secure a 121-run lead.In Warwickshire's second innings, West Indies paceman Kemar Roach produced a devastating spell of bowling, taking six for 46. The visitors were dismissed for 209, leaving Surrey with a modest target of 89 to win.Surrey openers Dom Sibley and Rory Burns made a solid start to the chase, putting on 31 before Burns was dismissed for 30. Sibley remained unbeaten on 46, while Ollie Pope contributed 13 not out as Surrey completed the victory in just 39 minutes on the fourth morning.Warwickshire's defeat was compounded by an injury to fast bowler Craig Miles, who suffered a severe ankle injury while celebrating his fifth wicket. The injury prevented him from batting in Warwickshire's second innings.Surrey's victory was their third successive in Division One and underlined their status as the team to beat in the competition. They have now opened up a significant gap on their rivals and are well on their way to a potential hat-trick of titles.

Hampshire's hopes of avoiding defeat against reigning champions Surrey dwindled on the third day of their Vitality County Championship clash at the Kia Oval. Despite battling through a rain-affected day, Hampshire still trail by 92 runs with five wickets remaining in their second innings.Resuming on 31 for 2, Hampshire lost three top-order wickets in quick succession. Nick Gubbins was caught behind off Dan Worrall, while Tom Prest and James Vince fell to Gus Atkinson and Kemar Roach respectively. Vince, who had shown resilience and quality in his innings of 26, was particularly crucial for Hampshire.The early wickets left Hampshire in a precarious position at 87 for 5. However, Liam Dawson (18 not out) and Ben Brown (7 not out) showed some resistance in the final overs, seeing out the day with Surrey's seamers still in control.The day's play was significantly impacted by rain. Heavy overnight rain ruled out any cricket before lunch, while further showers in the afternoon delayed the start of play. When play finally commenced at 4.30pm, Hampshire faced an uphill battle against Surrey's formidable pace attack.Worrall struck early, removing Gubbins with just ten balls bowled. Prest, who had been dropped on 22, added only one run before being caught by Ollie Pope. Vince's dismissal to Roach was a major blow for Hampshire, as he had been their most reliable batsman in the second innings.Despite the setbacks, Hampshire showed some fight in the face of adversity. Prest and Vince had put on a gritty 46-run stand, while Dawson and Brown showed some resilience in the final overs. However, Hampshire still face a significant challenge to avoid defeat on the final day.