Player Draft finalises franchise contracted squads for CWI professional season

Kjorn Ottley, a member of the Combined Campuses & Colleges Marooners side that last November won the West Indies Super50 Cup, now sponsored by Colonial Medical Insurance, headlines the list of six players chosen during the Player Draft staged at the corporate headquarters of Cricket West Indies here.

The Trinidad & Tobago-born batsman, whose solid batting at the top of the order helped to earn the composite Marooners side their first ever regional title, was attained from the Player Pool by the Barbados Pride as one of its five draft picks.

His compatriot Tion Webster was also retained by the Pride and his Marooners teammate, wicketkeeper/batsman Amir Jangoo, also from T&T, was picked up by the Leeward Islands Hurricanes, becoming the third recognised wicketkeeper/batsman on their contracted list.

Former West Indies Under-19 captain, off-spinner Ramaal Lewis of Jamaica returns to the Guyana Jaguars, for whom he played last season; Guyanese Bhaskar Yadram, another former Windies Under-19 graduate, was picked up by Windward Islands Volcanoes, who lost out to the Jamaica Scorpions on the choice of wicketkeeper/batsman Denis Smith, after he was surprisingly left off their “protected player” list following a notable performance during the last Championship season.

A handful of players have returned to the franchise in their home territory’s after playing outside in past seasons.

Kyle Mayers returned from the Volcanoes and found a place on the Barbados Pride contracted list, along with fellow all-rounder Roshon Primus, who previously played for the Trinidad & Tobago Red Force.

After playing in previous seasons for the Hurricanes, Nkrumah Bonner made onto the contracted list of the Jamaica Scorpions, which also includes fast-medium bowler Marquino Mindley, who played six games for the Pride last season.