The West Indies Championship match between Trinidad and Tobago and Leeward Islands at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua was abandoned due to a dangerous pitch on Tuesday. This decision was made during the morning session of the third day after a delivery from Jayden Seales struck batter Jeremiah Louis on the helmet.
The incident occurred when the ball unexpectedly reared sharply from a good length, resulting in Louis expressing his frustration by slapping the pitch and booting his helmet towards square leg. Medical attention was promptly administered, and he was subsequently stretchered off the field and taken to the hospital via ambulance.
Following a lengthy delay, umpires Leslie Reifer and Zahid Bassarath consulted with match referee Johnathan Blades and ground staff. After extended discussions, the match officials communicated to captains Joshua Da Silva and Justin Greaves that the match would be abandoned.
Leewards Islands coach Wilden Cornwall provided an update on Louis’s condition, expressing hope that there was no major damage. “He’s in the hospital at the moment. I just hope that everything goes well for him and that there is no really serious damage. It was really devastating to see exactly what took place this morning,” Cornwall stated during a live stream with Cricket West Indies.
Cricket West Indies later released a statement indicating that Louis was “reported to be in stable condition.”
Cornwall raised concerns regarding the pitch’s preparation, suggesting it may not have been adequately readied for a four-day match. “To me, it wasn’t given the preparation of a four-day wicket, hence we see so many players get damaged. The pitch has been misbehaving throughout the entire three days,” he noted. A total of 27 wickets had fallen over 147 overs of play before the incident.
Following discussions with the curator, the umpires concluded that the pitch could not be safely repaired without creating an unfair advantage, leading to the match’s abandonment as a draw.
