Draft snub leaves Kirk Edwards career in doubt

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Serious doubts were hanging over the career of former West Indies vice-captain Kirk Edwards, after he was overlooked in yesterday’s player draft for the upcoming WICB Professional Cricket League season.

The 31-year-old, who has scored 986 runs from 17 Tests, was entered in the player pool but was ignored by all six franchises, including Jamaica Scorpions, who he represented last season.

Significantly, he was also snubbed by his home territory, Barbados Pride, who he has captained in the past.

Edwards’ career has taken a downward spiral ever since he lost his place in the West Indies squad two years ago due to poor form.

Former West Indies vice-captain, Kirk Edwards.

He managed just 59 runs from seven innings for Pride in the 2014/15 campaign and with no interest from them last season, was picked up by Scorpions.

Edwards then had an average campaign, scoring 346 runs at an average of 23 with three half-centuries.

Overall, the right-hander has scored just over 4 500 runs from 81 first class matches, at an average of 34 with nine hundreds.

His purple patch came in 2011 when he struck his two Test hundreds in the space of six innings – the first coming on debut against India at Windsor Park in Roseau and the second coming against Bangladesh in Dhaka.

That year, Edwards tallied 595 runs at an average of 54.

However, a poor tour of England following in 2012. He managed 12 runs in four tour match innings and eight runs in four Test innings before being dropped for the final Test at Birmingham.

He returned to the squad with a pair half-centuries on the tour of New Zealand in 2013 and two more when the Black Caps toured the Caribbean the following year.

Another slump in form later in the year, however, saw him lose his place again.