Akeem Jordan

Barbados fast bowlers Akeem Jordan and Jofra Archer once played together for Two Hopes CC, at best a pub team, in 2015. While Archer migrated to and first represented England as a 24-year-old in 2019, Jordan had to wait until he was 28 before getting the West Indies cap.

That moment came in an ODI against UAE in June 2023, but Jordan had shown his potential much earlier. Making his List A debut for Combined Campuses and Colleges in 2018-19, he picked up 16 wickets at an average of 14.62 in the Super50 Cup.

Jordan performed well in the next two List A seasons as well, apart from having a successful first-class competition in both 2021-22 and 2022-23. He was even called up to West Indies' Test squad for the tour of South Africa in early 2023, although he didn't get a game.

But Jordan then represented West Indies A in three unofficial Tests against Bangladesh A at home in 2022. He picked up 12 wickets in that series, but struck only once in 11 overs in his debut ODI series that followed.

Despite a lean start to his international career, Jordan was picked for another A series. West Indies A toured South Africa in 2023-24, and Jordan struck nine times in three games. He even went to Australia as part of the Test squad a month later, before flying to England as an injury replacement in mid-2024.

However, despite impressive performances in both first-class and List A cricket, Jordan continued to struggle to find a place in the national side.