27 February 2004	Friday	06 Muharram 1425

NAIROBI, Feb 26: Kenyan cricket captain Steve Tikolo and opener Kennedy Obuya have been invited to play for the West Indies Cricket Board Chancellors XI against England in Jamaica next week.

"It's a big honour to have our two players going back to the West Indies," said Kenyan coach Andy Moles, who led the team back home after a seven-week tour of the Caribbean, where the East Africans competed in the domestic series.

"This is an excellent reward for them, especially Kennedy Obuya who had a good tournament, scoring 520 runs in the series," added Moles, the former English county player with Warwickshire.

However, he said he was disappointed that another of his players, veteran off-spin bowler Maurice Odumbe, who had also been invited to play for the Invitational side, would not be returning to the Caribbean after he broke his toe during the tour.

Moles, who took over as Kenya's coach after the 2003 World Cup, said he was satisfied with the performance of his team in the West Indies. "We may have been a bit inconsistent in our batting in the four matches we played, but the four-day cricket was too demanding for the players, which left them physically and mentally tired.

Moles said the series had provided good experience for the upcoming Intercontinental Cup, being organised by the ICC between Africa, Europe, Asia and the Americas later this year. Kenya is also scheduled to host the India 'A' and Pakistan 'A' sides in July in preparation for the ICC Champions Trophy in England in September. -AFP