KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC – Barbados secured their spot in the Netball World Cup in South Africa after a 68-29 victory over Antigua and Barbuda, as the regional qualifiers ended over the weekend.
They will join Trinidad and Tobago which finished second in the qualifying tournament held at the National Indoor Sports Centre in Kingston from October 16 to 22, and Jamaica which had already qualified for next year’s event due to its world ranking.
The Bajan Gems’ victory over winless Antigua and Barbuda on Saturday evening was the final match and came on the same day St Vincent and the Grenadines beat Grenada 69-50, and Jamaica ended the qualifiers with a perfect record after a 69-47 victory over the previously unbeaten Trinidad and Tobago.
When the day began, Barbados, St Vincent and the Grenadines, and Grenada all still had a chance to qualify for the quadrennial international netball world championship.
For either St Vincent and the Grenadines or Grenada to keep their qualification chance alive, they would have needed to win the match and then rely on Antigua and Barbuda beating Barbados.
At the end of the qualifying series, Jamaica had 16 points from eight victories, Trinidad won 14 points from seven wins, and Barbados secured 12 points after winning six matches.
St Vincent and the Grenadines and Grenada ended with 10 points each, the United States six, St Lucia four, and Cayman Islands two, while Antigua and Barbuda had zero points.
The Netball World Cup will be held in Cape Town from July 28-August 6, 2023.
