For any young athlete, a national team call-up is the stuff of dreams. For Bermudian cricketer Katherine Bean-Rosario, that dream was realized in spectacular fashion as she helped the Leeward Islands secure their first-ever Cricket West Indies (CWI) T20 Blaze title.
The Leeward Islands, traditionally the underdogs of the regional circuit, defied all expectations to finish the tournament undefeated, clinching the trophy via the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method in a rain-affected finale.
Bean-Rosario’s journey to the senior squad was a rapid one. Having previously starred for the Leeward Islands Under-19s, she was called up to the senior ranks for the 2026 campaign—a move that caught even the player herself by surprise.
"It was very exciting, especially it being my debut," Bean-Rosario told BBC Sport. "I never expected to play my first game for the senior team during the first game of the tournament. I kind of expected to sit on the side and watch."
Despite the nerves of the senior stage, the coaching staff’s message was simple: trust the skills that brought her there. "They were just telling me to have faith in myself," she recalled. "It’s nothing new compared to the Under-19s; I can still use all the skills I have and just take it on the field with the women’s team."
While she is known as a capable batter—memorably striking a vital six against Barbados during the tournament—it was her energy in the field that drew significant praise from the Leeward Islands management. Bean-Rosario was a constant presence in the highlight reels, contributing a catch and a crucial run-out assist during the victory over Guyana.
"My captain told me multiple times not to focus on mistakes and once again just to play my game," she said. "The whole team had good spirits throughout the entire thing. It was never any bad vibes; we just kept our spirits high."
The significance of the victory was not lost on the squad. Prior to the 2026 tournament, the Leeward Islands had never won back-to-back games in the T20 Blaze, let alone the entire championship.
"Nobody expected us to win at all," Bean-Rosario admitted. "I don’t think Leewards has ever won even two games in a row. So hearing that from the start of the tournament... once we got to that three-game mark and we were halfway, it was just like, 'How can we stop?'"
Though she sat out the rain-delayed semi-final to allow teammates who hadn't featured to gain experience, Bean-Rosario remains a central figure in the Leeward Islands' long-term plans. With the Super50 Cup following immediately after the T20 success, the young Bermudian is already looking to refine her game.
"I’m satisfied with what I gave, especially because I didn’t really have any prior practice coming into the tournament," she noted. "I was only in the training camp for about four days, so that’s not really enough. I’m definitely going to focus on the sport to get better for next year."
