PLAYING in front of a large and boisterous crowd at the Area ‘H’ Ground last Sunday, Rose Hall Town (RHT) Bakewell cricket team defeated Courtland Cricket Club by 10 wickets to lift the Berbice Cricket Board’s (BCB) Naeem Nasir Memorial One-Day 5/5 Cricket Tournament.

The tournament was sponsored by Bakewell in memory of its founder and late CEO Naeem Nasir, who died on the October 9, 2012. Bakewell has supported Guyana’s leading youth and sports organisation, the Rose Hall Town Youth & Sports Club (RHTY&SC) MS, since 2000 and has been a big supporter of Berbice Cricket.

RHT won the toss and elected to field; Courtland began slowly with medium pacer Kevlon Anderson giving away only six runs in the first over. Openers Troy Mathieson and Seon Crandon failed to dominate the RHT bowling attack as Simon Lawson, Keith Simpson, Junior Sinclair and Kevin Sinclair bowled well.

Courtland were restricted to 39 for 5 off their allotted five overs with Troy Mathieson 17 and Keon Sinclair 12 being the main scorers. Medium pacer Keon Sinclair then conceded only four runs from the first over, as Courtland Cricket Club tried to defend the small total.

National Under-19 all-rounder Junior Sinclair smashed the first two balls in the second over for huge sixes off left-arm spinner to ease the run rate.

RHT then raced to 43 without loss off just 3.1 overs. Sinclair ended on 28 not out while fellow National Under-19 player Kevin Sinclair was undefeated on 16 not out.

Earlier in the day, Jai Hind Cricket Club gave a walkover to Courtland, while Fyrish Cricket Club defeated Whim National Cricket Club by eight wickets.

RHT Bakewell Cricket Club cruised past Belvedere United Cricket Club by 70 runs while Albion Community Centre Cricket Club defeated Tamarind Root Cricket Club by 20 runs.

In the semifinals, Courtland Cricket Club defeated Albion by seven wickets. Albion struggled to 25 for 5 off their 5 overs as Eon Gibson took 2 wickets for four runs.

In response, Courtland struggled as well to achieve victory and reached 26 for 3 from 4.1 overs. Troy Mathieson 13 not out and Keon Sinclair 08 not out added 20 crucial runs after Courtland had slumped to 6 for 3 in the second over.

In the second semifinals, RHT Bakewell Cricket Club blasted their way to 87 without loss as Kevin Sinclair 44 not out and Junior Sinclair 31 took the attack to the hapless Fyrish bowling.

In the opening round, the National Under-19 pair scored 105 without being separated against Belvedere United.

Needing to score 88 from five overs to upset RHT Bakewell, Fyrish were restricted to 35 for 6 as Kevin Sinclair and West Indies Female player Shabika Gajnabi took two wickets apiece.

Albion defeated Fyrish by nine wickets in the third-place playoff.

RHT Bakewell carried home $100 000 and a trophy Courtland collected $50 000 and a trophy, Albion $30 000 and Fyrish $20 000. Junior Sinclair was named man-of-the-final and collected a trophy and cash prize.

BCB president Hilbert Foster hailed the success of the tournament, which he stated was a perfect tribute to the memory of the Bakewell Founder. On behalf of the BCB and the RHTY&SC, Foster expressed gratitude to Bakewell for its sponsorship.

General Manager (GM) of Bakewell, Rajin Ganga, praised the organising skills of the BCB and the RHTY&SC, stating that it was fitting that the RHT Bakewell team won the tournament. Bakewell, he stated was committed to supporting sports as part of its corporate responsibilities.