…Essequibo whip Berbice by five wickets

TORONTO – They may be classified as the whipping boys of Inter-county cricket in their homeland but Essequibo proved otherwise in their adopted country when they whipped Berbice by five wickets in the final of the Ontario Masters Over-40 Inter-county softball tournament, played last Sunday at the Littles ground, Scarborough.Led by brilliant and responsible half-century by former Essequibo Inter-county player Jaimini Singh, Essequibo recorded a nail-biting win over their opponents, reaching 145 for five with a mere four balls to spare after limiting Berbice to 139 for two in their allotted 20 overs.
The left-handed Singh, who skippered Essequibo during the 1980’s and was also a member of Guyana national squad in 1989 received solid support from fellow opener Amarnauth Sookhu who stroked a fluent 39 which included three fours and a similar number of sixes.
Singh and Sookhu added a valuable 82 in 13 overs but with the former’s dismissal, Berbice were back in with a great chance as the run-rate dropped considerably. However, Iman Ghafour brought life back into the Essequibo supporters with two massive sixes towards the end, thereby securing victory.
The experienced Singh counted four fours and two sixes before holding out in the deep, attempting another boundary.
Earlier, Berbice were led to their challenging total through a brisk knock from former Guyana and Canadian all-rounder Sunil Dhaniram whose 39 included three fours and two towering sixes.
Rudy Bhooplall captured three wickets for 10 runs from his four overs while Ghafour also claimed three for 20.
At the presentation ceremony, which followed, players from both teams received medals while the winners took home the championship trophy.
Essequibo’s Sookhu, who scored a half-century in the opening round match, was voted his side’s Most Valuable Player while Dhaniram copped the honour for Berbice.
The tournament was sponsored by Dr. Rudy Singh and Dr. Raj Singh. Demerara fielded two teams (East and West), both being eliminated in the opening round.
Among those on hand at the impressive presentation ceremony was president of the Masters League Jai Singh who was high in praise for the team spirit displayed by the competing teams in this the ninth year of the tournament.
Singh also expressed special thanks to the sponsors for their continuing input and the teams for their participation in the annual tournament.
Former president Azeem Khan, who now holds the post of vice-president also lauded the efforts of the players and the organisers for the successful running of the tournament, while Essequibo’s skipper Singh acknowledged that his side deserved to come out victorious since they played wonderful cricket.

(By Frederick Halley)