… Chanderpaul, Mohammed hit half-centuries
SHIVNARINE Chanderpaul (77) and Zaheer Mohammed (58*) both struck half-centuries, but that was not enough to prevent Barbados from completing a comfortable 59-run victory five minutes before tea on the final day of their 2010 West Indies Cricket Board President’s Cup match at the Albion Community Development Centre ground yesterday. Scores in the match: Barbados 403 and 154-9 declared, Guyana 229 and 270.
Guyana resumed the final day on 59-4, needing to score 270 more runs for victory, with Devendra Bishoo who went on to make 18, on 8, and Royston Crandon yet to score and after seeing the former negotiate the first over from Corey Edwards (2-48), lost Crandon, who failed to trouble the scorers, caught and bowled by Sulieman Benn (2-58) low to his right.
Two fours off the outside edge of Bishoo’s bat, along with Chanderpaul’s boundary over mid on off Benn, pushed Guyana to 77-4, before Corey Edwards found the edge of Bishoo’s bat on its way to wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich, after he had faced 34 deliveries, striking three of them for four while batting for 53 minutes.
Christopher Barnwell (6) joined Chanderpaul but did not last long, as he was adjudged lbw to Corey Edwards in the bowler’s next over, leaving Guyana who started the day in search of 270 runs to record their first victory on 85-6, with Chanderpaul still at the wicket on 10.
Derwin Christian fought fire with fire, when he struck both Benn and Corey Edwards for maximums over long-on and long-off respectively which was separated by a four through extra cover also off Corey Edwards as Guyana, who lost three quick wickets in the first hour, moved to 105-6.
Two fours from Chanderpaul off Tino Best, followed by another from Christian, pushed Guyana whose 100 was posted in the 31st over, to 137-6 with Chanderpaul on 34 and Christian, who was displaying his usual pugnacious attitude with the bat, on 28.
With 20 minutes to go before lunch, Christian went for an expansive drive off Pedro Collins but only succeeded in getting an outside edge through to Dowrich, who took it gleefully.
His demise brought an end to a 52-run seventh-wicket partnership with Chanderpaul, of which Christian made 28 from 37 balls, clearing the boundary ropes twice during his 47 minutes sojourn at the wicket.
Mohammed joined Chanderpaul and together they took Guyana, who lost four wickets in the morning session for 98 runs, to 157-7 at lunch, with Mohammed who struck Benn, Collins and Best for boundaries on 15 and Chanderpaul 36, still needing a further 172 for victory, on their way to their 93-run eighth-wicket stand.
Three fours by Chanderpaul after lunch saw the 35-year-old West Indies middle order batsman who is playing his first game of the season, posting his 91st first class half-century from 93 balls in 135 minutes batting and decorated with five fours.
He celebrated same by cover-driving Collins twice for boundaries in one over and after surviving a confident appeal for caught behind off the same bowler two overs later, Chanderpaul displayed the batting ability that made him the International Cricket Council (ICC) 2008 Cricketer-of-the-Year, with an audacious extra cover drive for four off the next delivery.
Mohammed, who has been in fine form with the bat for his home club Enterprise Busta Sports Club, joined the boundary-scoring bandwagon, with an exquisitely timed drive between cover and extra cover off Ryan Hinds, as Guyana who started the session needing 172 for victory, moved to 222-7, with Chanderpaul on 71 and Mohammed 40.
A small but appreciative and vociferous crowd roared when the former West Indies captain tickled Best to the fine leg boundary for four, which took Guyana’s deficit to 99 runs with three wickets in hand, as the pair took their eighth-wicket partnership to 93.
Barbados got the breakthrough thanks to Kevin Stoute (3-15) who got a delivery to pitch and leave Chanderpaul who got a faint edge through to Dowrich, his third catch of the innings, but not before the left-handed batsman had struck nine fours from the 134 deliveries he faced whilst batting for 189 minutes.
A silenced crowd then watched as Veerasammy Permaul joined Mohammed, who continued to fight for his country, when he steered Hinds to third man for four, before Permaul’s off stump was uprooted by Stoute, leaving Guyana on 234-9.
Mohammed got to his maiden first class half-century, when he cut Stoute through point for four from the 99th ball he faced, touching the ropes 10 times from 115 minutes of batting, then watched as Brandon Bess struck Benn over mid on for four.
Two more fours by the lanky Bess pushed the score to 270, before Stoute, who had been producing some magnificent spells when called upon by Hinds this season, fittingly had Bess caught by Dale Richards at slip, to hand Barbados a comfortable 59-run victory five minutes before the scheduled tea break.
Stoute, who was belatedly introduced into the attack but did the damage when he removed Chanderpaul, ended with 3-15 from 5.4 overs and received support from Corey Edwards, Collins and Benn who took two wickets each for 48, 56 and 58 respectively, while man-of-the-match Best took the other wicket to fall.
Both teams left this morning for neighbouring Trinidad and Tobago, where Guyana will face Leeward Islands and Barbados who are second in the points standing behind leaders and defending champions Jamaica, face that team in their encounter.