GCB/GTM Under-19 …
WEATHER permitting today, defending champions Berbice face their nemesis Demerara in the final match of the 2010 Guyana Cricket Board (GCB)-organised GTM-sponsored Under-19 Inter-county tournament at the Police Sports Club, Eve Leary ground from 09:30 h.
The two were set to clash at the Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) ground last Friday, but early morning showers flooded certain parts of the outfield, forcing the umpires to abandon the match without a ball being bowled and to reschedule to today.
Demerara will be looking to rebound from the shocking two-run defeat they suffered at the hands of Essequibo last Wednesday, while Berbice who defeated Essequibo by five wickets in their encounter, will be looking to maintain their unbeaten run as they seek to take the trophy back to the Ancient County.
With the in-form Dominic Rikhi, skipper Harrinarine Chattergoon, Rafael Estriado and Joemal La Fleur in the fray along with the talented national Under-15 skipper Shawn Pereira, Berbice should be starting this match as favourites.
Seventeen-year-old Rikhi who ended the three-day tournament with the highest batting aggregate (147 runs), at an average of 73.50 including two half-centuries, commenced the limited overs tournament with a responsible half-century that guided Berbice to a five-wicket win over Essequibo and he would be looking to continue his rich vein of form.
Fast bowler Keon Joseph finally bowled with pace and gusto on a flat Eve Leary wicket when the two teams met in the final preliminary round match of the three-day competition and with the vast-improving Raun Johnson at the other end with the new ball, along with La Fleur’s ability to be economical in the first 15 overs, certainly Berbice’s work in the bowling department is cut out for them.
Chattergoon, Pereira, Lloydel Lewis and Sherwin McPherson are all worthy customers with the ball in support to the abovementioned bowlers, which means that Demerara will need to work with their ‘A’ game in order to complete the double.
On the other hand, Demerara will be looking to Quincy Ovid-Richardson, Brian Sattaur, Alex Ramalho, Kwame Crosse and Arif Habib to take the batting charge to the Berbicians, with valuable support from skipper Dexter Solomon and Andre Stoll.
Their bowling will be led by right-arm leg-spinner Amir Khan, Stoll, Seon Daniels, Habib and Medha Dhanpaul who kept a tight rein on Essequibo before he was forced to leave the field suffering from high blood pressure.