PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad CMC – Guyana’s preparation for their Caribbean Twenty20 Championship title defence suffered a blow Tuesday night when they went down by eight wickets to Trinidad and Tobago’s ‘A’ team in their opening game of the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board’s (TTCB) Cricket Festival Twenty20 series.
The reigning regional champions were undermined by weak batting and collapsed for 88 all out after winning the toss on a two-paced wicket, to which T&T “A” sped to 91 for two in 15.1 overs, at Guaracara Park. There were failures for captain Ramnaresh Sarwan who failed to score and Shivnarine Chanderpaul who managed just 12, as the visitors were embarrassed by T&T’s second string side, with Royston Crandon top-scoring with 21 but no other batsman offered support.
Captain Rayad Emrit led the assault and finished with 3-14 with his medium pace while fast bowlers Navin Stewart (2-12) and Shannon Gabriel (2-22) offered valuable support.
Chasing an uncomplicated target of 89, 27-year-old West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo who leaves for Australia shortly to play for Victoria in the Twenty20 Big Bash, reminded T&T of the talents they would be missing in the upcoming CT20 when he scored a Man-of-the-Match 44 made off 35 balls and decorated with three fours and a six.
Bravo added 74 for the second wicket with West Indies Under-19 player Evin Lewis who was unbeaten on 37, before he was caught at the wicket by Derwin Christian off Christopher Barnwell (1-15).