… Katwaroo and Ali shine
STEVEN Katwaroo struck an unbeaten half-century while Jovan Ali took a five-wicket haul as defending Under-19 limited overs champions Trinidad and Tobago (T&T) opened their defence with a commanding 26-run victory over Guyana at the Georgetown Cricket Club ground yesterday. Winning the toss and opting to bat first in hazy conditions, T&T reached 181 for 8 from their 50 overs, thanks to Katwaroo’s 57 after being 82 for 6 in the 28th over of their innings before bowling out Guyana for 155 which was scored off 41 overs.
When T&T batted, they were 22 for 2 after Duane Cockburn and Emmanuel Lett, who both made 2, were dismissed by Clinton Pestano (2-46) and Ronsford Beaton (1-26) respectively, before Keiron Joseph (27) found a useful partner in Akeal Hosein (29) and they added 34 for the third wicket.
Joseph struck both Beaton and Pestano for boundaries, while Hosein hit Pestano for his lone boundary before the introduction of Joemal La Fleur, who took 3 for 23 from his 10 overs, accounted for Joseph who was bowled through the gates, leaving T&T on 56 for 3 at the end of 15 overs.
Derone Davis replaced Joseph, but after sweeping Amir Khan (2-31) to fine leg for four, he was adjudged lbw to the same bowler off the next delivery while Hosein and Isian Rajah (0) were sent packing by La Fleur.
The scoreboard should have read 93 for 7, had Khan held onto a sharp chance given to him by Katwaroo off his own bowling when the batsman was on 10, but he made amends when he dismissed Savion Lara (28) while adding 55 for the seventh wicket with Hosein, taken by Kandasammy Surujnarine.
Prior to his demise, Lara was given a life by wicketkeeper Kevon Boodie off Gudakesh Kanhai-Motie, who watched as the Essequibo wicketkeeper grassed an easy chance off Katwaroo from the next ball with the score on 120 for 6 in the 39th over.
To add insult to injury, Katwaroo struck Pestano for four and six in the final over, raising his half-century with the latter shot from the 76th delivery he faced, before he was given another life off the final delivery of the innings which was bowled by Pestano, with the culprit being none other than Boodie.
When Guyana began their reply, they were tormented by the pace/spin combination of Davis and Stephen Sooklall as the team from the Twin Island Republic sent down two maiden overs first up in their opponents’ innings.
Sooklall removed both Surujnarine and Boodie for 5 each, with Surujnarine getting a thin edge through to Katwaroo, while Boodie pulled long hop down the throat of Joseph who was stationed at long on, after hitting the previous delivery for four through mid wicket.
Kwame Crosse was joined by Chandrapaul Hemraj and they repaired the early damage by adding 57 for the third wicket from 16.3 overs, with a flurry of shots on both sides of the wicket, coupled with the occasional singles.
But when they looked set to see their team to a comfortable position in their run chase, Crosse, who struck four fours in his 27, got an inside edge from an Ali delivery, while the said bowler removed Hemraj via the lbw route.
Anthony Adams (2), La Fleur (16), Pestano (0) and Khan (0) followed Crosse, as Guyana slipped to 105 for 8 in the 32nd over, with only Beaton and Kanhai-Motie to come, while Ricardo Adams was on 9 at the other end.
Beaton joined his Essequibo teammate and they took the score to 133 with some cheeky singles, before Beaton was run-out for 20. Ricardo Adams displayed his ability to hit the ball hard, when he struck Hosein for two sixes, with the second clearing the Guyana Cricket Board building. Kanhai-Motie (0) was run-out off the final ball of the over to hand T&T victory.
Ricardo Adams’ rearguard and unbeaten 33 was scored off 34 deliveries and was decorated with the two sixes he struck, but against the bowling of Ali who ended with 5 for 35 and Sooklall’s 2-35, the home team struggled to reach their target, falling short by 26 runs with nine overs remaining.
The action continues today, with Guyana taking on Leeward Islands at Everest Cricket Club ground while T&T take on Jamaica at the Enmore Community Centre ground and Barbados and Windward Islands clash at the Guyana National Stadium, with all matches commencing at 09:00hrs.