THANKS to Shimron Hetmyer’s explosive innings, Cellink Berbice commenced their campaign for their first-ever Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Under-17 title, when they defeated Essequibo by six wickets in their first round fixture which was played at the Wakenaam Community Centre ground yesterday. Winning the toss and inviting their hosts to take first strike in a rain-reduced encounter, Cellink Berbice who have dominated cricket at the Inter-county level, irrespective of the category, restricted Essequibo to 123 for 9 off 45 overs, before reaching 125 for 4 from 26.3 overs.
Devon George and Kemo Paul were the principal scorers for Essequibo with 27 and 24 respectively while Shiraz Ramcharran and national Under-15 fast bowler Niall Smith grabbed two wickets each for 17 and 32 runs respectively for Cellink Berbice.
Hetmyer returned to hit eight fours and five sixes in his 68 to lead the Ancient County lineup to their eventual total, with Nicholas Cameron contributing 16 while Arif Chan and Shaileindra Shameer were unbeaten on 14 and 8 when the Berbicians reached their target.
In the other scheduled match for today. Demerara and the President’s XI   faced each other at the Wales Community Centre ground, but efforts to get results from same proved futile, while the action will continue on Monday with Cellink Berbice meeting President’s XI at the Georgetown Cricket Club ground and Essequibo facing Demerara at the Demerara Cricket Club ground.