A REPEAT of last year’s final in the Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA)/Queensway Open Cup knockout tournament in which both Gajanand Singh and Leon Johnson scored tons for Demerara Cricket Club (DCC) and Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) respectively will occur in this year’s tournament  next Sunday.

This is due to both teams recording commanding victories over Everest Cricket Club (ECC) and Guyana National Industrial Corporation (GNIC) in their semi-final fixtures yesterday.
At the DCC ground in Queenstown, the home team who is currently celebrating their 100th Anniversary rode on the back of skipper Christopher Barnwell’s all round performance to blow away ECC while at the country’s former test venue, GCC who is the oldest club in the Caribbean were too good for GNIC, whom they defeated by seven wickets.
Winning the toss and opting to make good use of the preparation moisture on the track, Barnwell who took 4 for 24 with his medium pace, asked ECC to take first strike and immediately rocked their batting when in partnership with Andre Stoll (2-18) left ECC precariously placed on 35 for 5, after they were 35 for 2.
They slipped further into oblivion at 56 for 7, as the wickets Amir Khan (00) and Troy Gonsalves (01), followed the earlier dismissal of Adrian Singh (01), Rajendra Chandrika (05), Chandrapaul Hemraj (12, 2×4) and Shaheed Mohammed who made 23, that included two fours and a six struck back over the head of Barnwell.
Zaheer Mohammed who topscored with 34 that was decorated with two sixes struck over extra cover off the bowing of Orlando Sturge ,and Totaram Bishun and Joseph Perry 33* (2×4, 1×6) revived their team’s innings by adding 41 for the eighth wicket.
However, the reintroduction of Stoll back into the attack, accounted for Mohammed who was sent to the comforts of the dressing room after being given out lbw, a dismissal that allowed Perry and Mohan Ramdeen (12) to add a further 28 for the ninth wicket.
Perry looked ominous, hitting Sturge over long off for 6 followed by a four off Omesh Dhanram who later dismissed both Ramdeen and Christopher Surat, wrapping up the visitor’s innings on his way to ending with 2 for 12.
When DCC began their reply, a pugnacious looking Andrew Lyght Jnr. warmed up for Sunday’s final by hitting three sixes and two fours in is 27 which took him a miserly seven deliveries to aggregate before he was dismissed by Khan (2 for 44).
But with Barnwell being in  rampant mood, racing to the lone half century of the match from 26 deliveries, hitting six sixes and four fours, with four of his sixes coming off the bowling of Khan, the West Indies right arm leg spinner.
No bowler was spared from Barnwell’s wrath, as together with Gajanand Singh (17, 1×4), he took the home team closer to their target before Gonsalves had him caught, after the explosive batsman had struck nine sixes and five fours in his 81 that was scored off 41 deliveries.
It was a dismissal that came a little too late for the Camp Road based ECC team, as their host canter to 149 for 4 from 21.5 overs, to complete the win and set up a rematch of last year’s finals with their nemesis GCC, who needed 18.5 overs to get past GNIC at Bourda.
Like ECC, GNIC were in early trouble after being asked to bat by the home team, losing seven early wickets by the 15th over, for just 63 runs.
The batsmen who were back in the comforts of the pavilion at that stage were Leroy Bristol (00), Elton Baker (04), Ranole Bourne (10), Dexter Solomon (00), Reon Griffith (07), Collis Butts (07) and his father and Chairman of the West Indies Cricket Board’s selection committee Clyde Butts, who made 02.
However, unlike ECC who were allowed to recover by DCC, GCC showed GNIC no mercy and dismissed their opponents for 85, with Robin Bacchus picking up 4 for 22, Joshua Wade- who started the rout-3 for 21 and left arm spinner Raj Nannan 2 for 13.
When GCC began their reply, they saw Bacchus being given a life by Bristol at deep midwicket off the second delivery of their innings that was bowled by Collis Butts from the Regent Street End.
They slipped to 13 for 3, losing Bacchus (07) who was involved in a mix up with Jeetendra Sookdeo (02), while both Sookdeo and discarded West Indies middle order batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan who recently returned from England, were sent back by Collis Butts, with Sarwan being bowled for ‘duck’.
Johnson led from the front following the early dismissals and together with Vishal Singh, took GCC to 87 for 3 from 18.5 overs, adding an unbeaten 74 for the fourth wicket from 14.1 overs, with Johnson hitting three fours and two sixes in his 40 while Vishal Singh had three fours in his unbeaten 25.
Collis Butts whom Johnson struck for both his sixes, with the second one sealing GCC’s win and a place in the final, ended with 2 for 35 for GNIC.
Meanwhile, summarised scores from the quarter-finals that were played the previous day are:
At DCC: GYO 171 all out off 38 overs Kamesh Yadram 84 (9×4, 3×6), Ryan Shun 21 (4×4), Barnwell 4 for 37, Stoll 3 for 26. DCC in reply, 172 for 3 off 22.3 overs, Barnwell 59 (5×6, 5×4), Andrew Gibson 40* (5×4), Derwin Christian 28*(3×6, 1×4) and Trevon Griffith 27 (4×4, 1×6).
At the Guyana Defence Force (GDF) ground, Transport Sports Club 186 off 47 overs, Carl Rambharose 65 (5×4), Charwayne Mc Pherson 38 (3×4), Azim Azeez 22 (4×4), Rayon Griffith 2 for 25, Orlando Fraser 2 for 28 and Rawle Merrell 2 for 41.
GNIC in reply reached 187 for 6 from 46.4 overs, Leroy Bristol 48 (5×4, 1×6), Dexter Solomon 42, Shawn De Souza 25, Griffith 21 and Jermaine Grovesnor 17*.
At Camp Road: GDF 154 all out off 44.1 overs, Ameer Khan 27, Jeremiah Harris 20 (3×4), Zaheer Mohammed took 3 for 23, Troy Gonsalves 3 for 49 and Christopher Surat 2 for 16 bowling for ECC who replied with 156 for 5 from 32.5 overs.
Gonsalves 38* (4×4), Shaheed Mohammed 36 (2×4, 1×6), Adrian Singh 30 (5×4 and Rajendra Chandrika 29 (2×4), as Shemroy Barrington took 3 for 29 and Ameer Khan 2 for 15 for GDF.
At Malteenoes Sports Club ground on Thomas Land:, Police Sports Club 118 all out off 37 overs, Pernell London 23, Jason Heyliger 20, Trevor Benn 17* and Ryan Rajmangal 15.
Raj Nannan took 3 for 13 and Joshua Wade and Gavin Singh 2 for 35 each for GCC, who raced to 122 for 1 from 19 overs, thanks to Robin Bacchus’ unbeaten 82 (10×4), 4×6), Jeetendra Sookdeo 19 and Vishal Singh 11 not out.