INJUDICIOUS shot selections from Guyana’s batsmen were offset by a disciplined bowling performance from their bowlers that enabled  the Guyanese to beat Barbados by 42 runs to maintain their unbeaten run in this year’s West Indies Cricket Board’s Caribbean T20 tournament, at the Queen’s Park Oval last Thursday night.
Scores: Guyana 108, Barbados 66. Asked to take first strike on a wicket that was keeping low, Guyana stumbled from 29 for 1 in the 5th over, to be bowled out for their eventual total 14 overs later, but said thanks to Man-of-the-Match Steven Jacobs, whose 2 for 13

helped destroy the Barbadian’s batting.

Guyana who defeated the same team by one wicket to take the inaugural title in 2010, raced to 16 without loss at the end of the first over, as Trevon Griffith 16 (1×4, 1×6), pulled a short delivery from Fidel Edwards to the fence for six.
Griffith and Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who top-scored for the Guyanese with 23 (27 balls, 2×4), added 29 before Griffith was bowled by Tino Best off the inside edge in the fifth over, followed by Ramnaresh Sarwan, who played on to Carlos Brathwaite for 1.
At that stage Guyana were 36 for 2 and Chanderpaul and Narsingh Deonarine (13) carried the score to 63, before Chanderpaul was caught by Kyle Mayers at long off, as he looked to clear that fence off Ashley Nurse, leaving Guyana on 63 for 3.
It became 63 for 5, as Barbados’ skipper Dwayne Smith had a double strike in the 11th over, removing Deonarine and Royston Crandon (0) off successive deliveries.
Vice-captain Christopher Barnwell (12) and Jonathan Foo 11 (1×6), pushed the score to 85, with Foo hitting Sulieman Benn who took 2 for 22, over long on for six, before he was caught by Smith at cover off the leading edge, from the next delivery.
At 85 for 6, Guyana slipped to 100 for 9 as they lost Steven Jacobs (0) and Barnwell, Veerasammy Permaul (5) in that order, before Derwin Christian (12) and Devendra Bishoo who was unbeaten on 2, carried them to their final score.
When Barbados began their reply, they met the all-spin attack of Jacobs and Crandon, who reduced them to 4 for 3 in the third over, dismissing Smith (0), Ryan Hinds (1) and Justin Brathwaite (3).
Shane Dowrich (18) and Jonathan Carter (17) pushed the score to 42, with Dowrich hitting Permaul for the lone four the Guyanese conceded up to the 10th over, before he (Dowrich) was lbw to Deonarine, followed by Carter who holed out to Chanderpaul at long on off Barnwell, two runs later.
A four by Carlos Brathwaite to long leg off Barnwell, the second that was conceded by Guyana in the 13th over, before Mayers (1) was run-out by Jacobs, who swooped down on the ball from short midwicket and he was quickly followed by Nurse (0) lbw to Barnwell’s first delivery.
At 54 for 7, the lanky Benn strode to the wicket to join Carlos Brathwaite (10), but lost his partner who was run-out by a direct hit from Crandon with the score unchanged, before Benn pulled Crandon over wide long on for 6 to ease the tension in the Barbadian camp.
But that was the last hurrah for the Barbadians, a team, who, in their previous two matches of this year’s tournament, bowled out both of their opponents for less than 100 but found themselves on the receiving end against Guyana.
Not only did the Guyanese surpass the 100-run mark, but bowled out their opponents under that figure, when Benn skied Permaul to Sarwan at cover and Best ran past a turning delivery to be stumped by Christian, leaving Edwards unbeaten at the other end, as the Guyanese in the stands and on the field, started Carnival-like celebrations.
Looking ahead to tonight’s encounter against Trinidad and Tobago, a team dubbed the ‘Red Force’, both Permaul and Jacobs said an improved performance with the bat, coupled with a much better performance in the field will ensure a third win for Guyana.
According to the WICB, tickets have been sold out for this game which promises to be an enthralling and exciting encounter, as Sarwan, Chanderpaul, Foo, Deonarine and Barnwell take on the likes of Dwayne and Darren Bravo, Lendl Simmons, William Perkins, Denesh Ramdin and the hard-hitting Kieron Pollard.

GUYANA innings
T. Griffith b Best 16
S. Chanderpaul c Mayers b Nurse 23
R. Sarwan b C. Brathwaite 1
N. Deonarine lbw b Smith 13
C. Barnwell c Mayers b Hinds 12
R. Crandon lbw b Smith 0
J. Foo c Smith b Benn 11
S. Jacobs c Edwards b Benn 0
D. Christian c Smith b Edwards 12
V. Permaul run-out 5
D. Bishoo not out 2
Extras: (lb-6, w-6, nb-1) 13
Total: (all out, 19 overs) 108
Fall of wickets: 1-29 (Griffith), 2-36 (Sarwan), 3-63 (Chanderpaul), 4-63 (Deonarine), 5-63 (Crandon), 6-85 (Foo), 7-85 (Jacobs), 8-89 (Barnwell), 9-100 (Permaul1).
Bowling: Edwards 3-0-26-1 (w-1, nb-1), Brathwaite 4-0-15-1, Best 3-0-12-1 (w-1), Smith 3-0-14-2, Nurse 1-0-8-1, Benn 3-0-22-2, Hinds 2-0-5-1.
BARBADOS innings
D. Smith b Jacobs 0
J. Brathwaite c & b Jacobs 3
R. Hinds run-out 1
J. Carter c Chanderpaul b Barnwell 17
S. Dowrich lbw b Deonarine 18
K. Mayers run-out 1
C. Brathwaite  run-out 10
A. Nurse lbw b Barnwell 0
S. Benn c Sarwan b Permaul 9
T. Best stp. b Permaul 1
F. Edwards not out 0
Extras: (lb-1, w-5) 6
Total: (all out, 17.2 overs) 66
Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Smith), 2-4 (Hinds), 3-4 (JK Brathwaite), 4-42 (Dowrich), 5-44 (Carter), 6-54 (Mayers), 7-54 (Nurse), 8-57 (C. Brathwaite), 9-66 (Benn).
Bowling: Jacobs 4-1-13-2 (w-1), Crandon 3-0-17-0, Permaul 3.2-1-14-2, Bishoo 3-1-6-0, Barnwell 3-0-11-2, Deonarine 1-0-4-1.
Points: Guyana 4, Barbados 0.