HAVING seen his batsmen flatter to deceive in their West Indies Cricket Board Regional 4-Day encounter against Barbados two days ago, Guyana coach Esaun Crandon is hoping for a much improved performance when they oppose the same opponents in a Super50 encounter at the Kensington Oval today.
The Guyanese saw their net session at the venue rained out yesterday after completing their warm-ups. Nevertheless they used the time to hold a pep talk among themselves in the dressing room.In an invited comment with Chronicle Sport, Crandon said he was disappointed with the batting display during the four-day game, in which his openers failed to provide a start that would have placed the opposition under pressure, following a lackadaisical performance with the ball.
“Obviously, we did not get the start we needed to put them under pressure early in our innings, as we allowed them to get early inroads into our batting, while a couple of the batsmen got starts but did not carry on, something we have been stressing during our team meetings,” said Crandon.

He added, “It would be nice to see the guys who have gotten starts, carry on and get a big total, while at the same time put together partnerships which can serve as a foundation for the team to build on, as they (Barbados) did that to us during the four-day, with their batsmen capitalising on the chances we gave to them.”
Quizzed on the bowling and ground fielding of his charges, the 36-year-old former national all-rounder believes that much better can be done, especially in this format of the game. He called on his bowlers to keep the ball on a consistent line and length, exhibiting patience at the same time.
For today’s encounter, national T20 vice-captain Christopher Barnwell has been entrusted with the captaincy, following the appointed captain Veerasammy Permaul’s exit from the team, to take up duties with the West Indies who are preparing to take on Zimbabwe.
Barnwell, a recent recruit for the Royal Challengers Bangalore in this year’s Indian Premier League (IPL), will have the services of Leon Johnson as his deputy, while Assad Fudadin, Steven Jacobs, Derwin Christian, Devendra Bishoo and Trevon Griffith are the seasoned and experienced players in the lineup.
There is also Rajiv Ivan, who is expected to make his debut today to bolster the visitors’ batting as well as Rajendra Chandrika, Ricardo Adams, Zaheer Mohammed-Shadir, Paul Wintz and the lively Ronsford Beaton in the Guyanese lineup.
The Guyanese batting lineup can still pose a threat, even without the services of their West Indies trio, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan and Narsingh Deonarine, as Griffith is known around the Caribbean to be a pugnacious hitter on his day and has the ability to tear apart a bowling attack.
His opening partner in the former Sagicor High Performance Centre attendee Chandrika can also come into his own with the bat, along with Barnwell, Fudadin, Johnson, Christian and to an extent Wintz’s feat with the bat.
Adams, at 18 years old, can be a surprise package – if given his debut today – along with Ivan since they are two capable left-handed batsmen the Regional opposition knows little or nothing about, hence selecting both of them today would be a boost for both Barnwell and Crandon.
Mohammed-Shadir can also contribute with the bat, while Beaton and Bishoo are no slouch in that department.
Beaton has bowled with pace throughout the season, starting with the Caribbean T20 and on a lively Kensington Oval track that is expected to offer tons of assistance to the fast bowlers, who are prepared to work within the first hour this morning can create problems for the home team in tandem with Wintz and Barnwell.
Ivan, Bishoo, Mohammed-Shadir, Jacobs, and even Johnson and Adams can lend support to the pacers with their spin, with the guile of Mohammed and Ivan serving as a trump for Guyana, in similar fashion as Deonarine who took a career-best 7 for 26 against the same opponents last year.
No doubt, Barbados will be buoyed by their win in the four-day encounter, heading into today’s match brimming with confidence, led by Kirk Edwards who will be receiving support from Carlos Brathwaite, Jonathan Carter, Rashidi Boucher and Shane Dowrich.
The action gets under way at 09:0hrs and the teams will be chosen from:
Guyana: Christopher Barnwell, Leon Johnson, Trevon Griffith, Rajendra Chandrika, Steven Jacobs, Assad Fudadin, Rajiv Ivan, Derwin Christian, Zaheer Mohammed-Shadir, Devendra Bishoo, Ricardo Adams, Paul Wintz and Ronsford Beaton.