PENETRATIVE bowling by franchise player Narsingh Deonarine and magnificent batting by Evin Lewis allowed the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force players to celebrate another convincing victory over the Jamaica Scorpions, in their WICB NAGICO Super50 second round encounter contested at Shaw Park, Tobago yesterday.

Deonarine put the skids on the Scorpions with an impressive spell that yielded three important top-order wickets and the shell-shocked Jamaicans never fully recovered. It was a masterstroke by skipper Jason Mohammed to utilise the experienced Guyanese against the Jamaicans whom he has played against during his extended career for the Guyana team.

Bowling his off-spinners, Deonarine removed West Indies Test player Jermaine Blackwood (caught by Evin Lewis at first slip for 9 (28 for 2); skipper John Campbell, (also caught by Lewis for 17 (34 for 3) and then scalped centurion Andre McCarthy, caught Marlon Richards for 6 (41 for 4). He finished with impressive analysis of 10-0-34-3.

Franchise-player Devon Thomas top-scored for the Scorpions with 70 while Brandon King 32, wicketkeeper Aldaine Thomas 14 and Sheldon Cottrell 13 were the others to get to double digits as the Jamaican Scorpions rallied back to reach 176 all out (49.4 overs).

Leg-spinner Jon Ross Jagessar ended with figures of 8.4-0-42-4 while Reyad Emrit (10-1-37-1) and Akeal Hosein (7-2-31-1) shared one wicket apiece.

Having been set 177 for victory; the T&T Red Force openers Lewis and Barbados-born Kyle Hope played contrasting roles to snuff out any chance of allowing the Scorpions to sting the homesters in Tobago.

The attacking Lewis moved like a fully charged-up Formula 1 turbo-racing machine while Hope cruised along like a luxury salon sports model car.

Left-handed Lewis set a blistering tempo in the first over with four powerful fours and gathered momentum as he raced to his career-best and maiden regional List A century. The 24-year-old retired hurt as soon as he crossed the magical three-figure mark (102 not out). He had topscored with 74 in the 84-run victory in the first-round match against the Scorpions at the Queen’s Park Oval.

He smashed six sixes and eight fours off 100 deliveries and shared in a unbroken 148-run first-wicket stand with Hope who followed him back to the pavilion eight runs later with 43 runs that contained three fours.

There was a mild setback as T&T Red Force lost Kjorn Ottley and skipper Mohammed for four runs each after Hope departed at 156.

But Yannick Ottley (10 n.o.) and bowling hero Deonarine (8 n.o.) ensured that there was no more drama and sealed a convincing seven-wicket victory. McCarthy claimed two wickets for 19 from 6.5 overs.

Lewis was voted Man-of-the-Match for his brilliant century.

By Brij Parasnath