By Rajiv Bisnauth

DESPITE a fighting knock from skipper Kevin Sinclair, Demerara held their nerves in the death overs to win the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Inter-county Under-17 tournament, beating Berbice by six runs in the final round yesterday at the Georgetown Cricket Club Ground.Berbice failed to get past the winning target of 190, and were bowled out in 49.2 overs. Berbice was troubled by Demerara’s spinners, led by left-arm spinner Ashmead Nedd, who claimed 3-32.
Off-spinner Bhaskar Yadram chipped took 2-28 but it was medium pacer Anthony Antonio who set the tone for the win with two early wickets.
Earlier, Berbice spinners also took full advantage of a pitch that offered both turn and bounce. They bowled 35 overs altogether which cost just 89 runs, and were the main threat to the Demerara batsmen after the hosts decided to bat first.
Left-arm spinner Keith Simpson (2-18) was the most successful of the four spinners, his left-arm counterpart Kevin Omroa and off-spinner Kevlon Anderson, both had one wicket apiece for 24 and 31 runs respectively..
Despite going wicketless, off-spinner Kevin Sinclair recorded stupendous figures, with his 10 overs going for just 16 runs.
Several Demerara batsmen got starts, but none carried on. Joshua Persaud defied the spinners to lead the way with 57. Yadram supported with 33, Hatheramani 24, Antonio 16, Robin Williams 15 and Pradesh Balkishun 12 not out.
Medium pacers Steven Kalamadeen and Sayaad Pairbaksh were both expensive, with Pairbaksh (2-60) off eight overs and Kalamadeen (1-33) off his six overs.
Berbice got off to the worst start and were reduced to 47-4, but 100-run partnership between Man-of-the-Match Kevin Sinclair and Kevlon Anderson give the visitors some hope.
However, the Demerara spinners, especially Nedd, broke the partnership when he bowled Anderson for 28.
Berbice then lost their last five wickets for just 36 runs, including Kevin Sinclair for 95. Opener Javid Karim was the next best scorer with 22.
Meanwhile, in the other game played at DCC, Essequibo beat the Selected Under-15 by 107 runs. Scores: Essequibo 215; Selected Under-15 1O7.