TRINIDAD & Tobago Red Force created an eight-point cushion over Kent Spitfires for second place on the Group A table with a 32-run win over Windward Islands at Coolidge on Monday night.
Despite a 104-run opening stand between Evin Lewis and Kyle Hope, Windwards held T&T to 214 after sending them in, but could only manage 182 in reply.
Lewis propelled T&T early by dominating the opening stand with Hope, scoring 75 off 69 balls with 11 boundaries. Hope (29) and Nicholas Alexis (46) combined for another 75 as the top three accounted for the bulk of T&T’s total.

Denesh Ramdin was the only other batsman to reach double-figures, making 22, before he was dismissed by Kesrick Williams at the end of the 43rd over to make it 180 for 4.
His wicket sparked a rapid collapse as T&T lost their last seven wickets for just 34 runs and they couldn’t last all 50 overs, bowled out in 47.5 as Williams, Shane Shillingford and Kavem Hodge took three wickets apiece.

Man-of-the-match Shannon Gabriel helped pin down Windwards’ reply, taking two wickets with the new ball while Rayad Emrit and Khary Pierre struck once each in the space of three balls to make it 43 for 4 in the 15th over.
Sunil Ambris resuscitated the chase, continuing his superb tournament with his fifth half-century in six matches. Ambris added 58 with Hodge (27) and another 50 with captain Liam Sebastien.

Gabriel, though, struck a controversial blow two balls into the 41st over, claiming Sebastien leg-before, playing back to a good-length ball which replays showed had pitched six inches outside leg stump to the left-handed Sebastien with Gabriel bowling over the wicket.
With the tail exposed, Gabriel and Ravi Rampaul brought a swift end to play. Kyle Mayers fished an edge-behind off Rampaul for the seventh wicket before a pair of catches on the boundary by Alexis put T&T one run away from victory which Gabriel sealed by bowling Williams with a full straight ball two deliveries into the 47th, leaving Ambris stranded on 75.

Gabriel’s 5 for 33 was his maiden five-for in List A cricket and he did it in just 50 deliveries.
A win for Trinidad & Tobago over Kent in their next match would clinch semi-final spots for both T&T and Leewards.
Windwards are still mathematically alive, but need a pair of bonus-point wins over Leeward Islands and Kent in their final two games, combined with three losses by Trinidad & Tobago and another Kent loss to West Indies Under-19.

RED FORCE innings
E. Lewis c & b Hodge 75
K. Hope c Johnson b Hodge 29
N. Alexis b Williams 46
J. Mohammed lbw b Hodge 1
D. Ramdin c Hodge b Williams 22
R. Primus run-out 0
Imran Khan b Shillingford 3
R. Emrit c Fletcher b Williams 0
K. Pierre not out 3
R. Rampaul lbw b Shillingford 7
S. Gabriel b Shillingford 0
Extras: (b-6, lb-5, w-17) 28
Total: (all out, 47.5 overs) 214
Fall of wickets: 1-104, 2-117, 3-121, 4-180, 5-180, 6-195, 7-203, 8-205, 9-214.
Bowling: Williams 7-0-47-3 (w-9), Johnson 4-0-17-0 (w-1), Mayers 7-0-42-0 (w-1), Shillingford 9.5-0-24-3 (w-3), Hodge 10-2-34-3, Sebastien 10-0-39-0 (w-3).

VOLCANOES innings
J. Charles c Mohammed b Gabriel 5
T. Theophile c wkp. Ramdin b Pierre 19
D. Smith c wkp. Ramdin b Gabriel 4
A. Fletcher lbw b Emrit 8
S. Ambris not out 75
K. Hodge c Mohammed b Imran Khan 27
L. Sebastien lbw b Gabriel 25
K. Mayers c wkp. Ramdin b Rampaul 5
S. Shillingford c Alexis b Gabriel 4
D. Johnson c Alexis b Rampaul 1
K. Williams b Gabriel 2
Extras: (b-2, lb-3, w-2) 7
Total: (all out, 46.2 overs) 182
Fall of wickets: 1-14, 2-23, 3-39, 4-43, 5-101, 6-151, 7-156, 8-165, 9-168.
Bowling: Gabriel 8.2-1-33-5 (w-1), Rampaul 9-1-28-2 (w-1), Pierre 8-1-17-1, Emrit 6-2-24-1, Imran Khan 10-1-46-1, Mohammed 5-0-29-0.
Points: Red Force 4, Volcanoes 0.