EVEREST Cricket Club’s formidable batting took centre stage on Saturday when the team re-started their second division campaign in the Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA) with an emphatic win against Bel Air Rubis in the NBS 40-over competition.

Three batsmen scored half centuries, while all five batsmen who spent time in the middle had starts.

Playing at home, Everest won the toss and opted to take first strike.
Led by former national U-19 cricketer ,Richie Looknauth, and former senior national all-rounder, Amir Khan, Everest raced to 300-4 in their allotted overs.
Saheed Mohamed and Dwayne Adams opened the batting and pushed the score to 51, before Adams, who contributed 37 from 23 balls (5x4s), was bowled by Mahindra Jeenarine.

Five overs and 39 runs after, Mohamed 23 (2x4s, 1×6) was dismissed, which resulted in Looknauth joining Khan and the pair adding 99 runs for the third wicket.
When Khan fell for 72 (9x4s, 1×6) also to Jeenarine, Everest had reached 189. Teenager Ushardeva Balgobin then joined Looknauth (at that time on 41) and the pair continued to push the score. Balgobin, who had struck two early sixes, was aggressive in his approach. Together, they added 111 before Looknauth fell at the end of the innings for 93 (6x4s, 4x6s).

Balgobin finished unbeaten on 57 (5x4s, 2x6s).
Along with taking two wickets, Jeenarine was also the most economical bowler after finishing with 2-31 from eight overs.

In reply, an improved Bel Air team, armed with former West Indies President XI cricketer, Krishna Deosaran, attempted to chase down the total. They, however, lost their first three wickets in the space of two runs (first wicket fell at 20-1).

Deosaran and Arvinda Gainda rebuilt the innings by adding 75 for the fourth wicket, but the visitors fell behind the asking rate.

Although Gainda picked up the pace later in his innings, with four sixes, Bel Air were always playing catch up. Deosaran finished with 37 (4x4s) and Gainda with 58 (2x4s, 4x6s).

Towards the end, Jeenarine (19) smashed two sixes and hit the boundary once, but it made no difference. By the end of the 40 overs, Bel Air had just reached 164-7, still 136 runs short of Everest’s total.

Ariel Tilku, who dismissed both openers, finished with 3-24 from six overs for Everest.