Massacre at Bourda!
– Ali-Mohammed (94) Yearwood (94*) brutalise innocuous bowling attack

By Sean Devers
IT was a massacre at Bourda as defending champions Demerara reached 360-8 at stumps on the opening day of the second round of the GCB Senior four-day Inter-County cricket tournament yesterday.

Renaldo Ali Mohammed (94), Shamar Yearwood (94*) and Akshaya Persaud (40) brutalised an innocuous Select X1 bowling attack on lightning fast outfield in sweltering heat.

Demitri Cameron (2-49) Kelvin Umroa (2-91), Jonathan Rampersaud (2-75) and Shane Wong (2-67) toiled all day for their limited success.

Ali-Mohammed feasted on a diet of ‘help yourself’ bowling; clobbering six fours and nine sixes from just 62 balls and 98 minutes in his destructive 91 and added 89 for the the fifth wicket with stylish left-hander Akshaya Persaud.

Persaud himself reached the boundary once and cleared four times in an entertaining 40 from 62 balls and 72 minutes; both throwing away their wickets on a flat track just after reaching their respective landmarks.

Ali-Mohammed shared in a 77-run sixth-wicket stand with Yearwood who reached the boundary five times and cleared it on four occasions in his unbeaten 94.

With him is Stephen Sankar on 11.

Raymond Perez hit four boundaries in 35 and shared in a 51-run second wicket-stand with Sachin Singh, who made an out of character 17 from 103 minutes with two fours.

Perez came to the crease at 7-1 after national pacer Cameron, the only bowler who looked threating, induced Navindra Persaud (2) to edge a catch to the ‘keeper.’

On a day blessed with glorious sunshine, former West Indies batter Rajendra Chandrika won the toss and surprisingly opted to field and at 7-1 his decision seemed just fine.

However, Perez played in positive fashion while Singh was content to play the supporting role as the partnership increased before Umroa removed them both to leave them on 58-2 and at 66-3 at lunch.

When the impressive Cameron had Skipper Chris Barnwell caught behind for 10 at 80-4 shortly after the interval, the Select X1 were in the game.

But their celebrations were short lived as the ‘Ali-Mohammed and Persaud show’ commenced launching a vicious attack on the hapless bowlers.

Persaud, looking for a big score to regain his place in the Guyana team, deposited Rampersaud for six before dumping Umroa for consecutive sixes over long-on to the delight of a fair size gathering which included former first-class batter, Nolan McKenzie, back home on vacation.

The talented but temperamental Ali-Mohammed got going with successive boundaries off Carlos Larose and followed up by smashing Umroa over cover for four before pulling Cameron for six when he tried a bouncer on the docile pitch.

Persaud looked elegant when he cover-drove and was not afraid to go over the top while Ali-Mohammed slug-swept Rampersaud for a massive six and soon reached his 50 from just 36 balls with four fours and six sixes.

But when 10 short of what would have been an entertaining fifty, Persaud flicked a full toss from Umroa to mid-wicket at 169-5 to bring Yearwood to the crease, who along with Ali-Mohammed, capitalised on poor bowling.

Ali-Mohammed on 94, tried to reach his century with a six but Jerimiah Scott at long-off took the catch over the ropes and with his feet off the ground, tossed the ball back into play, to come back onto the field to complete the catch for Umroa, who struck at 246-6.

Yearwood kept going and the body language of the Select X1 suggested they were hoping for the day to end as Yearwood galloped to his 50 from 67 balls with five fours and two sixes.

Richie Looknauth (10) drove Shane Wong to cover at 300-7 while a six from the left-handed Yearwood almost hit a lady coming up the stairs to the top of the GCC Pavilion.

Ashmead Nedd reached 25 before he was stumped at 342-8 but Sankar and Yearwood remained to the end in another sub-standard day in this year’s tournament as the Select X1 players chased leather all day.

Today is the second day and play is scheduled to commence at 9:30AM

Scoreboard
Demerara 1st inns

Sachin Singh lbw b Umroa 17

Navindra Persaud c Nathan Persaud b Cameron 2

Raymond Perez b Rampersaud 35

Akshaya Persaud c Mohabir b Umroa 40

Chris Barnwell c wkp Persaud b Cameron 10

Renaldo Ali Mohamed c Scott b Umroa 94

Shamar Yearwood not out 94

Richie Looknauth c Larose b Wong 10

Ashmead Nedd Stp Persaud b Wong 25

Stephon Sankar not out 11

Extras 22(b-16, 1b-3, nb-3)

Total 360-8 off 90

Fow: 7, 58, 58, 80, 169, 246, 300, 342

Bowling
Cameron 15-4-49-2 Larose 14-349-0,

Williams 4-1-10-0, Rampersaud, 24-7-75-2,

Umroa 20-3-91-2, Wong 13-0-67-2