By Sean Devers
DESPITE a top class 98 by Utkarsh Srivastava the GCA X1, on the back of 60 from Navindra Persaud, handed the USA Tri State their first loss in six matches on their Guyana tour when the visitors were beaten by four wickets in their final game at the DCC ground Saturday.

Tri State batted first on the small ground on a pitch on which spinners extracted prodigious bounce and turn and were bowled out for 225 in 46.5 overs with Srivastava stroking a wonderfully compiled 98 from 114 balls with 10 fours and a six while left-handed opener Prannav Chettipalayam hit five fours and two sixes in 41, his lowest score in six innings.

But no other batter apart from Siddant Rai who threw bat around in an ultra-aggressive 29 with three sixes, reached double figures.

Off-spinner Marlon Boele who had 4-51 from 8.5 overs was the most expensive of the bowlers used while Pacer Dillion Ramroop who took the first two wicket and left-arm spinner Daniel Mootoo, who looked the best bowler on show, had two wickets each for the GCA side who reached 226-6 in in 39. overs.

Persaud hit a carefully constructed 60 from 96 balls and along with the inform left handed Usherdev Balgobin who scored a confident 24 from 18 balls with four fours and six, added 29 with Persaud who was the silent partner before Balgobin seemed a bit unlucky to given out LBW as Tanmay Joshi made the break-through in the fifth over.

Persaud and Tuen Hicks, whose 41 lasted 52 and included five boundaries, put together 101 in 18.1 overs before Hicks was run out.

Skipper Jeremiah Scott with 39 from 29 balls with two four and four sixes and cameos from National Table Tennis and Guyana youth cricketer Johnathan Van Lange who made an unbeaten 18 from 8 balls with two fours and six, and Ezekiel Wilson, who blasted a couple of fours and a six in his 10-ball 16, set the GCA side on course for the win.

After leg-spinner Aditya Gupta removed Wilson at 215-6, Boele who faced two balls finished the contest with a six.