Rampersaud (5-28) & Ramnauth (41) spur B’ce to 6-wkt win over E’bo

By Sean Devers
IT took Defending Champions Berbice only 23.4 overs, an hour and 32 minutes to reach 98-4 to beat Essequibo by six wickets in the opening round of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB), Government of Guyana (GOG) and Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport (MCYS) 50-over U-19 Tournament at Bourda yesterday.

After Shaahid Viera, who made 14 from 27 balls and Rajendra Ramballi, who reached the boundary twice in 15 from 26 balls, had given Essequibo a fairly good 28-run start, before the lads from Guyana’s largest County were bowled out for 97 in 28.1 overs despite 14 each from lower order batters Quincy Sampson, who hit a six and a four in his 11-ball innings and Joash Charles, who faced 10 balls and cleared the boundary once.

National U-19 off-spinner Jonathon Rampersaud wreaked the batting line-up with 5-28 from 9.1 overs and got support from fellow off-spinner Salim Khan, who took 3-32 from six overs.

Berbice chased down the small target with controlled aggression, reaching 98-4 in 23.4 overs with West Indies U-19 batter Rampertab Ramnauth stroking six fours in attractive 60-ball 41 and Zeynul Rampersaud hitting a boundary in an unbeaten 14. Fast bowler Charles, who worked up a good head of steam in windy conditions and on a flat track, picked up 2-26 while Shaazif Mohamed captured 2-14.

Essequibo opted to bat on a slightly heavy outfield caused by overnight rain and the openers played positively against West Indies U-19 pacer Isaiah Thorne and Khan before Viera fell to Khan in 5.3 overs while Ramballi edged Thorne to the Keeper for Tomani Caesar to hold his second catch and leave Essequibo on 39-2.

Myhiem Khan (9) and skipper Aryan Persaud (8) had just brought up the 50 in the 15th overs when Rampersaud had a triple strike with the score on 52.

He first bowled Khan, then had Mohamed caught by Ramsammy for duck before having Thaddeus Lovell caught and bowled off of a full toss, also without scoring as Essequibo slumped to 52-5.

Rampersaud had Persaud caught and bowled at 62-6 before Leon Cecil had Renaldo Sohouten (7) caught in the deep without addition to the score to leave Essequibo wobbling on the ropes at 62-7.

Sampson and Charles counter-attacked before Khan removed them both while Rampersaud bowled last man Andreas Fraser (5) to capture his maiden five-wicket haul in 50-over U-19 inter-county cricket.

When Berbice began their run chase, Ramnauth dominated a 49-run opening stand with Hemendra Gurdyal, who hit a six and a four in 13 before the lively Charles struck in the seventh over.

Charles removed Mahendra Gorilall (0) three runs later but the left-handed Ramnauth, arguable the best U-19 batter in Guyana, played some enterprising shots on both sides of the wicket before Caesar, who hit a four and a six in 12, was dismissed by Mohamed at 78-3.

Mohamed got rid of Ramnauth at 81-4 when in sight of a fifty but by then most of the job had been done as Ramsammy (14) and Rampersaud (4) saw their team to victory.