– Hawks upset Pit Bulls despite blazing 74 from Akshaya Persaud

In scorching heat at Malteenoes, Essequibo Anacondas beat Essequibo Jaguars by eight wickets while Hacks defeated Demerara Pit Bulls by four runs in the second match off the last ball as action continued in Guyana T10 Blast on a national holiday yesterday.

In match one, which was played on a flat track and fast outfield, Jaguars won the toss and were limited to 122-5 in 10 overs. Anacondas responded with 123-2 in eight overs in a battle of the Essequibians.
The Jaguars started badly when Leon Andrews (1) fell to Andy Ramsammy at 2-1.

Chanderpaul Hemraj who top scored with 34 from 16 balls decorated with three fours and three sixes and Shemroy Barrington with 28 from 19 balls with four boundaries, carried the score to 58.

National left-arm spinner Anthony Adams removed Hemraj, Guyana wicket-Keeper Kemol Savory (6) fell to Ramsammy while Adams removed Barrington as Jaguars slipped 77-4 Adams then got rid of West Indies U-19 batter Mavindra Dindyal (7) at 95-5 to finish with 3-23.

Dwanye Dick who clouted 23 from eight balls with three fours and a six and Carlos LaRose who blasted 19 from seven balls with two fours and a six, put together 31 runs in the two overs to see their team past 120.

Ramsammy (2-15) supported Adams for Anacondas who galloped to 123-2 with two overs to spare as Ushardeze Balgobin smashed a four and two sixes in cameo 18 from five balls before he was caught and bowled by LaRose at 34-1 in the second over.
Demitri Cameron struck at 117-5 in 7.5 overs when he removed Kevin Boodie.

But DCC and Guyana’s Raymond Perez played an array of delightful shots in his unbeaten 66 from 23 with three fours and seven was there at the end when Guyana U-19 pacer Thaddeus Lovell put an exclamation mark on the contest with a six off his first ball.
In the second game, bottom placed Demerara Hawks won off the last ball.

With five needed, Chris Barnwell, who made 37 from 23 balls, with two fours and three sixes, was taken at long-off looking to finish the contest with a six off Richi Looknauth. Hawks elected to bat and made 112-7 with left hander Aksaya Persaud hitting six fours and seven sixes from just 30 balls.

However, only Neiland Cadogan (15) and Shaquille Williams (10) reached double figures.
Persaud, who was removed by Keon Sinclair at 5-107, added 58 with Williams after the Hawks had slipped to 10-3.
Looknauth (2), Joshua Persaud (6), and Renaldo Ali-Mohamed (0) all departed in quick succession.

Keon Sinclair had 3-31 while Leon Swamy supported with 2-18 for the Pit Bulls who reached 108-3.
When Pit Bulls began their chase, Junior Sinclair (2) was bowled by Looknauth at 5-1 while Sachin Singh (12) fell to Isai Thorne at 18-2.

Barnwell and Damion Vantull who was unbeaten on 50 from 23 balls with three fours and two sixes joined forces to stage a grand recovery before Looknauth, who bowled a wide of the penultimate delivery with six to win, kept his cool and dismissed the big-hitting Barnwell off the last ball to give his team their first win.
Action continues today with two more games at Malteenoes.