-Captain, manager disappointed

Rain yesterday washed out the second day’s play of the West Indies Cricket Board-sponsored regional four-day match against the Leeward Islands at the Albion Sports Club ground.

Watched by team coach Ravindranauth Seeram, some players (from left) Steven Jacobs, Christopher Barnwell, Veerasammy Permaul and Sewnarine Chattergoon test the softness of the pitch. (A Calvin Roberts photograph)

The first day’s play was also rained out and yesterday Guyana captain Travis Dowlin and Coach Ravindranauth Seeram expressed their disappointment at not being able to take the field.

When the teams turned up for yesterday’s 9.30am scheduled start, they were met with a soggy Western and South Western outfield, along with a very soft pitch, but brilliant sunshine.

Two brief showers, with the final one starting at 2.55pm forced the umpires to call off play for the second consecutive day without a ball being bowled even though some parts of the ground were dry and hard.

Speaking with Stabroek Sports, both Dowlin and Seeram highlighted the frustration of the players, especially Narsingh Deonarine, who is within sight of being the first batsman to score 1,000 in a West Indies first-class season.

“We are very disappointed and frustrated at not being able to take the field. I thought we had a good run against the Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC) in our last encounter and were looking forward to continuing same” Dowlin stated.

“Our batting has been sound so far in the second round despite the loss against the Windward Islands with Deonarine getting a big score against CCC, whilst Assad Fudadin, Gajanand Singh and I were able to chip in. But what is of concern at the moment is our bowling which has been on and off. I would like to see the bowlers display a bit more consistency,” the 32-year-old Dowlin stated.

The 45-year-old Seeram echoed Dowlin’s sentiments while complimenting the team for its performances to date, especially the last round game against CCC at Bourda.

Seeram said he would like to see his charges play better all round cricket even though Guyana are out of the reckoning in the tournament.

“We must be looking for first innings points, especially with two days being lost in this encounter. Even though we are out of the reckoning for a top three position, I would like to see both the batsmen and the bowlers put in that extra effort.”

While the Leewards went back to their hotel rooms, the Guyanese went swimming at the Albion and Bermine swimming pools respectively.