HAMILTON, Bermuda, CMC – Guyanese all-rounders Steve Massiah and Lennox Cush starred with bat and ball as defending champions United States put a major dent in Bermuda’s World Cricket League Americas Region Division One tournament title hopes with a comfortable six-wicket victory yesterday.
Unbeaten Canada remained on course to lift the trophy as they notched up their fourth straight victory, crushing the Bahamas by 10 wickets inside nine overs thanks to the exploits of teenager Hiral Patel, while the Cayman Islands lost a close match by 13 runs to Argentina.
Off-break bowlers Massiah and Cush shared six wickets as Bermuda struggled to 188 for nine after being sent in at the National Sports Centre and then Massiah blasted 67 and Cush made 22 not out to help steer the US home with 20 balls to spare.
Bermuda recovered from losing Fiqre Crockwell with only one run on the board as fellow opener Jekon Edness (26) and Stephen Outerbridge, who struck six fours in his 48, produced a second-wicket stand of 76 but Massiah, who finished with two for 39 from 10 overs, struck two vital blows by removing Outerbridge and skipper David Hemp for eight.
Cush then tightened the screw by bowling danger man Janeiro Tucker for 17 and having former skipper Irving Romaine caught for 34 on the way to finishing with figures of four for 30 from 10 overs.
The US lost Jamaican Carl Wright for 11 with the total on 28 but a second-wicket stand of 113 between Sushi Nadkarni and number three Massiah took the game away from Bermuda who face leaders Canada in Thursday’s final round of matches.
Nadkarni hit two fours and four sixes in his 96-ball 57 while Massiah’s 67 from 103 balls included seven fours and a six.
Left-arm opening bowler Jordan DeSilva was the pick of the Bermuda attack, taking two for 29 from nine overs.
Canada needed just 8.5 overs to complete victory after dismissing the Bahamas for a paltry 98 in 36.5 overs at St. George’s.
Eighteen-year-old Patel, who was born in India, took Man-of-the-Match honours with a blistering unbeaten 85 from 43 balls including eight fours and eight sixes as he and skipper Rizwan Cheema, who made an unbeaten, run-a-ball12, finished the match in a hurry.
Earlier, Patel claimed three for 15 from six overs with only number seven Narendra Ekanayake offering any resistance with an unbeaten 31. There were also two wickets apiece for Harvir Baidwan and Sunil Dhariram.
At Sea Breeze Oval, Argentina made 236 for seven after being sent in and then dismissed the Caymans for 223 in 46.1 overs.
