ST. GEORGE’S, Grenada, CMC – Opener Chris Gayle’s drought continued here yesterday when he fell without scoring as Jamaica’s batting again wilted on the second day of their fourth round match in the Regional Four-Day Championship against Windward Islands.
The left-hander faced just two balls before playing on to left-arm seamer Delorn Johnson in Jamaica’s second innings, to follow up his knock of 15 on Wednesday.
His dismissal, off the second ball of the innings without a run on the board, set the tone for the innings as Jamaica were bowled out 97.
Set 175 for victory, the Windwards lost prolific left-hander Devon Smith to the third ball of the innings in the only over of the innings as the hosts finished on no runs for one wicket.
Earlier, the Windwards suffered a meltdown to be bowled out for 130 after resuming the day on 41 without loss.
Smith top scored with 49 and opening partner Johnson Charles got 30, as they put on 59 for the first wicket.
The right-handed Charles struck three fours off 44 balls before he was bowled by off-spinner Tamar Lambert.
Smith and Tyrone Theophile (9) pushed the score up to 84 for one before the rot set in, as leg-spinner Odean Brown scythed through the middle and lower order to finish with five for 31.
Smith counted five fours and a six in an innings that consumed 68 balls in 97 minutes.
Left-arm spinner Nikita Miller weighed in with two for 16.
With a lead of 77 on first innings, Jamaica once again struggled and needed Brown’s 27 from 31 balls with five boundaries, to avoid total embarrassment.
With Gayle gone, opener Simon Jackson and Nkrumah Bonner put on 23 for the second wicket before seamer Darren Sammy (4-20) and off-spinner Shane Shillingford (4-45) picked up four wickets apiece to do the damage.
Both Jackson (9) and Bonner (10) fell to Shillingford while Sammy snuffed the life out of the middle order with the prized scalps of captain Lambert (4), Danza Hyatt (2), David Bernard Jr (17) and Carlton Baugh (8).
