Mark Parchment’s unbeaten 49 and Captain Ramaal Lewis’ four wickets set up a comprehensive 7-wicket win for Jamaica over the ICC Americas yesterday as the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) Regional U-19 50-overs tournament continued at the Everest Ground.
The right-hander smoked six fours and a six in his 44-ball top score and found support from openers Odaine McCatty who cracked 39 and Leroy Lugg (22) as the defending champs ended on 126 for 3 in pursuit of their 123-run target in a game reduced to 24 overs per-side due to rain. All-rounder Onias Bascome (2-34) was the most successful bowler for the Americas.
Lewis was effective as usual, snaring 4-18 with Oshane Henry picking up (2-23) while a wicket each from Gareth Henry, Odean Smith and Ryan Burnett helped strangle the ICC Americas to 123 all out in 23.4 overs, as their batsmen failed to find alternative gears.
Lugg and McCatty came out firing, cracking fours and sixes at will as they added 45 for the first wicket inside nine overs before Lugg’s soft dismissal, caught by the short mid-off fielder. McCatty looked set for a half-century after a composed yet aggressive knock but misread an in-swinging delivery from the medium-pacer Bascome and was bowled. The burly all-rounder who exploited the conditions well, found movement off the surface which he then used to outfox Shahid Crooks (3) who provided a simple catch to Malik.
Despite a few scares, the pair of Morris and Parchment knuckled down, with the latter smashing the last ball of the 22nd over for a huge mid-wicket six to take Jamaica over the rope.
Earlier in the day, officials decided that due to showers the first ball would be bowled at 2:15pm. Batting first, the Americas lost opener Vidhav Altekar (3) who drove loosely at a delivery from Thomas and was snapped up by Lugg at first slip. Lewis struck in the 9th over, removing Abrass Khan (15), who was caught behind following a decent passage of play after the fall of the first wicket.
Alex Dore (13) was trapped LBW while two overs later Nikhil Dutta, looking to go big off the bowling of Burnett was caught by the skipper who took a brilliant running catch in the deep extra cover area, leaving the Americas in trouble at 41-4. The ICC’s 50 came in 13.2 overs but the big hitting Bascome (12) who lit up the Bourda Ground against Guyana, only managed one six before he failed to beat the throw to the strikers end and was found short of his crease. Soon after, Farhan Malik (2) was comprehensively bowled by Henry as the Jamaicans continue to chip away at their opponents
After offering a bit of resistance, Delroy Rawlins became Smith’s first wicket when the right-hander was caught on the long-off boundary by Henry. The 100 came up with a boundary from Kapoor as the America’s looked to end their innings decently.
Lewis wrapped up the innings with a double strike in the final over removing Arch Buch (9) and Keifer Phill (3), leaving Micah Simons not out on 1.
SCOREBOARD
ICC AMERICAS (24 overs maximum)
A. Dore lbw b Burnett 13
V. Altekar c Lugg b Thomas 3
+A. Khan c wkpr Morris b Lewis 15
N. Dutta c Lewis b Burnett 2
O. Bascome run out 12
A. Kapoor c Smith b Thomas 33
Farhan Malik b Henry 2
*D. Rawlings c Henry b Smith 14
A. Buch st Morris b Lewis 9
K. Phill c and b Lewis 3
M. Simmons not out 1
Extras (b2, lb2, w11, nb1) 16
TOTAL (all out, 23.4 overs) 123
Fall of wickets: 1-4, 2-22, 3-35, 4-41, 5-56, 6-61, 7-92, 8-111, 9-122
Bowling: #Henry 5-0-28-1, #Thomas 5-2-23-2, Lewis 4.4-0-18-4, #Smith 5-0-33-1, Burnett 4-0-17-1
JAMAICA (target: 124 off 24 overs)
L. Lugg c Bascome b Farhan Malik 22
O. McCatty b Bascome 39
M. Parchment not out 49
S. Crooks c Farhan Malik b Bascome 3
+R. Morris not out 6
Extras (b2, lb2, w1, nb2) 7
TOTAL (3 wkts, 22 overs) 126
*R. Lewis, N. Walters, R. Burnett, O. Smith, G. Henry, O. Thomas did not bat
Fall of wickets: 1-45, 2-77, 3-83
Bowling: Farhan Malik 5-1-14-1, #Khan 2-0-21-0, Rawlings 5-0-31-0, Dutta 5-0-17-0, #Bascome 4-0-34-2, Buch1-0-5-0
Result: Jamaica Under-19s won by seven wickets
Points: Jamaica Under-19s 6.4, ICC Americas Under-19s 0.2
Toss: Jamaica Under-19s
Umpires: D. Butler, I. Moakan
