PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – South Africa-bound Sheldon Cottrell wrecked Trinidad and Tobago Red Force’s top order with a deadly burst to leave Jamaica Franchise on top, on the opening day of their WICB Professional Cricket League clash here yesterday.
The left-armer finished the day with four for 17, a spell that reduced the hosts to 59 for five at the close of the third round encounter at Queen’s Park Oval, still 114 runs adrift of taking first innings lead.
Cottrell’s lethal burst followed up critical half-centuries from captain Tamar Lambert and veteran all-rounder Dave Bernard Jr, who rescued Jamaica from a precarious situation early in the day.
Opting to bat first, Jamaica plunged to six runs for four wickets in the day’s seventh over before Lambert and Bernard combined in a 145-run fourth wicket stand to rally the innings up to 173 all out.
Lambert top-scored with forthright 87, an innings that came off 146 balls in just over three hours, and which included ten fours and three sixes.
Bernard, meanwhile, hit 65 off 162 balls in 217 minutes with eight boundaries.
Once they were separated, however, the last six Jamaica wickets fell for 22 runs.
Leg-spinner Imran Khan finished with six for 52 while fast bowler Marlon Richards claimed three for 31.
Cottrell then gave the visitors control of the game with a remarkable spell. Asked by West Indies selectors to stay behind for the third round and prove his match readiness ahead of the tour of South Africa, Cottrell gladly obliged.
There was no warning of what was to come, especially with T&T cruising to 37 without loss in reply, with Evin Lewis and Lendl Simmons going well. However, once Simmons edged Cottrell behind for 14, the innings came crashing down. Two balls later, Yannick Ottley offered no stroke and was palpably lbw without scoring with no runs added, to leave T&T on 37 for two.
Lewis, whose 25 came from 37 balls and included four fours, along with Jason Mohammed, who ended the day on 14 not out, stemmed the fall of wickets. It was a brief respite.
They had added 17 when hesitation over a run led to Lewis’s demise at 54 for three and Daniel St Clair’s debut innings ended in disappointment when he missed one from Cottrell and was bowled for three.
To top off the day, Cottrell trapped Steven Katwaroo on the crease with a full, straight delivery two balls later, to win an lbw verdict with the batsman yet to score.
JAMAICA 1st Innings
J Campbell c Hosein b Richards 0
S Thomas c Simmons b Richards 2
N Bonner b Emrit 0
A McCarthy c sub (J Solozano) b Richards 0
*T Lambert c Richards b Imran Khan 87
D Bernard Jr st Katwaroo b Imran Khan 65
+C Baugh Jr lbw b Imran Khan 6
N Miller lbw b Imran Khan 3
D Jacobs not out 0
M Mindley lbw b Imran Khan 0
S Cottrell c E Lewis b Imran Khan 0
Extras (b4, lb4, nb2) 10
TOTAL (all out, 64 overs) 173
Fall of wickets: 1-6, 2-6, 3-6, 4-6, 5-151, 6-157, 7-168, 8-173, 9-173, 10-173.
Bowling: Richards 14-5-31-3, Emrit 11-4-24-1, St Claire 8-3-19-0, Imran Khan 18-4-52-6, Hosein 12-2-38-0, Mohammed 1-0-1-0.
T&T 1st Innings
L Simmons c wkp Baugh b Cottrell 1
E Lewis run out 25
Y Ottley lbw b Cottrell 0
J Mohammed not out 14
D St Clair b S Cottrell 3
+S Katwaroo lbw b Cottrell 0
A Hosein not out 0
Extras (lb2, nb1) 3
TOTAL (5 wkts, 22 overs) 59
To bat: *R Emrit, Imran Khan, M Richards, N Pooran.
Fall of wickets: 1-37, 2-37, 3-54, 4-59, 5-59.
Bowling: Cottrell 9-3-17-4, Mindley 5-0-16-0, Bernard 2-0-12-0, Miller 4-2-10-0, Jacobs 2-1-2-0.
Position: T&T trail by 114 runs with five wickets intact.
Toss: Jamaica.
Umpires: D Ramdhanie, N Duguid.
