Demerara held their nerve yesterday as they pulled off a thrilling six-run win over Berbice to clinch the 2016 Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Under-17 inter-county limited overs title.
Played at the Georgetown Cricket Club ground (GCC), Berbice nearly pulled off the chase of 190 before the Demerara bowlers tightened the screws to ensure coach Garvin Nedd was again the proud winner of another inter-county title.
Berbician MVP Kevin Sinclair hit eight fours in his 95 which turned out to be in vain as left-arm spinner Ashmead Nedd (3-32) and Captain Bhaskar Yadram (2-28), kept their team in the driver’s seat, restricting the Ancient County boys to183 in 49.2 overs.
Batting first, Yadram (33) and Robin Williams (15) added 30 for the opening partnership before medium pacer Sayad Peirbaksh removed the latter.
Wicket-keeper/batsman Joshua Persaud (57) played a mature and seemed to be forging a nice partnership with his skipper before both batsmen were back in the dugout.
Prior to the dismissal of Persaud, off-spinner Sagar Hatheramani chipped in with a useful 24 and added 49 with the national youth batsman before he fell shortly after reaching his fifty, leaving the score 161 for 7.
Bowlers Anthony Antonio (16) and Pradesh Balkishun (12*) knocked around a few deliveries to ensure their team reached a reasonable target as left-arm spinner Keith Simpson ended as the pick of the bowlers with 2-18.
In the second match played at the Demerara Cricket Club (DCC), Essequibo whipped the GCB U15 Select by 106 runs, rolling over the youngsters for 108 in 35.4 overs after posting a decent 215.
Seamer Joshua Jones (3-22) and Joel Fortune (3-29) did the damage with the ball while Reon Venture crafted an unbeaten 53 and Trevon Collins (37), helped Essequibo complete a resounding win.
Left-arm spinner Nigel Deodat (2-15) was the most successful bowler for the U15 who came up short despite bravery knocks from Yeudistir Persaud (23), Seon Glasgow (26) and Dwayne Dick (16).
