Lewis double-century helps GCA crush Upper Demerara

Georgetown Cricket Association (GCA) U-15 captain Emmanuel Lewis made a swashbuckling double-century (204) to lead his team to a crushing 298-run victory over their Upper Demerara Cricket Association (UDCA) counterparts on Monday at the Queen’s College ground.

Lewis called the coin toss correctly in their second round encounter and opted to bat first, a decision that the UDCA bowlers would rue.

GCA openers Lomar Seecharan (14) and Shane Shivbarran (23) started the inning brightly before Sameer Bhola had Seecharan out-caught with the score at 28. Lewis then joined Shivbaran and shared the first of his three big partnerships, guiding his side to 80 when Shivbaran found himself run out by Prosper Jacobus in the 17th over.

Then, the party really got started. Lewis, who would go on to score 204 from just 103 deliveries, took his team from 80 to 280 with the help of Shamar Apple, who played second fiddle to the skipper.

Cheered on by his teammates in the absence of spectators, Lewis showed an array of shots, with both sides of the wicket reaching the boundary 16 times and clearing it on 17 occasions.

Apple, despite playing a secondary role, helped himself to a half-century, scoring 69 from 62 deliveries with six fours and three maximums before he became the third wicket to fall.

Despite the loss of Apple, Lewis carried on along his merry way, striking up another 50+ partnership (71) with Khush Seegobin (19) before falling LBW to Anek Haimnarine with his side in a strong position at 351 in the 45th over.

Seegobin, Trilok Nanan (18), Danvir Seegobin (8 not out), and Rovaldo Perreira (9 not out) each played a hand in getting 55 more runs in the remaining five overs to take their side to a massive 406/6 from their allotted 50 overs.

Leading the bowling for the beleaguered UDCA side were Haimnarine (2/63, 10 overs) and Bhola (2/69, 10 overs).

The UDCA batting effort was tame as the Seegobins, Dhanvir, and Khush wrecked their chase, with only Jermain Grosvenor and Makai Dowlin, who made 16 each, offering any sort of resistance with their team bowled out for just 98 inside 33 overs.

Dhanvir ended with figures of 3/12 from six overs, while Khush snared 2/9 from just 1.3 overs.

They received valuable support from Darwin La Rose, Perreira, and Kaylon Callendar, who each took a wicket apiece, with two runouts accounting for the rest of the dismissals.

The tournament continues today with the East Bank team hosting GCA at Farm Ground while UDCA travels to Lusignan to clash with the East Coast Cricket Association.