– Demerara prevails over Essequibo despite Lovell’s 73
The second round of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) U-19 Inter-County 50-over competition bowled off yesterday and saw defending champions Berbice thrash the GCB Select XI by 10-wickets while Demerara defeated Essequibo by 48-runs.
Playing at the Meten-Meer-Zorg Ground on the West Coast of Demerara, Berbice bowled out the Select XI for 140 (43.4 overs) before skipper Rampertab Ramnauth and his sibling Rampersaud Ramnauth stroked unbeaten half-centuries to guide Berbice to 141 without loss in 23.3 overs to record an emphatic victory.
Select XI won the toss and decided to bat but were hampered early in their innings as opener Avishkar Persaud was bowled by Okacie Boyce for 1 with the score on 16 in the fourth over.
However, Persaud’s opening partner, Deonarine Dindyal, and Ari Kadir put on 56 for the second wicket with some sensible batting to steer their side clear of trouble. After getting a start, Kadir was trapped leg before wicket (LBW) by Afraz Budhoo for 26 (62 balls), leaving his side on 72/2 in the 20th over. Budhoo’s dismissal signalled the beginning of the end as the Select XI’s middle-order batsmen offered no resistance as the Berbice bowlers, led by Salim Khan, struck regularly thereafter.
Of the remaining 8 wickets, only Nityanand Mathura (10) and Andres Fraser (15) managed to get into double figures, with their side crashing to a paltry 140 all out.
While Budhoo (2/21, 10 overs) and Kumar Deopersaud (2/28, 8 overs) made inroads, Salim Khan, for the second successive game, led the way for the Berbician bowling attack, snaring 3/31 (7.4 overs).
In response, the Ramnauths hardly broke a sweat as the older Rampertab led the charge with 77 out of 73 deliveries, which included six fours and six sixes, while Rampersaud played the role of anchor while his brother played his shots at the other end. Rampersaud would end on 51, not out of 68 balls punctuated by seven fours.
Meanwhile, at the Malteenoes Sports Club ground, Thomas Lands, Georgetown, played host to Demerara vs. Essequibo, with the latter falling short by 48 runs despite their skipper, Thaddeus Lovell’s, best efforts with the bat in a run-chase that he found little support in.
After winning the toss, Lovell sent in Demerara to bat, and the Essequibo attack did well to limit a stacked Demerara batting order to just 214 all out in 45.4 overs. As has been the trend in inter-county competitions in recent years, the Essequibo bowlers leaked 31 runs in extras, which, in the wider scope of the game, cost them dearly.
The Demerara inning was a stop-start one as five batters got good starts but failed to push on. After losing opener Romeo Deonarine (9) to seamer Bruce Vincent with the score at just 13, Demerara skipper Mavendra Dindyal and opener Sachin Balgobin put on 40 before the former was caught off the bowling of Darwin Joseph for 17, leaving Demerara 53/2.
Balgobin (28) then added 31 with Alvin Mohabir before he too fell to Joseph via the same route. Mohabir also got a start of 26 and shared a 36-run partnership with eventual top-scorer Zachary Jodah before being trapped LBW by Shaziff Mohamed.
A 52-run partnership then took Demerara from 120/4 to 172 as all-rounder Jonathan Van Lange hit a quick-fire 29 (28 balls) to steady the ship. Van Lange, who showed promise but then lost his wicket, was out-caught by Lovell off the bowling of spinner Gulcharran Chulai just as it looked as though Demerara would push for a substantial total.
After Van Lange’s demise, the Demerara innings went downhill as they limped to 214 all out. Chulai with 3/34 (10 overs) led the way for the Essequibo bowlers and got valuable support from Darwin Joseph (2/41), Bruce Vincent (2/30), and Myheim Khan (2/43) who all took two wickets each.
Needing 215 to win, Essequibo’s batting order could not lend the help that Lovell needed in the run-chase. Lovell’s aggressive 73 (59 deliveries, 4sx8, 6sx3) was a beacon in Essequibo’s limp innings as his teammates had no answers for Riyad Latif (3/38) and Krsna Singh (3/19), who ran through the middle order and tailenders after Jonathan Van Lange (2/40) opened the floodgates.
The GCB U-19 Inter-County continues tomorrow with Demerara facing Berbice at Malteenoes, while Essequibo and the Select XI will clash at the Lusignan Ground. The tournament will then culminate with the final, slated for Thursday.
