Bowlers shine … Batsmen struggle in practice game
SHAWN Findlay again showed the selectors his all-round abilities when he took four wickets to help bowl out Tamar Lambert’s XI for 176 during their practice match at Chedwin Park to select Jamaica’s 13-man squad for the first game of the West Indies Cricket Board four-day regional tournament yesterday.
According to coach Junior Bennett, the Jamaican selectors met yesterday and will announce the squad today after consulting with the Jamaica Cricket Association.
The selection committee includes chairman Nehemiah Perry, Bennett, Ephraim McLeod and Ruddy Williams.
Two-time defending champions Jamaica will go up against last year’s second-placed team, the Windward Islands, on January 8, also at Chedwin Park in first-round action.
On yesterday’s third and final day of the practice game, Findlay finished with four for 19 off 10 overs, while left-arm spinner Nikita Miller took three for 32 off 16.
Offspinner Bevon Brown capped a good game with the ball with two for 28 off 19 to complement his five for 50 in the first innings, while pacer Jason Dawes took the other wicket to fall.
The batsmen for Lambert’s XI, just like they did in their first innings score of 153, failed to assert themselves against a disciplined bowling effort from Bernard Jr’s XI and folded in the final session of the day.
Only Lambert (38), fastbowler Andrew Richardson (38) and opener Brentan Parchment (24) offered any kind of resistance.
The coaching staff opted not to make Bernard Jr’s XI bat again to score the required 13 needed to win the match after they had rattled up 317 in their first-innings knock.
Bennett expressed disappointment that no batsman from either team managed to score a century over the three days.
“What I was disappointed about was that players got starts and did not go on to make a hundred. Some batsmen did not apply themselves, especially in the first innings when the pitch was a lot slower,” he said.
When asked if he expects to see improvements in the playing surface for the first-round game against the Windwards, Bennett said he believes further preparation should do the trick.
“The pitch will get better for the first-class game. You could see towards the end (of the practice game) it began to play better… we have nine days before the match, so once it gets more roll and so on I think it should be ready for the game,” he said.