Barbados in semis after crushing Leewards
BASSETERRE, St Kitts (CMC) — Barbados needed less than two hours on Tuesday’s final day to crush Leeward Islands by an innings and 31 runs and storm into the semi-finals of the Regional Four-Day Championship.
They were led by experienced left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn, who snatched six for 43 to send the Leewards crashing to 149 all out in their second innings, after they resumed the sixth round clash at Warner Park on 40 for four.
Off-spinner Ashley Nurse supported with four for 47, to end with match figures of 10 for 136.
Wicketkeeper Jahmar Hamilton top scored with 50, while Devon Thomas chipped in with 29. The pair featured in a 68-run, sixth wicket stand after captain Sylvester Joseph fell in the day’s second over, but once they were separated, the end for the Leewards came quickly.
With the win, Barbados moved to 36 points, level with Trinidad and Tobago, with five-time champions Jamaica and Windward Islands leading the standings with 48 points.
Barbados and T&T face off next week in Port of Spain, in their final round encounter.
Starting the day requiring a further 140 runs to make Barbados bat again, the Leewards stumbled early when Benn struck with the eighth ball of play, getting one to spin sharply and trap Joseph lbw on the backfoot for three.
Hamilton and Thomas then denied Barbados any further immediate success with the best stand of the innings, playing positively against both Nurse and Benn.
The 22-year-old Hamilton struck seven fours in a knock off 80 balls in an hour-and-a-half at the crease, while Thomas faced 52 balls in an hour’s batting, and counted four fours.
The breakthrough came when Thomas edged Benn to Nurse at slip with the score on 112 for six, and Tonito Willett followed soon afterward for five, lbw to Benn.
Hamilton eventually reached his fifth first-class half-century, but failed to push on, falling lbw to Nurse at 142 for eight.
The innings finished swiftly as Hayden Walsh Jr was caught close to the wicket by Kevin Stoute off Benn for 13, and Anthony Martin was lbw to Nurse without scoring.
Meanwhile, Guyana won their first match of the Regional Four-Day Championship when they brushed aside Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC) by 46 runs.
Playing on the final day of their sixth round encounter, the Guyanese produced a clinical bowling effort to bundle out CCC for 193 in their second innings after lunch, and secure a comfortable victory at the National Stadium at Providence.
Resuming the day on 114 for six, CCC were given hope in a 51-run, eighth wicket partnership between Raymon Reifer, who top scored with 43, and Kevin McClean, who hit 40.
However, captain and left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul claimed two of the four wickets to fall to finish with four for 22, while fast bowler Ronsford Beaton (2-21), leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo (2-41) and off-spinner Steven Jacobs (2-45), all weighed in with two wickets apiece.
Akeem Dewar, yet to score at the start, was first to fall when he was bowled by Permaul in the fifth over of the morning at 121 for seven.
Reifer and McClean resisted stoutly, however, and were still together when rain forced an early lunch with CCC on 155 for seven.
The left-handed Reifer, unbeaten on 22 at the start, faced 141 balls overall and hit just one four before he was caught at slip by Narsingh Deonarine off Jacobs at 172 for eight.
Ryan Austin perished three runs later for one and McClean smashed Bishoo over mid-wicket for six, before becoming the final wicket to fall.