By Avenash Ramzan
It was a day where the wicketkeeper/batsmen shone brightest as two of them scored hundreds and another narrowly missed out in the first round of the Guyana Cricket Board’s Senior Inter-county 50-over championship on Monday.
National player Anthony Bramble lit up the Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) ground, Bourda, blazing to 106 as Berbice completely annihilated Demerara, winning by a massive 189-run margin.
Over at the Everest ground, Kemol Savory stroked a classy, unbeaten 108 and fellow wicketkeeper Kevon Boodie scored a shot-filled 92 as Essequibo comfortably defeated the GCB President’s XI by eight wickets.
At GCC: Berbice thrash Demerara by 189 runs
SUMMARY: Berbice 363-6 from 45 overs (Anthony Bramble 106, Jonathan Foo 71, Shimron Hetmyer 58, Romario Shepherd 40, Rampertab Ramnauth 36; Ronaldo Ali-Mohamed 3-66) vs Demerara 174 all out from 29.3 overs (Leon Johnson 51, Tagenarine Chanderpaul 39, Akshaya Persaud 37; Veerasammy Permaul 3-30, Kevin Sinclair 3-42, Gudakesh Motie 2-32)
Watched by a fair-sized crowd at the country’s former Test venue, Berbice won the toss and opted to bat first in a game reduced to 45 overs due to early morning rain.
It proved to be a brilliant call by skipper Veerasammy Permaul, as the Berbicians proceeded to maul a relatively inexperienced Demerara bowling attack.
Bramble and 19-year-old debutant Rampertab Ramnauth set the tone for the innings with a high-tempo opening partnership of 91 in 14 overs. Ramnauth made 36 off 50 balls (4x4s).
Bramble and left-hander Shimron Hetmyer then proceeded to put the game beyond Demerara, adding 105 for the second wicket in just 12.4 overs.
Demerara found some relief when Bramble was trapped leg before for 106 off 83 (14x4s, 2x6s), and Hetmyer was dismissed shortly after for 58 off 46 (2x4s, 3x6s) at 230-3 in the 32nd over, but that only opened the floodgates as Jonathan Foo and Romario Shepherd went into T20 mode.
The pair racked up 88 in 8.4 overs for the fourth wicket to deny Demerara any chance of making a fightback. Shepherd cleared the boundary four times and added two fours in a rapid 40 off 28 balls, and Foo slammed 71 off 45 (5x4s, 4x6s).
Kevin Sinclair put the finishing touches to the innings with a six and a four in 15* off nine balls, as Ronaldo Ali-Mohamed took 3-66 off his nine overs.
Faced with a stiff target against a potent bowling attack, Demerara slipped to 6-2 with Chandrapaul Hemraj and Tevin Imlach both falling for two.
Opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul and skipper Leon Johnson put on 85 for the third wicket, but once both were dismissed and Christopher Barnwell soon followed, Demerara were down and out with the core of the batting gone.
Johnson topscored with 51 off 47 (7x4s, 1×6), Chanderpaul made 39 off 50 (4x4s, 1×6) and Akshyana Persaud scored 37 off 25 (1×4, 4x6s) as Demerara folded to Berbice spin-heavy bowling attack.
The hosts were eventually dismissed for 174 in 29.3 overs with left-arm spinner Permaul taking 3-30, off-spinner Kevin Sinclair 3-42 and left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie 2-32.
At Everest: Essequibo defeat GCB President’s XI by eight wickets
SUMMARY: GCB President’s XI 237-8 from 50 overs (Shamar Joseph 67*, Kwesi Mickle 40, Suresh Dhanai 38, Matthew Nandu 27; Anthony Adams 3-14, Ricardo Adams 2-40) vs Essequibo 240-2 from 41.3 overs (Kemol Savory 108*, Kevon Boodie 92, Keyron Fraser 1-19, Akini Adams 1-40)
Essequibo, buoyed by solid support in the stands at Everest, coasted to victory over the President’s XI on a track that remained good for batting throughout the day.
A good recovery by the President’s XI when they batted meant the Essequibians had a larger target than they initially anticipated, but any nerves were quelled by magnificent second-wicket partnership by Savory and Boodie.
After the early loss of Nathan Persaud for 11, Savory and Boodie made it a one-sided affair, pulverizing the President’s XI bowling attack in a partnership of 163.
Boodie was the aggressor, pouncing on anything marginally loose as he cracked 11 fours and two sixes from the 102 balls he faced.
One he departed, Savory took centre stage, coasting to a magnificent hundred and sealing victory with an expansive cover drive for four.
His unbeaten 108 spanned 106 balls and included eight fours and three sixes. Keyron Fraser and Akini Adams were the wicket-takers for the President’s XI.
Earlier, the President’s XI recovered brilliantly from being 90-5 to post 237-8, thanks largely to some responsible lower-order batting from the impressive Shamar Joseph and Kwesi Mickle.
Joseph was the man to take on the Essequibo bowlers, playing with freedom and aggression in a topscore of 67 not out off 47 balls. The left-hander cracked seven fours and three sixes in an innings that lit up the Everest ground.
Mickle played second fiddle with 40 off 86 (1×4, 2x6s), while Suresh Dhanai chipped in with 30 off 26 (4x4s, 1×6) and opener Matthew Nandu made 27 off 34 (3x4s).
Bowling for Essequibo, left-arm spinner Anthony Adams was outstanding, returning figures 3-14 off 10 overs, including 52 dot balls, while Ricardo Adams took 2-40 off 10.
The second round of the competition will take place on Wednesday with Berbice playing Essequibo at the GCC ground, Bourda, and Demerara up against the President’s XI at Everest.
Weather permitting, both games will start at 09:00h.
