6 teams book final spots in respective categories of PM T20 Cup

By Timothy Jaikarran

All intense action and fun in the sun came a bit closer to the grand finale as Regal Legends, Regal, Savage Legends, Wellman Masters, Fisherman Masters and Speedboat teams each booked a spot in their respective categories in the final round of play in the Prime Minister’s T20 Cup competition.
Their semifinal fixtures took place at different venues across Guyana, and the results are as follows:

O-50 CATEGORY
Thomas flexes his muscles
At the Everest Cricket Club, Regal Legends battled President’s XI in a one-sided affair that saw Regal easily overcome their counterparts.
This was made possible by Eric Thomas who, being in superb form, scored a brilliant 111 that enabled
Regal, batting first, to post 218-4. The first three batsmen fell with scores of 11, 01 and 29; but when Thomas came to the crease, all hell broke loose. His 111 included 11 maximums and 7 boundaries.
When Thomas lost his wicket, Jagdesh Bojh produced a quickfire 39 to help Regal post a mammoth total. Mikey Ifill bagged 2-34 for the President’s XI.
When the President’s XI came to the crease, Mohamed Rafeek was the only one able to find the ropes, as he contributed 54. Wickets tumbled at regular intervals, but Dennis Mangu contributed 42. However, like Rafeek, he received no support from his team, which folded for 166.
Fazleen Mohamed picked up 3 wickets, while Larry Singh and David Harper were each able to bag 2 wickets for the Regal.

Pierria guides Savage home
With the Savage team batted first in the second match at the Everest Cricket Club, Randolph Pierria, in continuing his fine form, produced a classy 56 that included 8 boundaries and 2 maximums. Nadir Baksh and Seemangal Yadram also contributed scores of 29 and 27 runs respectively, enabling Savage to end on 168-7.
Carl Scorce was able to pick up 2 wickets for his team, Parika Defenders, who in reply ended on 129 all out. This moment of victory was well savoured by Savage Legends, who celebrated their spot in the grand finale.

O-45 CATEGORY
The low-scoring thrillers
HS Masters folded for a meagre 73 in their low-scoring match again the Fisherman team, played at the Ogle Cricket Club, ECD.
V. Bissoon top-scored with 27 in a losing effort, even as the Fisherman team’s bowlers wreaked havoc on their opponents, with P. Singh returning figures of 3-8, S. Mohabir taking 3-2, and Z. Hassan reaping 2-23.
In reply, Fisherman raced to 79-2, with R Fraser leading the charge with 53.
Another low-scoring affair at the Ogle Cricket Club saw Success Masters scoring a mere 85-8 against the Mike’s Wellman team, their batsmen finding difficulty in playing the Wellman bowlers.
No batsman on the Success team could surpass 20 runs, as Lester Thom, Greig De Franca, I. Mohamed and S Perch each bagged 2 wickets.
Mikes Wellman then made light work of the total, ending on 87-4 in 9.4 overs. Greig De Franca top-scored with 51, while Azeemul Haniff supported with 26.

OPEN CATEGORY
Persaud, Gittens steal the show
Spartans Allstars had an impressive journey throughout the tournament, and even in their semifinal matchup, they posted an impressive 185 runs in their allotted 20 overs.
Everyone contributed to this total with small cameos, but the most notable performances came from Keyon Sinclair and Devindra Ramotar, each with 30. Roy Persaud took 4-33 and Delroy Perreira took 3-38.
Regal won this match by six wickets, thanks to the impressive scoring of Chien Gittens, who remained unbeaten on 61 as he took the game out of the hands of his opponents, who required 24 off 18.

Speedboat reign supreme, Heartbreak for Ariel
This match was definitely the crowning glory of the semifinals. It had demonstrations of heart and guts, and offerings of thrill and emotion. Speedboat posted 253-6 in their allotted 20 overs, thanks to Lennox Marks’s 48, Greg Singh’s 84 and Safraz Esau’s 56.
This mammoth total appeared unattainable, but Ariel came dangerously close to overcoming it. The heroics of Quintin Sampson (85) could not win it for his team though, as everything came down to the last over with 26 needed.
K. Smith was able to hold his nerve and allow only 5 runs off his final over, picking up 2 wickets in the process. A noteworthy performance also came from Brian Mangal, with 74.
All final matches will be played at the Everest Cricket Club. In the O-50 category, Regal Legends would duke it out with Savage Legends. In the O-45 category, Wellman Masters would take on Fisherman Masters. All matches would commence at 09:30 hrs.
The finals of the OPEN CATEGORY will commence at 13:30 hrs with Regal battling it out with Speedboat.