BCB/Ivan Madray 20/20 Cricket Tournament 2023: Brilliant Sinclair leads RHT NAMILCO Thunderbolt to final

…Port Mourant advance to 3rd round

Junior Sinclair continues to impress at the Berbice First-Division level as the Berbice Cricket Board (BCB) First-Division season continues.
Sinclair, who was recently named the Best Emerging Player of the 2023 Caribbean Premier League (CPL), cracked a superb century to spearhead the Rose Hall Town NAMILCO Thunderbolt Flour team to a massive 10-wicket victory over arch-rivals Tuber Park at the Area H Gound. West Indies youth player Rampertab Ramnauth also scored a responsible 69 to lead Port Mourant to a 26-run victory over Upper Corentyne. Rose Hall Town, who – last weekend defeated Skeldon by 100 runs – have advanced to the final while Port Mourant have gone into the third round after a first-round bye.

Tucber Park won the toss and elected to bat first in blistering heat and were off to a flying start with openers Leon Swammy and Garfield Benjamin both taking the attack to the Rose Hall NAMILCO Thunderbolt team. They added 38 in five overs, before national Noff spinner Matthew Pottaya deceived Swammy and had him stumped for 30 in the fifth over.
Former Berbice youth player Martin Singh was also dismissed cheaply, but the talented Zeymul Ramsammy joined Benjamin and they added a partnership of 120 runs before Ramsammy was dismissed for an attractive 45. Benjamin ended on a well-played 86 not out as Tucber Park finished on a healthy 176 for 3 in their allotted 20 overs. Benjamin struck three sixes and four boundaries in his mature knock. Matthew Pottaya was the best bowler for Rose Hall Town NAMILCO Thunderbolt, with two wickets for 28 runs. Any idea of a Tucber Park victory was soon gone as Sinclair laid into the visitors’ bowling attack that included Swammy, Rueben Latcha, Kwesi Mickle, Abdul Ramsammy, and Devon Clements.

The Amazon player struck 13 sixes and nine boundaries. Pottaya scored a solid 45 not out as the pair added a record 180 for the first wicket in 15 overs to complete a 10-wicket victory. The opening partnership of 180 is a Berbice record at the 20/20 level for the first wicket. At the Port Mourant Ground, Port Mourant batted first and reached a solid 169 for 9 in 20 overs, with Rampertab Rampersaud top-scoring with 69, as he continues to impress at the local level. He received solid support from the talented Madan Budhoo, who scored 50, and his younger brother, Rampersaud Ramnauth with 29.Bowling for Upper Corentyne, Latchman Roopchand took 3 for 29 and Devanand Chatterpaul 3 for 23. In response, needing 170 runs from 120 balls, Upper Corentyne were dismissed for 143 to lose by 26 runs. Rishi Persaud top-scored with an attractive 51 while Steve Embrack supported with 25. The best bowlers for Port Mourant were Yugendra Harrinarine with 3 for 3 for 24, Joshua Harrichand 3 for 28, and Joshua Rampersaud 2 for 30.
The tournament is been sponsored by the nephew of Ivan Madray, Chandradat Chintamani. Madray played two Test matches for the West Indies in 1956 before migrating to England. He died in 2009 and was the third of 20 Berbicians to play Test cricket for the West Indies after John Trim and the legendary Rohan Kanhai.