The spin combination of leg-spinner Ershad Ali and off-spin of Richie Looknauth spun webs around the Berbice batsmen to pilot to their team to a commanding 68-run win in the final of the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB)/ Hand-In-Hand Under-19 Inter-county 50-over competition at the National Stadium, Providence on Sunday.
Set a total of 155 for victory from their allotment of 50-overs, Ali and Looknauth combined to take seven wickets for 32 runs to skittle the opposition out for just 86 from 36 overs.
Ali used his height to extract some bounce and turn, to end with miserly figure of 4-10 from five overs while Looknauth , who also kept the shackles on the batsmen, snared 3-22 from his nine overs.
The Berbicians’ innings got off to the most frenetic starts as a horrible mix-up between openers Adrian Sukwah (06) and Junieer Inshan (04) saw Sukwah being run out with just seven on the board in the first over.
Inshan and Alex Alan (03) took the score to 22 but the two players quickly departed and their team looked in serious trouble until the pair of top scorer Joel Seitaram and Mathew Hardial (12) added 25 for the fifth wicket. Seitaram was the more fluent of the too, striking two fours in 30 off 41 balls, before holding out to deep midwicket.
Man-of-the match Ershad Ali collects his trophy from GCB Treasurer Anand Kalladeen
His wicket essentially meant the end of the Berbice innings as no other batsman was able to reach double figures.
Earlier Demerara won the toss and elected to bat but the two-paced nature of the wicket proved to be their undoing as opening batsman Raymond Perez was caught in the slip for nine and the score was now 14-1.
The attacking Sherfene Rutherford (13) was next to the crease and his first scoring shot was a sweetly time four but he did not last long either as he gifted his wicket away to the off-spin of Deon Sinclair to put Demerara in deep trouble at 32-2 in the 9th over.
Captain Travis Persaud and Ronaldo Renee took the score to 61-2 in the 21st over but two quick wickets fell in Renee (14) and Malcom Hubbard (00) to leave Demerara reeling at 61-4.
Persaud and talented all-rounder Ronaldo Ali-Mohammed looked to stabilise the innings, taking the score to 93 in the 30th over when Persaud fell for a compact 29 (1×4; 1×6) off the bowling of Ezekeil Kempatoo.
Ali-Mohammed offered a slight resistance, crunching a pair of fours before departing to Sinclair for 27, who then removed Gavin Boodwah (07) and Darshan Persaud (07) in quick succession.
The 150 came up in the 45th over but Demerara only managed to add four extra runs before Asif Ally and Seitaram cleaned up the remaining batters, Ershad Ali (19) and Shabodan (01). Looknauth was the last man standing, not out on 10.
Sinclair was the most successful bowler with 3-30 from 10 overs while Asif Ally 2-14 and Seitaram 2-22 were also among the wickets.
