BCB 2023 Cricket Season: Reddi leads RHT Poonai team into Romario Shepherd U13 finals

National Under-13 player Leon Reddi on Saturday produced a magnificent innings of 67 to lead his team, Rose Hall Town Poonai’s Pharmacy, to a comfortable 24-run victory over arch-rivals Albion in a semifinal match of the 2023 Romario Shepherd Under-13 tournament.
The match, played at the Area ‘H’ Ground in very hot and humid condition, saw Reddi strike seven delightful boundaries in his match-winning innings. He and fellow Berbice Under-13 player Balraj Narine added 21 runs for the first wicket, before R. Singh trapped Narine LBW for 9.
Reddi and captain Tameshwar Deonandan, the national under-13 player, then added 80 for the 2nd wicket, before Deonandan was bowled by M. Ramsammy for 14.
Another national under-13 player, Raefel McKenzie, then joined the solid Reddi, and they added 42 for the 3rd wicket, with the tall, lanky McKenzie scoring 33 runs that included 2 boundaries.

Reddi was eventually dismissed by R. Singh for 67, but Deo Seepersaud scored 16 at the end to boost the RHT Poonai team to 184 for 6 at the end of their allotted 30 overs.
Superb bowling performances were recorded for Albion by Rovin Lalbehari with 2 for 33 and R. Singh with 2 for 38. Extras contributed a solid 33 runs.
Needing to score 185 from 30 overs to clinch their first Under-13 finals’ place, Albion were off to a rocking start, with S. Jumratty hitting a brisk 17 from 12 balls before he was trapped leg before by medium pacer Reddi in the fourth over, with the score at 31 for 1.
Skipper Farook Balle was the second wicket to fall, caught off the bowling of McKenzie for 7 as he attempted a pot shot.
National player Nathaniel Ramsammy was adjusted LBW off the bowling of Dinesh Singh for 21, while R. Marimuthoo was bowled by Balra Narine for 11.
A fighting innings of 49 from Rovin Lalbehari enabled Albion to eventually post 162 in the 30th over. Lalbehari, last man out, struck 4 boundaries before being caught off the medium pace of Leon Reddi when one short of a deserved half century.
Off-spinner Balraj Narine turned in impressive bowling figures of 6-1-14-4; Dinesh Singh supported with 2 for 33, while Leon Reddi ended a good all-round performance with 2 for 36 from 5.2 overs.
The finals of the 2023 Romario Shepherd U13 tournament will be played at the Rose Hall Canje Welfare Centre ground between Rose Hall Town Poonai’s Pharmacy and the Rose Hall Canje team.
This is the 4th Under-13 tournament organized by the BCB, and is the second to be sponsored by West Indies white ball all-rounder Romario Shepherd. Rose Hall Town Poonai Pharmacy, Rose Hall Canje and Port Mourant were the past winners of the Under-13 Berbice tournaments.