…Nedd 3rd highest wicket-taker in tournament
The Somerset Cavaliers were all poised to book their spot in the finale of the exciting LA Open T20 tournament. However, they had an off game in the semi-final round in a low-scoring thriller against the Nepali Rhinos that saw the Chandrapaul Hemraj-led team losing out on a well-deserved title.
The Rhinos batted first and posted 126-6 in their allotted 20 overs; this was thanks to the resistant scoring of Dominique Rikhi (54). Bowling for the Cavaliers were Ashmead Nedd (2-22); Sherfane Rutherford (1-28); Nikhil Dutta (1-18); Karima Gore (1-20) and Rusty Theron 1-13, while Hemraj was economical in his four overs, going for only 16 runs.
In reply, the Cavaliers fell for 120-8, thanks to some good Rhinos bowling. This was led by Gudakesh Motie, who bowled 2-16, with support from Karthik Gattepalli (2-25), Jessy Singh (2-27) and Rohan Mustafa (1-23). Top-scoring for the Cavaliers was Chadwick Walton (37 off 32), with Rutherford making 32 off 21 balls.
in the tournament
In the final, the Nepali Rhinos were no match for the Atlanta Fire. Atlanta Fire batted first and posted 177-2, thanks to Steven Taylor’s 84. In reply, the Rhinos had no answer and folded for 114-8, Andre McCarthy’s 45 was the only significant effort made.
Nevertheless, Hemraj, like many of the other Guyanese players who have featured in the tournament, has performed exceptionally well. At the end of it all, the top-performing Guyanese was Christopher Barnwell, who played six matches and scored 139 runs at an average of 46.33 at a strike rate of 128.32. Rutherford played five matches and scored 98 runs at an average of 32.67 and a strike rate of 171.93.
In the bowling department, Ashmead Nedd was the bowler with the most wickets; from his six games, he bagged 11 wickets at an average of 6.64 at a healthy economy rate of 4.06. Motie, who came in at fourth with 11 wickets at an average of 14.09, at an economy rate of 5.96. Next on the list was Hemraj and from his six games, he bagged seven wickets at an average of 12.71 and an economy rate of 5.56. Rutherford and Barnwell also chipped in with three and two wickets respectively at economy rates of 8.71 and 6.50.
