Independence Sports tournaments – 4R Lioness, Regal O-40, Parika Legends O-50 claim Softball Cricket titles

Guyana’s 60th Independence Diamond Jubilee sports programme kicked off in the past week with four disciplines, and three of those disciplines saw the finals being contested over the weekend at separate venues.
Softball Cricket, held under the auspices of the Georgetown Softball Cricket League Inc, culminated at the Police Sports Club Ground, Eve Leary, with 4R Lioness claiming the female title after defeating Supreme Stars of Linden by 16 runs.
The Over-40 title was won by Regal, which trounced Parika by 74 runs, while emerging as the Over-50 champions was Parika Legends by a whopping 99 runs over Regal.

Women’s Final
In the female final, a 15-over contest, 4R Lioness took first strike and posted 159-5, led by Player of the Final, Guyana and West Indies player Sherry-Ann Fraser, who smashed 88 (5×4, 9×6). Fraser’s fellow Windies teammate Shabika Gajnabi, who smashed a hundred in their semi-final against #64, supported with 26 (3×4), and Abigail Scott, 18 (3×4).
In reply, Supreme Stars made a valiant effort but fell short of the winning total as they ended on 143-7 when the overs ran out. Joyann Richards was the top scorer with 39; Merissa Rodney contributed 19.

Over-40 Final
Regal took to the crease first and rattled up 257-3 from their 20 overs, led by Player of the Final, Keith Fraser, who fell short of what would have been a well-deserved ton by a single run. He blasted seven sixes and nine boundaries after facing 42 balls.
Great support came from Patrick Rooplall with a 58-ball 95, clearing the boundary ropes 10 times along with three fours. Assif Ali made 49 (3×4, 5×6) from 22 balls. Parika in reply was dismissed for 183 off 18.4 overs.
Their top scorer was Ravi Beharry with 44 (3×4, 4×6); Thakur Samlall, 33; Yaseer Mohanie, 26; Latchman Rohit, 20; and Eshwar Singh, 19.

Over-50 Final
Parika Legends were piloted to the title on account of a classy century from the bat of Unis Yusuf, who blasted 124 off 64 balls spiced up with nine fours and 11 maximums as his team racked up a challenging 210-9 from their 20 overs. Usil Armstrong made 21. Regal’s Suresh Ramdeen was the leading bowler with 4-25 with Roy Persaud taking 3-54.
They could not come anywhere close to the winning total as they were limited to 111-9 from their allocation of 20 overs. Ramdeen returned with the bat to lead with 36 (3×4, 2×6); Lloyd Rooplall, 16; Micael Ifill, 13; and Suresh Mangal, 12, were the next best scorers as they fell short by 99 runs.
Armstrong capped a good all-round performance for Parika Legends, snaring 4-18 with support from Kabish Persaud and Jagmohan Singh, who took two wickets each for the winners.
A total of 12 teams were involved in the three categories of the competition, including teams from Essequibo, Berbice and Demerara; matches were also played in Essequibo and the East Coast. The sponsor of the tournament was the Ministry of Culture, Youth and Sport in observance of Guyana’s 60th Independence Diamond Jubilee celebrations.
Squash and badminton also wrapped up their tournaments on Sunday after four days each of pulsating rivalry at the National Racquet Centre and the National Gymnasium.
Tennis was served on Sunday at the National Park Courts and will conclude on May 24th. Athletics, Basketball, Dominoes, Hockey, Table Tennis, Volleyball, Cycling and Golf would also be contested during this month, part and parcel of Guyana’s Diamond Independence Jubilee Sports Programme.