West Indies Championships: Harpy Eagles edge Pride in final-day thriller
Nerves were high at the Coolidge Cricket Ground, Antigua and Barbuda on Saturday as the Guyana Harpy Eagles and Barbados Pride were locked in an intense battle, nearing the conclusion of their fourth-round clash in the West Indies Championships 2024.
When the dust settled, it was the defending champions, the Harpy Eagles who drew out a 33-run victory in tense, nail-biting fashion.
Barbados Pride raced to 31 runs in the final four overs on Friday afternoon, showing their intent to the Harpy Eagles, heading into the final day of play. But Day 4 was a see-saw as Guyana consistently took wickets while Barbados showed some resistance.
Veerasammy Permaul ended the game with 114 runs and four wickets in a crucial all-round performance
The duo of Kraigg Brathwaite and Zachary McCaskie returned to the crease on Saturday morning, unbeaten on 8 and 18 runs respectively.
Brathwaite was the first to go, falling for 23 from 40 deliveries after being cleaned up by Veerasammy Permaul. Permaul then had Shian Brathwaite and first innings centurion Jonathan Drakes removed in quick time for four runs and a duck respectively; to put the Harpy Eagles back in contention.
However, at the other end, McCaskie was playing an innings similar to Drakes in the first innings. Together with Raymon Reifer and after his demise, Jason Holder, McCaskie put the pressure back on the Harpy Eagles bowling.
McCaskie eventually got to 87 off 103 deliveries, inclusive of 14 boundaries before Nial Smith rained on his parade.
While Reifer came and went for 19 runs, Shane Dowrich spent a bit of time at the crease to frustrate the Guyanese bowling line-up.
Gudakesh Motie finally got Dowrich for a 37-ball 26 and later Kemar Roach for 8 as the Harpy Eagles continued to inch closer to victory.
Nial Smith picked up big wickets on the final day to turn the game in Guyana’s favour
Soon, the only resistance Barbados had Jason Holder, who, at tea, remained unbeaten on 45 runs after facing 93 deliveries. At that point, the Harpy Eagles had reduced Barbados to 239-7, needing just three wickets for the fourth-round win. On the other hand, Barbados required 104 more runs, to taste victory.
Holder showed his class and experience in the final session, taking the Barbados Pride dangerously close to their target with the help of Jomel Warrican.
However, the eventual hero in Smith took his second big wicket of the day, trapping Holder lbw for 76 off 138 balls. Though Warrican still looked menacing, it was smooth sailing there on out for the Harpy Eagles.
Smith claimed the remaining two wickets of Chemar Holder and Jair McAllister to end with a match- winning 4-87 in 13.5 overs.
Motie and Permaul who did the heavy lifting earlier in the day, backed up Smith with figures of 3-71 from 28 overs and 3-66 from 23 overs respectively.
In other West Indies Championships results on Saturday, the Jamaica Scorpions defeated the West Indies Academy by two wickets, Leeward Islands Hurricanes overcame Combined Colleges and Campuses by three wickets, while Trinidad and Tobago Red Force upset Windward Islands Volcanoes by six wickets.
The Harpy Eagles will face the Windward Islands Volcanoes next in Round 5 of the Championships.
