West Indies Championships: Paul, Tage half-centuries bolster GHE on Day 1

Half-centuries off the bat of Tagenarine Chanderpaul and Keemo Paul pushed the Guyana Harpy Eagles to 242 on Sunday as the third and final round of their bilateral series against the Windward Islands Volcanoes in the West Indies Four-Day Championships unfolded.
At the Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua and Barbuda, the Volcanoes won the toss and opted to have the Harpy Eagles bat first, for the first time in the series.
Guyana were rattled early as Matthew Nandu was trapped by Gilon Tyson in the fourth over for a duck.
Both Kevlon Anderson and Captain Tevin Imlach were unable to contribute much to the total, both departing for five runs each, leaving the Harpy Eagles teetering at 20-3.
Kemol Savory looked stable with 35 from 73 deliveries, but the Essequibian was unable to convert his start, handing Tyson his second scalp of the day.
All the while, Chanderpaul was playing a painstakingly patient innings at the other end.
Alongside Paul, he brought some stability to the Guyanese innings, with a 76-run partnership.

Paul faced 57 balls, hitting five fours and four sixes in a brisk 64 before being caught. Richie Looknauth pitched in 17 runs before departing while Chanderpaul’s stay at the crease came to an end soon after.
The left-handed opener hit 69 in 212 deliveries, punctuated by eight boundaries. Gudakesh Motie and Shamar Joseph were Guyana’s last line of defence, scoring 24 and 15 respectively before the Harpy Eagles were eventually bundled out for 242 in 79.5 overs.
Ryan John was the pick of the Volcanoes’ bowlers, claiming 4-28 from 16 overs while Darel Cyrus picked up 3-79 from 16.5 overs.
Before the day’s play expired, the Volcanoes got to 22-1 in eight overs. Nial Smith had the breakthrough, sending Ackeem Auguste back to the dugout for just two in the fifth over. At the close of play, Stephan Pascal was unbeaten on 13 from 26 and Kavem Hodge 7 from 9 as the Volcanoes require a further 220 runs to cut down the deficit with nine wickets in hand.
Play is expected to resume at 10:00h today.