Guyana face-off with Leewards from today in Nevis

Jan 30, 2009 Sports

In bottom-of the table match-up

Omari Banks

By Sean Devers
On a track at Grove Park expected to offer some early assistance to the fast bowlers, host Leeward Islands and Guyana go head-to-head from today in a bottom-of-the-table clash of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) regional four-day First-Class cricket tournament.
Both teams have been comprehensively beaten in both of their matches so far in the seven-team competition and without their three Test batsmen, their newest West Indies player and fastest bowler Guyana could be hard pressed to win outright in their third consecutive ‘away’ game.
Guyana lost to the Windwards in Grenada and to the Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC) in Barbados, while the Leewards were beaten by Jamaica in St Kitts and by Barbados in St Marteen and both teams still hunt their first point in the competition.
Without Shiv Chanderpaul, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Sewnarine Chattergoon and Leon Johnson, the inexperienced Guyana team will depend heavily on Narsingh Deonarine, who batted magnificently in his last innings and Skipper Travis Dowlin, who was the only Guyanese to register a half-century in the opening game in Grenada.
Guyana are also without pacer Brandon Bess, who along with Johnson and Chattergoon are unavailable due to their West Indies ‘A’ team commitments.

Travis Dowlin

Talented Chris Barnwell, on debut, could be asked to open the batting with the solid Shemroy Barrington while re-called Hoomchand Pooran and young guns Steven Jacobs, Royston Crandon and Assad Fudadin will have to pull their weight if selected.
Wicketkeeper Derwin Christian blows hot and cold and after an attractive first innings fifty in Barbados, made a first ball duck in his next innings and will need to show more maturity in his shot-selection if he wants to keep his place in the side for the entire tournament.
Esaun Crandon has bowled wonderfully this season and is one of only three players in the side with any real experience at this level. He will also need to ‘step-up’ with the bat if Guyana is to post a challenging total on the small ground.
Deonarine, who averages 41.51 (165 runs from two matches) and Royston Crandon who averages 27.75 (111 runs) are the only Guyanese with 100 runs and an average over 25 in the competition and although the Leewards’ bowling attack is also relatively inexperienced, Guyana’s success lies heavily on the shoulders of Deonarine and Dowlin.
Although Guyana beat the Leewards by an innings and 29 runs last year when the teams last met at this level, the last time the two teams played in Nevis (2005) a defiant second innings ton from an injured Chattergoon helped to save the game for Guyana who were asked to follow-on.
Last year off-spinner Zaheer Mohamed had four-wicket hauls in both of the Leewards innings, while Bess and Trevon Garraway had three-wicket hauls.
Sarwan scored a scintillating 150 and Chanderpaul made 82 for the South Americans before Runako Morton hit 96 for the Leewards.

Narsingh Deonarine

This year there is no Sarwan, Chanderpaul or Bess due to higher duty while Mohamed (who impressed many including Brian Lara last year with his flight and spin) is not the force he was last season. His bowling arm has drooped, maybe from playing too much limited overs cricket and he has lost his place in the side.
Morton has been in form this season and already has a century and an average of 53.00. However, Omari Banks (who also has a century this season) Tonito Willett and Kieran Powell are the only other Leewards’ batsmen averaging above 30.
Twenty-six-year-old Antiguan leg-spinner Anthony Martin has 22 wickets from eight first-class matches since making his debut last year and is the Leewards’ leading wicket-taker with seven scalps, while Willett has five with his medium pace.
Gavin Tonge and 30-year-old St Vincent born BVI fast bowler Bront DeFreitas should share the new ball with Tonge.
With West Indies under-19 wicketkeeper/batsman Devon Thomas unavailable due to West Indies ‘A’ commitments, Austin Richards and Powell will need to produce at the top of the order against the new ball pair of Esaun Crandon and Garraway, who comes back into the side.
Barnwell will provide pace support while left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul, leg-spinner Davendra Bishoo and off-spinner Deonarine could do the bulk of the Guyana bowling.
Crandon has bowled with control, but while Bishoo (6 wkts) and Permaul (5wkt) have shown lots of potential they have not been learning the art of consistency through patience as quickly as desired and have bowled too many bad balls.

Runako Morton

They are both young and full of talent and it is hoped that Coach Albert Smith works closer with them in the ‘nets’ since they could be around Guyana’s cricket for a long time.
Today’s game, which was originally scheduled for Antigua, commences at 10:00hrs and another outright loss for the Guyanese will see them equalling their record of most consecutive outright defeats away from home at the start of the season. Guyana lost three on the trot in 2004 and again last year.