‘Amazon Conquerors’ mauled by South African ‘Lions’

Sep 20, 2010 Sports

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Crash to 9-wicket defeat

By Sean Devers in South Africa
In association with Digicel, Carib Beer, Leisure Inn, Igloo Ice-Cream, Forest Enterprise, Dave West Indian Imports (NY), Cops Security & Universal DVD Club

A record unfinished 133-run 2nd wicket partnership between Richard Cameron (78*) and Highveld Lions Skipper Alviro Petersen (57) yesterday condemned Guyana to their 3rd consecutive defeat in the Champions League T20 cricket competition here in South Africa.
Guyana strangely persisted with the opening pair of Sewnarine Chattergoon and Travis Dowlin and they again failed to build a foundation; using up 10 balls for just 11 runs between them as Guyana, despite an attacking approach, reached 148-9 off their 20 overs at the Wanderers ground in Johannesburg.
Debutant Steven Jacobs top-scored with a 37-ball 34 with 5 fours but Captain Ramnaresh Sarwan, who hit a cameo 21 from 16 balls with 4 fours, was the only other batsman reach 20 as fast bowler Ethan O’Reilly grabbed a career best 4-27 from 4 overs. The Lions then raced to victory with 29 balls to spare to keep alive their semi-final hopes.
Cameron, who hit 5 fours and 6 sixes from just 42 balls in his belligerent 78 and his Skipper, whose 57 came from 38 balls with 6 fours and 2 sixes, joined forces in the 3rd over when Esuan Crandon had the left-handed Jonathon Vandiar (8) caught behind at 16-1. The 2nd wicket pair then completely dominated an innocuous bowling attack to see their team to 149-1 in 15.1 overs much to the delight of a colourful crowd of over 20,000.
On a day blessed with bright sunshine, Guyana were asked to bat first after making two changes to the side which lost in Durban to Mumbai Indians.
Lennox Cush, surprisingly omitted in Durban, replaced Paul Wintz while Steven Jacobs got his Guyana T20 debut when Narsingh Deonarine pulled out with an injured ankle sustained in a training on Saturday.
Beaten with the first ball of the match, Travis Dowlin made a consorted effort to be aggressive and edged Robert Frylinck for four as the opening over produced 7 runs.
Dowlin (7) was leg before to O’Reilly off the first ball of the 2nd over which cost just a single as the home fans celebrated.
Sarwan began like a man possessed. He smashed Frylinck to the cover boundary before stroking O’Riley to the mid-off boundary, top-edging a hook over the keeper’s head and square-driving the pacer delightfully to the point boundary.  Chattergoon cut Frylinck for four but when Cameron at point held a bullet-like cut head-high, Craig Alexander had struck with his first ball of the day’s 5th over at 32-2 and the dangerous Sarwan was gone.
Jacobs employed the tactic of ‘stand and deliver’ in the initial stages of his innings and smashed O’Riley for two thumping boundaries in the 6th over before the out-of-form Chattergoon (4) hit a catch to mid-on in the same over at 42-3.
Chris Barnwell joined Jacobs and clipped Alexander, who bowled with genuine  pace, over mid-wicket for six to post the Guyana 50 in 7 overs before Jacobs backed away and disdainfully cut left-arm spinner Werner Coetsee to the point boundary.
Jacobs clobbered Cameron like a rocket past his ankles for 4 in the 9th over and after 10 overs the South Americans were scoring at 7 runs per over.
Jacobs, a former West Indies under-19 Skipper, creamed Alexander to the square cover boundary in the 11th over before missing a wild swipe at Coetsee in the next.  The Malteenoes right-hander then smashed a ball to extra cover and called for an impossible single, resulting in Barnwell (11) being run out at 79-4.
Esuan Crandon and Jacobs took the score to 88 before a visible tired looking Jacobs lofted Coetsee to long off in the 14th over to bring 20-year-old Jonathon Foo to the crease. Esuan Crandon (3) was then run out as two wickets fell for no run in the 14th over which cost just 3 runs. Foo got going with an edge to 3rd man for 4 before crumbling to the ground in discomfort after digging out a yorker for a single two balls later.
The 100 was posted in 14.5 and Royston Crandon slapped a free hit from the lively Alexander for six over point as 13 came in the 16th over.  A perfect yorker scattered Royston Crandon (15) stumps with the first ball of the 17th over to leave the score on 115-7 while Foo, who took 8 balls for his 9, played all over a full length ball from O’Reilly and was bowled at 116-8.
Derwin Christian flicked Frylinck for 4 while Cush was dropped at cover off the 3rd ball of the over before lofting the pacer easily over long-off for six.   A flicked boundary from Cush was the only boundary scored in the 19th over as the Guyanese could only gather 8 runs from the penultimate over from Zander de Bruyn while Christian (11) was taken at long –on in the final over off Frylinck.
Cush, who made 19 not out from 10 balls with 2 fours and a six, could only manage a leg bye off the final ball of the innings as Guyana finished 12 runs short of the 160 Sarwan said his team were aiming for at the start of the innings.
When the Lion began their reply, Esuan Crandon’s first 3 deliveries went past the bat of Vandiar while the 4th was edged to 3rd man for single. Petersen flicked the 5th ball past the short fine leg for 4 to begin the African dominance in their own backyard.
Cush, who shared the new ball with Crandon, saw Barnwell at extra cover drop Vandiar off his second ball and then strayed on leg stump and was flicked over short fine leg for 4 by the left-hander and after 2 overs the home team were 15-0.  Crandon silenced the crowd when he removed Vandiar but that was to be the last success for the no more than 10 Guyanese supporters in the ground.
Petersen edged Cush to the 3rd man boundary as the 4th over produced 5 runs but the Skipper released the pressure with a huge six over mid-wicket and a spanking four through the covers in Crandon’s 3rd over which cost 16 runs.
The Lions were 44-1 after the 6 ‘power-play’ overs and Crandon, surprisingly asked to bowl his 4 overs on the trot, was dumped over long-on for six and smashed to the extra cover boundary by Cameron after starting his final over with consecutive wides.
Crandon (4-0-34-1) conceded 29 runs in his last two overs as the pendulum swung in the Lion’s favour as the 50 was posted in the 7th over.
Cameron cut leg-spinner Davindra Bishoo for 4 in his first over which cost 5 runs as the hosts capitalized on too many ‘boundary balls’ from the visitors.  Petersen pulled Barnwell for 6 to post the 50-run partnership in the 9th over and swept Bishoo for another boundary in the next over and Cameron joined the fun by back cutting the leg-spinner for 4. After 10 overs the Lions were scoring at over 8 runs per over at 84-1.
Esuan Crandon totally mis-judged a catch at long-off with Cameron on 34 and the score 85-1 in the 11th over off the unlucky Barnwell and did not even touch the ball as it went for six. Barnwell, who had Sachin Tendulkar dropped off his bowling off successive balls in Durban, then watched in dismay as Christian dropped Petersen on 39 in the same over.
Cameron ‘smoked’ Royston Crandon to the extra cover boundary to bring up the 100 in the 12th over while Petersen reverse swept the part-time off-spinner for another 4 in an expensive opening over.
Cameron plundered Bishoo for six to reach his century and post the 100 partnership and celebrated with another massive six in the over and the fans were dancing in the stands as the runs flowed.
Guyana’s buttered fingered display continued when Royston Crandon put down Petersen off his own bowling. Cameron added salt to Guyana’s wounds by hammering Crandon for a 6 and 4 off successive balls in the 14th over and the contest was fast becoming a mis-match.
A ball went right through Foo at long-on for four to give Petersen his 50 as Guyana’s out cricket got from bad to worse.  Cameron then hit Cush ‘miles’ over long-on before a single off Jacobs’ first ball ended the match giving the hosts and emphatic victory with 4.5 overs to spare.
Guyana, the only team in Zone B without a win, will play their final match against unbeaten South Australian Redbacks tomorrow and will hope for an improved showing to salvage some national pride.
Scores: Lions 149 for 1 (Cameron 78*, Petersen 57*) beat Guyana 148 for 9 (Jacobs 34, O’Reilly 4-27) by nine wickets.

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