Motie-Kanhai & Perreira spin Lower Corentyne to title

Oct 13, 2010 Sports

Lower Corentyne inspired by the spin duo of Gudakesh Motie-Kanhai and Shawn Perreira defeated New Amsterdam/Canje by 57 runs to lift the Republic Bank sponsored Under-17 Inter Zone competition.
The two-day final was played at the Albion Community Centre and produced a very high level of cricket in the Berbice Cricket Board organised tournament.

Republic Bank Manager, Mr. Imran Sacoor hands over trophy to captain Shawn Perreir of the Lower Corentyne Under-17 Inter-zone team.

Batting first after winning the toss Lower Corentyne were given a solid start of 39 between openers Kandasammy Surujnarine (30) and Sachin Dhaniram (12) before the elegant Dhaniram was caught off the bowling of off spinner Kevin Ramdeen.
Ramdeen in tandem with Andel De Jonge and Totaram Sooknanan bowled well to eventually dismiss Lower Corentyne for 157 in 55 of their allotted 60 first innings overs. Middle order batsman Shailendra Shameer top scored with an aggressive 48 (5×4, 1×6) and received support from Loyden Lewis 15, Veerapen Permaul 14 and Collis Cort 12 not out.
Ramdeen claimed 5-65 off 19 overs, De Jonge 2-22 from 14 overs and Sooknanan 2-15. In reply the visitors lost promising opener Shimron Hetmyer in the first over, caught at the wicket off pacer Jamal Jarvis for 4. It soon became 33-3 when leg spinner Shawn Perreira dismissed Devendra Jainabi (5) and Linden Austin in the same over.
They were eventually dismissed for 109 in 52 overs with opener Romario De Jonge leading with 43 (5×4), Totaram Sooknanan 25 and Andel De Jonge 14. Motie-Kanhai had bowling figures of 14.1-7-19-4 while Perreira took 4-37 off 16 overs.
With a first innings lead of 48, Lower Corentyne only needed a draw to claim the title but made a sporting declaration at tea on the second day at 133-5. Kandasammy Surujnarine 40, Veerapen Permaul 43 and Sachin Dhaniram 20 batted well for the home team while Ramdeen completed a fine match with the ball to claim 3-40 and a match haul of 8-105. Sooknanan also claimed 2-8.
Needing to score 182 to win in two hours ( a total of 33 overs) to register a come from behind victory, New Amsterdam/Canje had their supporters on their feet as they batted positively until they collapsed from a healthy 117-5 to be dismissed for 125 with 30 minutes of play still available.
Shimron Hetmyer stroked a top score of 30, Andel De Jonge22, Linden Austin 21, Kevin Ramdeen 20 and Romario De Jonge 15. Motie-Kanhai spun webs around the batsmen to claim 5-23 from 10 overs while Perreira had 3-37 and Lloydel Lewis 2-18.
Meanwhile, at the Port Mourant Ground West Berbice and Upper Corentyne clashed in a 50 overs match to decide the third place winner, National Under-15 player Parmanand Narine was in brilliant form striking a superb 150 (20×4) to lead his team Upper Corentyne to a crushing 222 run triumph over West Berbice.
Narine and Akeem Bowling (59) added 190 for the 3rd wicket as Upper Corentyne amassed a huge 290-6 in their allotted overs. Kurd Griffith was the only West Berbice bowler to escape the punishment and took career best 6-36 off 9 overs.
In reply West Berbice were dismissed for 68 in 21 overs; Ramesh Ridwaan 19 and K. Kelsey 16 the only batters to reach double figures. Bowling for Upper Corentyne, medium pacer Trevor Thomas and Shazam Rash each took 3-15, Bisham Deolall grabbed 3-10.
At the presentation ceremony, Public Relations Officer of the Berbice Cricket Board Hilbert Foster noted that the tournament as a resounding success and praised Republic Bank for their continued investment in Berbice cricket.
He said that the County was dominating cricket at all levels in Guyana. Treasurer of the Board Anil Beharry expressed his appreciation for the high standard of cricket played in the finals and expressed confidence that with the rich talent available in the County, the future is bright for them.
Beharry also expressed gratitude to Republic Bank for sponsoring the tournament which he believes plays a crucial part in the development of any cricketer at the Under-17 level.
Manager of Republic Bank, New Amsterdam Branch, Mr. Imran Sacoor in remarks stated that the Bank strongly believed in the development of young people and as such has invested heavily in sports, culture and education.
He congratulated the Berbice Board for organising a successful tournament and challenged the young cricketers to remain focused and disciplined.
Lower Corentyne received the winner’s trophy and $50,000 while the three other teams in the tournament also received cash prizes. Motie-Kanhai received a trophy and $5,000 as his man-of-the-match prize.
Meanwhile, Chairman of the Berbice Cricket Board Junior Selection Committee Leslie Solomon at the end of the tournament announced an eighteen (18) man Elite squad based on performances in the tournament to start preparation for an Under-17 Inter County match which has been arranged by the Berbice Board against Demerara.
The team would be led by Shawn Perreira with Lloydel Lewis as his deputy. The rest of the squad reads Kandasammy Surujnarine, Trevor Thomas, Veerapen Permaul, Romario De Jonge, Parmanand Narine, Linden Austin, Devendra Jainabi, Shailendra Shameer, Kevin Ramdeen, Collis Cort, Gudakesh Motie-Kanhai, Jamal Jarvis, Shimron Hetmyer, Bisham Persaudie Deodat, Grisean Grant and Akeem Bowling.