Latest update November 13th, 2024 1:00 AM
GCI/GCB Jaguars 50-over Franchise League… Barnwell, Johnson, MoM Torrington spearhead GT to win over West Demerara
Chris Barnwell drives during his 84 for GT yesterday.
Leon Jonhson cuts during his third consecutive fifty at Bourda yesterday.
Romario Shepherd punches Barnwell in his 26-ball 65 in a losing cause at Bourda yesterday.
By Sean Devers
An entertaining 143-run fourth wicket stand between Leon Johnson and Chris Barnwell was followed up by a four-wicket haul from pacer Qumar Torrington as defending champions Georgetown (GT) beat West Demerara by 26 runs on the DLS system yesterday when their GCB Jaguars 50-over Franchise League game was stopped due to bad light at Bourda.
In a match which initially started 35 minutes late and had another 40 minutes lost due to rain after four overs, GT opted to bat on slow track and heavy outfield and led by the century partnership between Barnwell who smashed 84 (8×4 3×6) and Skipper Johnson who made a fluent 76 (5×4 1×6) led their team to 278-7 in the game reduced to 49 overs.
Robin Bacchus 38 (4×4 1×6) and Raymon Perez (20) added 68 for the first wicket as off-spinner Richie Looknauth bowled impressively in a 10-over spell to pick-up 3-13 while CPL pacers Shepheard (3-70) and Bajan Raymon Reifer (1-53) produced expensive 10-over spells in sultry conditions.
West Demerara recovered from 89-5 to reach 246-9 off 44.1 over when the match was halted in near darkness with Shepherd, who played for the Warriors in the CPL, lifting hopes of victory with a belligerent 65 (8×4 2×6) from just 26 balls and shared in a 71-run seventh wicket stand with Mahendra Dhanpaul (24) before Looknauth clobbered 2 sixes and 2 fours to finish unbeaten on 27 in a last wicket stand of 42. Jamaican Off-SpinnerRamal Lewis supported Torrington with 2-34.
Bacchus clipped Reifer off his hips for four and got a leading edge over point for six when he attempted a flick the left-arm pacer but he was stumped off the 19-year-old Looknauth who also removed Perez and Dexter Solomon (3) in the space of 10 runs to leave the City side on 84-3 after the 50 was posted in 7.2 overs.
The partnership between Johnson and Barnwell with the latter dumping Hubert for six and Johnson sliced Reifer over point for six before caressing him next ball imperiously to the extra cover boundary in an over which 16.
Barnwell hit Dhanpaul for six while Johnson deposited a full toss from Reifer into the Ladies Pavilion before Johnson, with scores of 70 not out in the first round and 83 not out in the second, cut Reifer to point at 227-4 in the 44th over.
Lewis (7) edged a big swing off Shepherd ‘miles’ into the air and Keeper Tevin Imlach, running back about 40 yards held a stupendous catch diving full length forward at 250-6. Barnwell dumped Shepherd back over his head for six and pulled him savagely for four before flicking the Barbican to the man on the Square leg fence to leave the home team 262-7.
Shepherd then had 17-year-old Adrian Hinds (3) caught behind at 272-7 before the overs were completed shortly after. When West Demerara began their reply needing to score at 5.6 per over to win, Renaldo Renee (14) Tagenarine Chanderpaul (24) both got starts before they were dismissed while Torrington trapped Imlach (9) LBW as two wickets fell at 54.
Reifer (21) also failed to build on his start when he was spectacularly bowled by Barnwell before Akshaya Persaud was run out for five and at 112-6 it seemed the contest would soon be over. But Shepherd hit Ashmead Nedd for a couple of big sixes before hit Johnson’s leg-spin for six and when the Jaguars Captain changed to pace he pulled him disdainfully for six more.
Johnson fired in two short balls before a brilliant catch in the deep ended his explosive knock off Torrington, who also got rid of Dhanpaul and Hubert. Looknauth then hit Torrington for a six and two fours before bad light ended the contest.
GT, on the back of three consecutive wins, are level at the top with Essequibo who won their game yesterday and will face-off in a top of the table clash at Bourda tomorrow from 09:00hrs
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