Latest update January 24th, 2025 4:31 AM
Latest News
CWI Regional four-day cricket Several factors contributed to Jaguars showing this season
By Sean Devers
Despite the last round win by T&T over leaders Barbados Pride, Guyana Jaguars could only manage a draw against the Leewards Hurricanes at Providence leaving the Bajans with a 31.8 lead over second placed Jaguars heading into the eighth round.
Skipper Leon Johnson has his eyes on a Jaguars win against B’dos.
Veerasammy Permaul has 49 wickets.
Guyana, who battle Barbados in a top of the table clash from tomorrow in a Day/Night encounter on home soil, sit on 85.8 points in a ‘must win’ game for the home team.
While Barbados has won five and lost two of their seven matches to earn 60 points for their wins, the rest of their points came from 14 batting points, 21 bowling points and 21 fast bowling points.
Without their West Indies pace pair of Romario Shepherd and Keemo Paul and the dominance of left arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul who 49 wickets so far, the Jaguars have managed just 9.8 fast bowling points in their three wins, two defeats and two draws.
The Jaguars, despite Permaul’s exploits and that of pacer Nial Smith with 20 wickets so far in his debut season, has three bowling points less than the Bajans, while their 42 match points have been accumulated from their three wins and two draws.
A team gets three points for taking all ten of the opposition wickets inside 110 overs, while each wicket taken by a pacer earns their team .2 of a point in both innings.
In the last three seasons Permaul had 46, 50 and 42 wickets but the pacers were all pentitrative which aided to the fast bowling points and the number of catches taken by Wicket-Keeper Anthony Bramble.
This reduction of bowling and fast bowling points was one of factors affecting the Jaguars this season.
The Jaguars batsmen have passed 50 on 17 occasions but only Leon Johnson and Christopher Barnwell have converted into centuries.
Chris Barnwell has been Guyana most consistent batsman this season.
Tagenarine Chanderpaul has been disappointing.
The low conversion rate with batsmen being dismissed when well set; Vishaul Singh was twice out in the 90s, continues to be a major worry.
Johnson looks in good nick with 460 runs including an unbeaten 189 against the Windwards in Dominica. He has two half-centuries to go with his ton and averages 41.81. But his strike of 45.58 is a bit on the low side in this modern era of First-Class cricket.
Barnwell, Guyana’s most consistent batsman this season, has 424 runs with a century and two half centuries and his strike rate of 66.56 is very good.
Singh (378 runs with three fifties and a strike rate of 41.22 from six matches), Chanderpaul Hemraj (329 runs with 3 fifties and a strike rate of 62.54 from 6 matches) and Bramble (317 runs with 3 fifties and a strike rate of 84.30) are the only other batsmen with over 300 runs.
Opener Tagenarine Chanderpaul’s 298 runs from 13 innings at an average of 27.9 with three fifties, has been a major disappointment, while his strike rate of 26.2 is unacceptable.
Raymon Reifer (229 runs at a strike rate of 38.55) is the only other batsman with 200 runs, while off-spinning all-rounder Kevin Sinclair (127 runs from 10 innings at an average of 15.87) has been disappointing in his debut season.
The low strike rate is another reason why Jaguars have not yet managed to get the maximum five batting points.
Apart from Permaul who registered a career best 8-18 this season and Smith who had a five-wicket haul on debut, only Reifer (13) and Keon Joseph (12) has reached 10 wickets which is an indictment on our bowling attack’s capability on dismissing a team twice to win.
Sinclair’s negative line and lack of flight makes him a ‘tight’ but unpenitrative off-spinner which is another reason why Jaguars struggle to dismiss teams twice.
Another important reason for Guyana’s dominance in the past five seasons is that while a few Guyanese were selected for the West Indies and our core was together for most of the time.
The other teams, especially Barbados, were depleted due to their players gaining West Indies selection.
But with the teams including most of their Test players who are not a part of the Sri Lanka ODI and T20 series, Jaguars have found the going a bit tougher this season.
Last year we lost three matches but still took the title while this season we already lost two with three matches remaining including tomorrow’s all important game against Barbados.
Assistant Coach Julian Moore declined to comment toKaieteur Sports on his debut First-Class game as Coach which Guyana drew with the Leewards on Sunday at Providence.
Similar Articles
THE BLUNT OF THE DAY
Sports
Features/Columnists
Berbice and Jagdeo’s legacy
Peeping Tom… Kaieteur News-By any reckoning, Region 6 should have been Guyana’s most prosperous region. It has a... more
OAS Secretary General Election and renewed OAS Consensus
Antiguan Barbudan Ambassador to the United States, Sir Ronald Sanders By Sir Ronald Sanders Kaieteur News- The upcoming election... more
Weekend Cartoon
