Tony Becca, Contributing EditorWHEN THE Carib Beer Series cricket match at Chedwin Park got under way on Friday, front-runners Jamaica needed six points to put away the title, and although it is never over until it is over, thanks to fast bowler Daren Powell, it appears Jamaica are on the way.
At stumps on yesterday's second day's play, the scoreboard read, Jamaica 522 for 9 declared, Barbados 162 for seven, and with Barbados needing another 360 runs to win first innings points, the odds, despite the presence of Ryan Hinds who is not out on 80 after batting for 115 minutes, facing only 75 deliveries and hitting 10 fours and two sixes, are on Jamaica to win the lead, to pick up six points, and in doing so, to crown themselves champions of the West Indies.
Batting as well as they did on the opening day, Jamaica once again thrilled a fair-sized crowd with some wonderful stroke play not only by David Bernard Jnr., 81, and Gareth Breese, 54 not out, but also by Carlton Baugh Jnr., Powell and Jerome Taylor who scored 22, 26 and 24 respectively.
GOOD SEASON
The two men who really left Jamaica in the driver's seat entering today's third day, however, were Powell the fast bowler who has been enjoying a good season, who bowled fast really fast, and who, in his first two overs, rocked Barbados with three quick wickets, and Brown the right-arm legspinner who picked up two wickets in his first over.
Bowling from the north, Powell removed Sherwin Campbell for zero at zero for one with the second delivery of the innings the batsman going back and gloving a catch to Chris Gayle at first slip, Dale Richards for zero at zero for two a good length delivery in the same over ripping out the offstump, and Martin Nurse for eight at nine for three in the third over the left-hander hooking and presenting Taylor with a simple catch coming off the long-leg boundary.
Replacing Powell at 68 for three with Ryan Hinds and Dwayne Smith, 45, blasting the ball to and over the boundary, Brown knocked the Bajans dizzy with two quick wickets.
WICKETS TUMBLE
The first to go was Smith at 68 for four the batsman, after smashing four fours and three sixes, driving a return catch to the bowler, the second was Patrick Browne for zero at 68 for five the batsman falling leg before wicket to a well pitched googly, and after that Marlon Samuels and Taylor tightened the screws by removing Courtney Browne and Jason Parris one at 117 for six, the other at 138 for seven.
Resuming at 310 for four with Wavell Hinds on 144 and Bernard on 17, Jamaica lost captain Hinds for 153 at 342 for five when the left-hander went back and pulled the left-handed pacer Ian Bradshaw straight to Smith at square-leg.
After that it was a lovely exhibition of stroke play as Jamaica attempted to bat Barbados out of the game and ended with their highest total of the season before Hinds called the declaration a few minutes after tea.
Baugh, the little man who is known for his audacity, hit three boundaries including a superb front-foot drive off Corey Collymore to the long-off boundary before he stroked a return catch to the pacer; Powell, the fast bowler who backs himself as a batsman, embarrassed Tino Best when he went back and pulled the region's fastest bowler straight back over his head before hitting left-arm spinner Ryan Hinds straight to Nurse on the mid-wicket boundary; and Taylor, another fast bowler who believes he can bat, sent the fans into ecstasy when he eased his left foot forward and drove part-time offspinner Campbell over long-off for six.
The strokes of the day, however, came from Bernard who stroked 11 boundaries while facing 117 deliveries in 174 minutes, and from Breese who stroked six boundaries in 133 minutes off 96 deliveries.
SCOREBOARD
JAMAICA 1st Innings
(overnight 310 for four)
W. Hinds c Smith b Bradshaw 153
D. Bernard c Richards b Best 81
+C. Baugh c and b Collymore 22
G. Breese not out 54
D. Powell c Nurse b Hinds 26
J. Taylor stBrowne b Campbell 24
Extras (b2, lb8, w5, nb23) 38
TOTAL (9 wkts decl'd) 522
Fall of wickets: 1-21, 2-76, 3-270, 4-281, 5-342, 6-386, 7-422, 8-472,
9-522.
Bowling: Collymore 27-6-60-2 (nb2); Best 19-1-101-2 (nb10, w5); Bradshaw
25-5-82-1 (nb2); Hinds 48-6-151-2 (nb6); Smith 22-5-83-1; Nurse 2-1-5-0;
Campbell 5.3-0-30-1 (nb2).
BARBADOS 1st Innings
S. Campbell c Gayle b Powell 0
M. Nurse c Taylor b Powell 8
D. Richards b Powell 0
D. Smith c and b Brown 45
R. Hinds not out 80
P. Browne lbw b Brown 0
C. Browne c wkpr Baugh b Samuels 7
J. Parris b Taylor 10
I. Bradshaw not out 14
Extras (b1, lb5, nb2) 8
TOTAL (7 wkts) 162
Fall of wickets: 1-0, 2-0, 3-9, 4-68, 5-68, 6-117, 7-138.
Bowling: Powell 5-1-29-3; Taylor 6-0-43-1 (nb2); Bernard 2-0-9-0; Brown 6-1-31-2; Breese 5-0-25-0; Samuels 5-0-19-1.
Position: Barbados trail Jamaica by 360 runs with three first innings
wickets standing.
Umpires: N. Malcolm, A. Christopher.
