Confident Red Force look for the double vs Jaguars

A CONFIDENT TT Red Force team will be looking to complete the double against leaders Guyana Jaguars when both teams square off today in a Round Ten encounter of the West Indies Four Day Championship.

This will be a day/night fixture, starting at 2 pm each day, at the Providence Stadium, Guyana.

Both teams met at the Queen’s Park Oval, St Clair in a sixth-round match, with the Red Force prevailing by 93 runs.

Guyana Jaguars sit atop the six-team standings with 136 points, while the Red Force, who have a game in hand, are fifth with 85.6 points.

Red Force coach Mervyn Dillon, in a telephone interview yesterday, said the team, captained by former West Indies wicketkeeper/batsman Denesh Ramdin, is aware that the Jaguars are on the brink of a fifth straight title. Still, he is confident in his team’s chances against the hosts.

“We had a good session (on Tuesday), as the boys called it their Carnival Tuesday workout,” said Dillon. “That was fun. We had some music at the practice.”

Dillon, the former TT and WI fast bowler, continued, “We’ve been taking one game at a time. We know the Jaguars, how capable they are especially at home but we are very confident in our abilities and the way we’ve continued to improve.

“(The Red Force are) up for the challenge, knowing they’re playing the top team in the tournament. We beat them at home and it’s something that the guys are very confident and (they) look forward to the challenge. I think once we play the cricket that we echo in the camp and play the cricket that we’re confident of, we know there are only positives that could come from that.”

Keemo Paul, who took seven wickets and scored a stroke-filled 66 in the first innings of the earlier Red Force-Jaguars clash, is out with a hamstring injury. The Jaguars have not been their invincible selves this year, having lost three out of their nine games this season.

According to Dillon, “Most of the guys are familiar with the conditions here in Guyana and we have some experienced players here as well. We know that Guyana is a very tough team to beat, especially at home. We also know that the cricket that we would play are glimpses of what we are capable of. Once we continue to build on that and be more consistent, there is no team that we can’t beat.

“We’re both playing in the same conditions so it’s basically who come out better,” he added. “This is the fifth title in a row that they’re looking to complete but, at the same time, the guys are enjoying their cricket, feeding off each other and really look forward to the challenge. They’re really confident.”

The Red Force cruised past the Windward Islands Volcanoes by 191 runs in St Vincent last weekend, with leg-spinner Imran Khan taking 10 wickets and off-spinner Bryan Charles seven.

But Dillon thinks the pacers can come to the fore at Providence.

“What I’m hearing is that the pitch is playing evenly, there is some pace and some grass on the pitch,” he said. We’ll have a look at it again (this) morning and make the best decision.”

In other Four-Day matches today, cellar-placed Jamaica Scorpions (82.4 points) will be entertaining third-placed Barbados Pride (96 pts) at Sabina Park and second-placed Leeward Islands (110.8 pts) will be hosting fourth-placed Windward Islands (86 pts) at the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Ground in Antigua.