Evin Lewis, Lendl Simmons shine at Bago T10 Blast

FORMER West Indies star Lendl Simmons and out-of-favour opener Evin Lewis both made grand entrances into the 2024 Dream11 Bago T10 Blast tournament this week, as they put in Man-of-the-Match performances on their debuts to guide their respective teams to victories.

Fresh from lifting the Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board (TTCB) National League premiership I crown with Central Sports on March 24, Simmons made a brutal 56 runs off just 20 balls on March 26 as he led his Store Bay Snorkelers team to a 13-run win against the defending champions No Man’s Land Explorers at the Shaw Park Recreational Ground, Scarborough.

Batting first, Store Bay made a solid score of 148 for five in their ten overs, before restricting No Man’s Land to 135 for three. Leron Lezama cracked 52 for No Man’s Land.

However, Store Bay defied the defending champions to get their second win in three matches, with Dillon Douglas’ spell of one for 16 helping them over the line.

On March 27, former West Indies under-19 player Anderson Mahase played a blinder of an innings as he helped No Man’s Land rebound from their loss to Store Bay with a thrilling six-run win over King’s Bay Royals.

No Man’s Land batted first in the encounter and they got to a modest 101 for six in their ten overs, with Mahase (31 not out off eight balls) and skipper Ako George (21 not out off ten balls) sharing in a breathless 51-run stand off just 15 balls to end their team’s innings in rollicking fashion. No Man’s scored a whopping 42 runs off their last two overs and they carried that momentum into their bowling effort to reduce King’s Bay to 95 for six.

Jabari Mills top-scored with King’s Bay with 25, while Kristopher Ramsaran chipped in with 22. However, tight bowling from both Navin Bidaisee (two for five) and Andy Davis (two for nine) guided No Man’s Land to their second win in five games.

Also on March 27, the belligerent Lewis made a top-score of 79 as he pushed the Pirate’s Bay Raiders to a comprehensive 45-run win against the Pigeon Point Skiers.

With Lewis playing shots all around the Shaw Park compound, the Raiders made a tournament-high score of 169 for four from their ten overs, before reducing Pigeon Point to 124 for four.

The pair of Akeil Cooper (49) and Mbeki Joseph (42) threatened to cut loose in pursuit of the 170-run target, but the Raiders held their own to join Mt Irvine Surfers as the only other team with three wins in the tournament to date.

Summarised Scores:

March 26

PIGEON POINT SKIERS – 153/2 from 10 overs (Mbeki Joseph 79; Shaquille Thomas 1/9) vs KING’S BAY ROYALS – 143/5 from 10 overs (Mikkel Govia 52; Donavan Roberts 1/5). Pigeon Point won by ten runs.

STORE BAY SNORKELERS – 148/5 from 10 overs (Lendl Simmons 56; Keon ISaac 2/22) vs NO MAN’S LAND EXPLORERS – 135/3 from 10 overs (Leron Lezama 52; Dillon Douglas 1/16). Store Bay won by 13 runs.

March 27

PIRATE’S BAY RAIDERS – 169/4 from 10 overs (Evin Lewis 79; Daron Cruichshank 2/42) vs PIGEON POINT SKIERS – 124/4 from 10 overs (Akeil Cooper 49; Christopher Vincent 1/14). Pirate’s Bay won by 45 runs.

NO MAN’S EXPLORERS – 101/6 from 10 overs (Anderson Mahase 31; Kristopher Ramsaran 1/9) vs KING’S BAY ROYALS – 95/6 from 10 overs (Jabari Mills 25; Nain Bidaisee 2/5). No Man’s Land won by six runs.