Guyana retain WI Four-day crown, Barbados slip up on last day

Guyana Harpy Eagles retained their West Indies Regional Four-day Championship title at the conclusion of the seventh and final round on April 20, as the three other teams in the top four all failed to register wins in the last round.

After coming into the final round in third spot on the eight-team table, the Harpy Eagles shot to the top of the table with 103.8 points after completing a facile eight-wicket victory against the the cellar-placed Combined Campuses and Colleges at the University of the West Indies, St Augustine on April 19.

Windward Islands Volcanoes and Barbados Pride entered the final round in first and second spots respectively, while the Leeward Islands Hurricanes, who entered the round in fourth spot, also had a shot at claiming the title.

In an unexpected turn of events, the Pride slipped up in the last round as they fell to a narrow three-wicket loss to the sixth-placed West Indies Academy at Coolidge Cricket Ground in Antigua. With the shock loss, Barbados (92.8 points) slipped to fourth on the table.

Meanwhile, at the Queen's Park Oval, St Clair, Leewards and Windwards met in a keen head-to-head clash as both teams took aim at clinching the crown. When the dust settled at approximately 5.30 pm on April 20 on an overcast day at the Oval, though, neither team could boast of being the regional champions as they settled for a draw.

Set a daunting target of 416 for victory, Windwards progressed to 184 for four at lunch on the final day. However, a lengthy rain stoppage stopped both teams in their tracks as neither could push on to get the critical win.

In the end, Windwards closed their second innings on 296 for seven, with West Indies under-19 captain Stephan Pascal top-scoring with 63. Lanky left-arm spinner Daniel Doram grabbed four for 65 for the Leewards.

Windwards finished an agonising second with 98.2 points, while Leewards finished third with 94 points. Trinidad and Tobago Red Force placed fifth with 92 points.

At the Oval, Cricket West Indies (CWI) president Kishore Shallow and Director of Cricket, Miles Bascombe, were on hand to present the Harpy Eagles with their winners' medals and their US$250,000 first-place prize.