Scorpions' bowlers leave Red Force on the ropes

ON the second day of their day/night West Indies Four-Day Championship clash with Jamaica Scorpions at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba, title-chasers TT Red Force found themselves in a world of worry against Jamaica Scorpions at press time on April 3.

At 7.36 pm, TT were bowled out for 171 in 44.2 overs, giving the Scorpions a mammoth 201-run lead at the end of the first innings. Despite having a 200-plus run-lead, Jamaica opted against enforcing the follow-on.

TT captain Joshua Da Silva (86 off 119 balls) fought valiantly as he tried to give his team’s innings substance, but he was the last man to be dismissed when Brandon King took a brilliant catch at mid-wicket off the bowling of spinner Brad Barnes (one for eight).

Earlier, with Javelle Glenn (140 not out off 234 balls) hitting his maiden First Class century, the Scorpions posted a formidable score of 372. With the visitors resuming from their overnight score of 274 for six, joy came for Glenn in the first over of the day’s play when he played a ball through the slip cordon to get to three figures.

Glenn’s partner Abhijai Mansingh (67) added 16 to his overnight score before he was dismissed by Joshua James (three for 40) as he chased a leg-side delivery. Together, Glenn and Mansingh put on 148 runs for the seventh wicket and rescued the innings from a precarious position of 151 for six on day one.

The left-handed Glenn struck 12 fours and four sixes in his innings and found solid support from the lower order as Odean Smith (16), Marquino Mindley (11) and Ojay Shields (12) all got into the double figures. Glenn’s last-wicket partnership with Shields yielded 40 runs and frustrated the hosts before the latter fell to off-spinner Bryan Charles (one for 80).

James was the pick of the Red Force bowlers, while Khary Pierre took three for 87.

TT’s start with the bat was disastrous as opening batsmen Cephas Cooper and Kamil Pooran were both dismissed by pacer Marquino Mindley (three for 37) without scoring to leave their team on two for two. Mindley had a brilliant opening spell and he got his third scalp when Amir Jangoo (nine) was caught at first slip by Jermaine Blackwood.

The Red Force were five down for just 39 when Pierre (one) was comprehensively bowled by Ojay Shields (two for 32), while this season’s top scorer Jason Mohammed (ten) was bowled by by Odean Smith.

The aggressive Terrance Hinds (29 off 25) hit two sixes in a lively cameo before he was bowled by Shields as TT slipped to 77 for six.

The Red Force limped to 79 for six by the 5.20 pm dinner break, with Yannic Cariah, who suffered a hamstring injury on day one, hobbling off the field.

In the final session, TT lost James (eight), Charles (golden duck) and Shannon Gabriel (one) to the leg-spin of Mansingh (three for 41), but captain Da Silva soldiered on and blazed his way past the fifty landmark.

Manipulating the strike and doing the bulk of the scoring, Da Silva added 25 with Gabriel and a further 24 with the hampered Cariah before the combination of Barnes and King brought TT’s innings to an end.

At press time, the Jamaican opening pair of Kirk McKenzie and captain John Campbell were beginning their team’s second innings.

Summarised Scores:

JAMAICA SCORPIONS – 372 (Javelle Glenn 140 not out, Abhijai Mansingh 67, Jermaine Blackwood 61; Joshua James 3/40, Khary Pierre 3/87) vs TT RED FORCE – 171 (Joshua Da Silva 86, Terrance Hinds 29; Marquino Mindley 3/37, A Mansingh 3/41).

WINDWARD ISLANDS VOLCANOES – 186 (Sunil Ambris 110, Noelle Leo 27; Matthew Forde 2/19, Ramon Simmonds 2/32) & 203/4 (Alick Athanaze 78, Kavem Hodge 77, Shadrack Descarte 20 not out) vs BARBADOS PRIDE – 198 (M Forde 43, Kyle Mayers 40, Shayne Moseley 22; Keon Gaston 6/52, Gilon Tyson 3/49).

GUYANA HARPY EAGLES – 193 (Kevlon Anderson 77 not out, Keemo Paul 31, Ronaldo Alimohammed 30; Rahkeem Cornwall 3/25, Hayden Walsh Jr 2/26) & 137/1 (Matthew Nandu 53 not out, Raymond Perez 49, K Anderson 31 not out) vs LEEWARD ISLANDS HURRICANES – 335 (Keacy Carty 92, Jahmar Hamilton 80, Mikyle Louis 73; R Alimohammed 5/91, Nial Smith 3/62).

CCC – 238 (Shaqkere Parris 52, Kyle Corbin 48, Johan Jeremiah 47; Joshua Bishop 6/78, Zishan Motara 2/57) & 35/0 (J Jeremiah 22 not out) vs WEST INDIES ACADEMY – 316 (Teddy Bishop 99, Mbeki Joseph 65, J Bishop 26; Chemar Holder 4/81, Jaden Edmund 2/38).