Guyana Harpy Eagles clinch Four-Day title after draw with Red Force

Guyana Harpy Eagles clinched their eighth West Indies Four-Day Championship in ten years on April 12, as their final round clash with Trinidad and Tobago Red Force ended in a draw at the Queen's Park Oval, St Clair.

It was also a third straight regional four-day title for the Guyanese team and the second consecutive title with skipper Tevin Imlach at the helm.

Guyana came into the final round with a slender 6.2-point lead over the Red Force and they entered the fourth and final day's play in an advantageous position.

With Guyana jumping out to a 223-run lead after the first innings, Red Force still had a deficit to clear as they started day four on 101 for two – still needing 122 runs to make Guyana bat again.

The Red Force's second innings was a mixed bag as they struggled to find the balance between boosting their scoring rate and preserving wickets.

The hosts eventually declared on 370 for nine early in the final session, with Jason Mohammed (125 off 186 balls) and skipper Joshua Da Silva (77 off 79) being the mainstays in the innings, to go along with Amir Jangoo who made 50.

Da Silva and Mohammed increased the tempo after lunch and put on 140 for the fifth wicket, with the latter scoring his fourth century of the season to go past the 600-run mark.

When the Red Force declaration came after spinner Ashmead Nedd (four for 105) got the wickets of Mohammed and Terrance Hinds (two), Guyana were set an improbable target of 148 late in the day.

Raymond Perez (26 not out) got the Guyana innings off to a swift start, but the innings was stopped after ten overs as the teams settled for a draw around 4.15 pm. Guyana closed on 33 without loss.

With an April 12 Cricket West Indies confirming that veteran spinner Veerasammy Permaul and Kevlon Anderson were fined for ball-tampering during the contest, it did little to dampen Guyanese spirits as they were crowned regional champs once again.

Guyana ended the campaign with 126.6 points, with the Red Force finishing with 111.

Summarised Scores:

TT RED FORCE – 240 (Jyd Goolie 58, Cephas Cooper 50, Khary Pierre 38; Nial Smith 4/49, Keemo Paul 3/45) & 370/9 declared (Jason Mohammed 125, Joshua Da Silva 77, Amir Jangoo 50; Ashmead Nedd 4/105, Veerasammy Permaul 3/138) vs GUYANA HARPY EAGLES – 463 (K Paul 93, Raymond Perez 82, V Permaul 52 not out; K Pierre 4/119, J Goolie 2/29) & 33/0 (R Perez 26 not out). Match Drawn.