CAVE HILL, Barbados, CMC – Trinidad & Tobago suffered a batting collapse of their own, after Ravi Rampaul shrugged off the disappointment of being overlooked for West Indies’ tour of England later this month to undermine the Combined Campuses & Colleges’ batting yesterday in the WICB regional four-day competition for the Headley/Weekes Trophy.
T&T wobbled to 95 for six, replying to the CCC’s first innings total of 153, at the close on the opening day in the final round match at the Three Ws Oval.
Rampaul had collected 6-44 from 14 overs, as T&T sent the CCC in to bat and dismissed them about 15 minutes before tea.
The CCC owed much to No.11 Khismar Catlin. He struck two fours and three sixes from 50 balls in about three quarters-of-an-hour to help them reach a respectable total.
Catlin’s new-ball partner Shevron Penco then helped the CCC bowlers hit back, by taking 3-32 from 10 overs, and off-spinner Ryan Austin 2-38 from 13 overs to destabilise the T&T batting.
Penco removed openers Adrian Barath and Imran Khan for eight and one respectively to catches to fielders in the slips. Discarded West Indies batsman Daren Ganga and Darren Bravo, brother of West Indies all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, both scored 28 in a 51 runs third wicket stand for T&T.
But Penco made the breakthrough, when Ganga was caught at backward point, and Austin added the scalps of Bravo stumped and West Indies limited-overs all-rounder Kieron Pollard caught behind for eight to put the CCC back into the match.
Left-arm spinner Anderson Sealy removed Amit Jaggernauth caught at backward square leg in the final over of the day to set-up a fierce battle for first innings points on Sunday’s second day.
Earlier, Rampaul, a steady, if not menacing fast-medium bowler, flattened the top-order of the CCC batting, when he captured all five batsmen that were dismissed before lunch.
He bowled opener Omar Phillips for eight, trapped Nekoli Parris lbw for five, had Jamal Smith caught behind for a duck, before removing Kyle Corbin caught at mid-on for 19, and CCC captain Floyd Reifer caught at second slip for 29 in the last hour prior to lunch to leave the home team gulping on 77 for five at the interval.
After lunch, the CCC continued to meekly surrender, when Chadwick Walton was run out for 13 and Ryan Austin fell in the same manner for eight.
Imran Khan foxed out Kavesh Kantasingh, a T&T university student, caught at slip for a duck, and had Anderson Sealy caught at mid-wicket for 21 to leave the CCC on 109 for nine before Catlin’s late flurry beefed-up the total.
T&T made three changes, when they replaced Rayad Emrit, Navin Stewart, and Daron Cruickshank with Pollard, Rampaul, and Allert, while CCC brought Catlin and Penco in for Kevin McClean and Kurt Wilkinson.
