A vintage batting display from 18-year-old Jonathan Foo brightened up the final day of the lone Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Under-19 trial match at the Police Sports Club (PSC) Ground yesterday.
The Berbice batting all rounder who was the most valuable player in the just-concluded GCB/GTM Under-19 Inter-county tournament, blasted his way to an unbeaten 91 with six sixes and the same number of fours from 77 balls as Anthony Bramble’s XI ended on 247-6 when play was called off at 16:30hrs.
Earlier Alkins’ XI resumed their innings on 327-7 with Dexter Solomon on 11 and Keyron Fraser, 5, in reply to Bramble’s XI first innings score of 252, and closed their innings on 354-9, with the injured Jeetendra Sookdeo being unable to resume his innings.
Solomon added five to his overnight score before he was dismissed by Andre Stoll (1-82) while Fraser was unbeaten on 20 when the last batsman Amir Khan was run out for two.
Totaram Bishun ended with 3-92 while Anthony Adams (2-15) and Foo 2-37 offered him support with the ball.
When Bramble’s XI began their second innings they were trailing Alkins’ XI by 97 runs but solid batting from Ryan Rajmangal who scored 59 decorated with nine fours from 136 balls and 144 minutes of batting and Manoj Pooranauth (25) saw their team pass the deficit with only two wickets down.
They added 66 for the third wicket before Pooranauth was caught at the wicket by Dexter Solomon off Adams who ended with 2-23.
Alex Amsterdam strode to the wicket and partner Rajmangal reached his 50 from 122 balls with nine boundaries before he was run out for his score of 59. The quick demise of Bramble (01) brought Foo to the wicket to partner Amsterdam.
The two added 58 for the fifth wicket before Amsterdam was caught at cover off the bowling of Khan but Foo who was given two lives by Seon Hetmyer and Ravindra Parsram off Alkins, found an able partner in Sahadeo Somai and they batted until play was called off.
Foo who had earlier struck Khan for his first of six sixes, reached his second half century of the match with a six over long on, off the bowling of Rajendra Nikbarran having faced 64 deliveries and counting four fours and two sixes from 75 minutes of batting.
With the end drawing near, Foo began to display his aggressive style of batting when he dispatched Alkins over wide mid wicket for six, the ball ending at the western fence of the Eve Leary venue.
It was the final over of the day bowled by national Under-17 fast bowler Seon Daniels, in which Foo reminded the three-man national junior selection panel who was present throughout the match of his ability to hit the ball hard.
The first delivery was sent over long off while the second which was a no-ball was driven back along the ground disdainfully for four.
The third and fourth deliveries were struck over long on for maximums and when Daniels opted to send the fifth delivery but fourth legal one, Foo stood up and dispatched it with ease over extra cover for four.
Daniels who ended with 1-91, thought he saw enough of Foo and sprayed the final two deliveries of the day down the leg side, with the final one beating Solomon en route to the boundary for four byes, bringing an end to the over which cost Alkins’ XI 31 runs.
All told, Foo moved from 49 to his unbeaten 91 from only 13 deliveries with five sixes and two fours in a vintage batting display against the Alkins’ XI bowling which was led by Adams who ended with 2-23 while there was a wicket each for Keyron Fraser and Khan.
