BRIDGETOWN, Barbados,  CMC – Travis Dowlin followed-up penetrative spells from Lennox Cush and Davendra Bishoo with a purposeful half-century that anchored Guyana to a five-wicket victory over Windward Islands in the Caribbean Twenty20 Championship yesterday.

Dowlin struck two fours and two sixes in 60 from 52 balls, as Guyana, in pursuit of 158 for victory, reached their target with four balls to spare in the third match of the competition at Kensington Oval. Jonathan Foo formalised the victory, when he drove Windwards captain Darren Sammy inside-out over the top of extra cover for four to give the Guyanese a winning start to their campaign in Group-B.

Cush, bowling his steady off-spin, was the pick of the Guyana bowlers with four wickets for 25 runs from his allotment of four overs, and leg-spinner Bishoo captured three for 21 from his four overs, as the Windwards, sent in to bat, were restricted to 157 for eight from their 20 overs.

Johnson Charles survived three dropped catches to hit half-dozen fours and a single six in the top score of 55 from 40 balls for the Windwards.

Rawl Lewis, the former Windwards captain, supported with 30, and Andre Fletcher made 23.

Dowlin and Sewnarine Chattergoon then made a quiet start for Guyana, but they were just beginning to get into the thick of things, when Sammy made the breakthrough.

Chattergoon tried to loft the Windwards captain over long-on, and was caught just inside the boundary for 10 in the fifth over.

Guyana continued to lose wickets at regular intervals, without gaining significant partnerships, and things looked shaky, when they dipped to 128 for five, when Christopher Barnwell was caught  at deep mid-wicket off Nelon Pascal for 27, to leave them needing 30 from 19 balls.

Foo came to the crease, blasted four fours and one six in 24 not out, and dragged Guyana over the finish line.

Earlier, a stand of 64 between Charles and Fletcher for the second wicket put Windwards in early control before they wobbled to 112 for five in the 17th over.

Donwell Hector joined Lewis, and they put on a valuable 40 for the sixth wicket from 15 balls before Cush removed them, and Shane Shillingford in an eventful final over. Guyana will face Combined Campuses & Colleges in their second match from 4 p.m. tomorrow, on the same day that the Windwards meet Barbados four hours later.