A majority of the players seemed least interested yesterday in what was going at the Demerara senior trials at the Georgetown Cricket Club ground, Bourda.
Yesterday’s first trial match was supposed to serve as an occasion for the players to grab the attention of the selectors in an effort to land spots on the team that will contest Saturday’s El Dorado Inter-County 50-over tournament.
The Georgetown Cricket Club (GCC) ground, Bourda had a sprinkling of spectators that saw the Leon Johnson’s XI being gifted with a win against the Steven Jacobs’ XI.
Apart from some committed knocks from Vishal ‘Cheesy’ Singh (82), Shemroy Barrington (51) and Johnson (34), the trial match bordered on mediocrity.
Bowling for Jacobs’ XI, left arm pacer Andre Stoll took 2-19 and spinner Totaram Bishune grabbed 2-51.
Johnson’s XI, batting first, made 212-7 from 45 overs before Jacobs’ XI responded with an inelegant 135 all out from 40.5 overs. Travis Dowlin, whose rocky patch with the bat continued, top scored with scratchy 29 while Jamal Hinckson and Jacobs scored positively with 27 and 26 runs respectively.
Spinner Troy Gonsalves, Raj Nanan and Amir Khan were the pick of the bowlers with 2-11, 2-15 and 2-27.
When Johnson’s XI batted they lost Christopher Barnwell, who blasted a century over the weekend in the Heroes Cup two-day tournament, for zero, caught by Jacobs off the bowling of Stoll. However, Singh and Barrington consolidated and probably provided the best passage of play for the game.
The two added 94 for the second wicket from 23 overs before Barrington threw his wicket away with an injudicious shot just after he had posted his half century and stroking five boundaries. Singh, returning from his stint with Kent in England, continued with his captain after which he had to retire out for 82, which included four fours and two sixes.
Stoll struck again when he had Johnson, who smashed three sixes, bowled.
In the Jacobs’ XI response Dowlin found it hard to get the ball away after the run out of Rajendra Chandrika for nought. Trevon Griffith was tentative before he was trapped in front by Leon Scott. Hinckson upped the tempo hitting some lusty blows off Scott but his innings was short lived.
After the contribution of Jacobs, who hit a six to raise his team’s 100 there was nothing else of much substance as the game crawled to a close.