KINGSTON, Jamaica, CMC – Powerhouses Jamaica pulled off a spectacular 207-run victory over Combined Campuses and Colleges to romp into the semi-finals of the WICB One-Day Championship yesterday, days after they seemed poised to be dumped from the competition.
Sent in at Kensington Park, Jamaica rattled up 285 for eight off their allotted 50 overs and they returned to crush CCC for a paltry 78 all out off 30.1 overs, to wrap up the bonus point and end Group A in second place on seven points.
They were set on their way by openers Xavier Marshall and captain Chris Gayle who both hammered half-centuries in a stand of 138 for the first wicket. Marshall scored 75 from 109 balls with four fours and three sixes while Gayle, the former West Indies captain, pummelled 72 from 74 balls.
The left-handed Gayle, who counted four fours and sixes, was the first to fall when he was caught on the cover boundary by Gilford Moore, attempting to go over the top with medium pacer Boris Hutchinson in the 27th over. Danza Hyatt (1) did not stick around, falling to a catch at cover off left-arm spinner Kavesh Kantasingh with just two runs added, but Marshall added a further 35 for the third wicket with Brendan Nash (19) to keep the innings on course. When Marshall fell to a great catch in the deep by Miles Bascombe off off-spinner Ryan Wiggins at 175 for three, Jamaica’s innings plunged into decline as they lost five wickets for 55 runs to fall to 230 for seven in the 46th over.
Impressive all-rounder Andre Russell, however, crashed 46 from 22 balls with two fours and four sixes to rally the lower order.
Fast bowler Moore finished with two for 52 while Kantasingh picked up two for 60.
CCC were off to a terrible start, losing Omar Phillips for three to a catch at the wicket off Russell’s pace with the score on five in the second over, and were in further trouble when Martin Nurse clobbered the same bowler to Dave Bernard at mid-off to fall for eight at 18 for two in the sixth over.
There was to be no recovery as only Bascombe with 37 from 76 balls showed any resistance, as Jamaica’s attack ripped through the CCC middle and lower order.
Medium pacer Bernard finished with three for 33 while leg-spinner Odean Brown (2-3), left-arm spinner Nikita Miller (2-8) and Russell (2-14) claimed two wickets apiece.
The win was Jamaica’s first after they lost their first match to the Windwards, while the second against Trinidad and Tobago finished in a no-result after rain intervened.
SCOREBOARD
JAMAICA
*C Gayle c Moore b Hutchinson 72
X Marshall c Bascombe b Wiggins 75
D Hyatt c Parris Kantasingh 1
B Nash c Bascombe b Nurse 19
T Lambert c wk Walton b Moore 4
+C Baugh c Moore b Austin 19
D Bernard c Austin b Kantasingh 13
A Russell not out 46
N Miller c Parris b Moore 4
O Brown not out 7
Extras (lb10, w14, nb1) 25
TOTAL (8 wkts, 50 overs) 285
Did not bat: K Santokie.
Fall of wickets: 1-138, 2-140, 3-175, 4-180, 5-199, 6-217, 7-230, 8-263.
Bowling: Kantasingh 10-0-60-2, Moore 10-1-52-2, Hutchinson 7-0-50-1, Austin 10-0-35-1, Nurse 9-0-57-1, Parris 1-0-7-0, Wiggins 3-0-14-1.
CCC
O Phillips c wkp Baugh b Russell 3
M Bascombe c Nash b Brown 37
M Nurse c Bernard b Russell 8
N Parris c sub (H Miller) b Miller 4
+C Walton c Russell b Bernard 1
*R Currency run out 0
R Wiggins b Bernard 3
R Austin b Bernard 0
B Hutchinson b Brown 1
G Moore c Bernard b Miller 16
K Kantasingh not out 0
Extras (w5) 5
TOTAL (all out, 30.1 overs) 78
Fall of wickets: 1-5, 2-18, 3-41, 4-43, 5-44, 6-61, 7-61, 8-62, 9-66, 10-78.
Bowling: Santokie 6-1-20-0, Russell 4-0-14-2, Miller 6.1-2-8-2, Bernard 9-0-33-3, Brown 5-2-3-2.
Result: Jamaica won by 207 runs.
Points: Jamaica 5, CCC 0.
Toss: CCC.
Umpires: V Bullen, C Duncan.
