In Greek mythology the Titans, were a race of powerful Gods and in the famous Tintanomachy “War of the Gods,”
The elder Gods were overthrown by a group of younger Gods known as Olympians. The result, according to reports, caused a significant paradigm shift in the hierarchy of that ancient World.
On Sunday such a shift occurred when for the second time in three days, the Berbice Titans overthrew a team boasting not Gods, but stars that were superior to their ordinary players.
Over the course of two days, the Berbice Titans managed to overcome two teams boasting a combined total of seven (7) international stars en route to clinching a 26-run victory over the Georgetown Pitbulls in the Jamzone Masters Cup competition at the Providence National Stadium.
Scores in the matches: Hits and Jams All-Stars 184/3 (Dwayne Bravo 106, Chris Gayle 38, Mahendra Nagamootoo 1-25, Fidel Edwards 1-36 defeated Georgetown Pitbulls (Dwayne Smith 66, Lendl Simmonds 50, Andrew Lyth 30) by 22 runs to clinch third place.
Universal DVD Club Berbice Titans 151/6 (Assad Fudadin 55, Krishmar Santokie 3/35) defeated Georgetown Pitbulls (126 all out Trevon Griffith 52, Esan Crandon 3-13, Royston Crandon 2-23) by 25 runs to win the Masters Cup.
The highly anticipated final attracted the biggest crowd for a cricket match at the venue arguably since the 2007 World Cup match between the West Indies and Sri Lanka.
The spectators duly witnessed the Berbice side toppling the Georgetown side which possessed West Indies players, Keiron Pollard, Jerome Taylor, and Suliemann Benn along with young Jamaican left-arm quick bowler Krishmar Santokie, to defend their status as the best Twenty20 side in the country for the second year in succession.
Titans won the toss and elected to take first strike of the traditional slow Providence wicket under lights.
Titans opener Anthony Bramble got his team off to a fine start by smashing deliveries from Benn for three spanking off-side boundaries as they raced to 18 – but in a truly anti-climatic over Benn got his revenge by comprehensively bowling Bramble.
The loss of the wickets of Richard Ramdeen (16) and Devon Clements (10) left the Berbicans on 65/3 at the half-way stage of the innings.
However, a 65-run, fourth-wicket partnership between Fudadin and skipper Royston Crandon steadied the Berbice reply. The pair took the score to 125 when Crandon was bowled for 22 to become Santokie’s second wicket
as gave himself room to try and hit a delivery through the cover-field.
Fudadin, who was dropped on 38 by Shemroy Barrington at long-off, off the bowling of Taylor in the 15th over, brought up his half-century in the next over hitting Taylor over long-off for a wonderfully timed six.
Taylor got his man next delivery, deceiving Fudadin with a clever slower-ball and having him caught by Benn running back at mid-off for a well-made 55 (48 balls 3×4, 1×6).
A quickfire 16 from five balls from Esaun Crandon aided in propelling the Titans to 151 – one better than their score in the semi-final.
Santokie, who has built a reputation as of the best T20 bowlers in the region over the past two seasons, was the pick of the Pitbulls bowlers with 3/35 from his allotted four overs.
An interesting chase beckoned and the Pitbulls got off to a positive start with DCC opener Griffith collecting 13 runs off left-arm spinner Versammy Permaul’s first over.
The Pitbulls side then raced to 50 in just five overs with Griffith looking in ominous form with 31 and Barrington playing the supporting role on 18.
The Crandon brothers made the first dent in the eventual demise of the City side, when Esaun had Barrington caught by Rajiv Ivan for 22 with the score on 58 and Steven Jacobs caught on the cover boundary as the side reached 72/2 in the 10th over.
Pollard entered the crease to rapturous applause by the jam-packed crowd and the equation was potentially right in his favour, given just one week ago in the Friends Providence T20 competition quarter-final in England, he aided Somerset in chasing down a target of 171.
But he wasn’t to give Georgetown that impetus as he was bowled for two by left-arm spinner Eugene La Fleur.
The Pitbulls lost their last seven wickets for 51 runs, the last of which was Santokie, who hit a catch to Ivan at deep cover to give Esaun Crandon his third wicket.
At the presentation ceremony GT&T’s CEO Yog Mahadeo thanked the capacity crowd for turning up and pledged to assist in making the tournament bigger next year.
It was also hinted that teams may even have the option of bringing in international stars from the other test playing nations to spice up the competition.
In the third place play-off which saw the winner claiming 400,000 Guyana dollars, West Indies All-rounder Bravo powered the Hits and Jams All-Stars to a 23-run victory with a superb century in a high scoring match.
Winning the toss and batting first, the Hits and Jams outfit who dropped skipper Tyrell Tull, made an imposing 184 for 3 of their allotted overs led by Bravo’s 106 (67 balls 7×4, 7×6). He was supported by Gayle 38 (30 balls 4×4 1×6), the two sharing in a blazing 91-run opening partnership in the first 10 overs.
New Line Cavaliers in reply, fell short by 22 runs in a purposeful run chase that saw openers Dwayne Smith and Lendl Simmonds with 66, 49 respectively giving the innings life with a 77-run opening partnership.
However, their dismissals led to the innings losing momentum.
Before a ball was bowled both teams posed on the field in the presence of Mahadeo, Hits and Jams CEO Rawle Feguson and Minister of Sport Frank Anthony to the singing of the national anthem by the group YK3.
