(Jamaica Observer) Captain Chris Gayle credited teamwork and good execution as the main ingredients in Jamaica’s triumph in last Saturday’s final of the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB) Regional Super50 tournament in Guyana.
The tall left-hander said his bowlers did a “tremendous job” in testing conditions and lauded vice-captain Tamar Lambert for his artful batting throughout the competition.
“I’m very happy to actually win the championship. We were clear in what we wanted to do once we left here and we’ve done that. The bowlers did a tremendous job for us. Our batting was our main concern and in the end we crossed the line.
“It was a team effort for us and everyone pulled their weight when it really mattered. Lambert, the vice-captain, played a key role for us in the middle-order. He was particularly good for us because he bats spin well,” he said upon the team’s arrival at the Norman Manley International Airport yesterday.
Jamaica opened the preliminary round with wins against Leeward Islands and the Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC), but lost to Trinidad & Tobago after being sure of a semi- final spot.
The Jamaican batsmen faltered badly in the semis against the youthful Sagicor High Performance Centre (HPC), but still managed to escape with a one-wicket win to reach the final.
Gayle scored the only century in the competition, a blistering 147 off 110 deliveries, against the CCC. He was the second top-scorer in the competition with 218 runs from five innings at an average of 43.60.
The stockily-built Lambert’s only dismissal in his four batting innings came via the run-out route. He skillfully manipulated the bowlers on the typically spinner-friendly pitches in Guyana and ended with a tournament-topping batting average of 123.
The slow bowling pair of left-arm spinner Nikita Miller (10 wickets) and wrist-spinner Odean Brown (nine wickets) were effective in restricting teams during the October 19-29 tournament. Left-arm swing bowler Krishmar Santokie also ended with nine wickets.
Only Trinidadian off-spinner Sunil Narine, with 15, took more wickets than the Jamaican trio.