BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – A record spell from Delorn Johnson undermined Barbados’ anaemic batting and set Windward Islands up for an emphatic, seven-wicket victory to finish third in the Caribbean Twenty20 tournament yesterday.
The tall, left-arm fast bowler from St. Vincent & the Grenadines captured an amazing five wickets for five runs from his allotted four overs, as Barbados, choosing to bat, were dismissed for a modest 101 in their allocation of 20 overs in the third place match at Kensington Oval.
Andre Fletcher and fellow Grenadian Devon Smith followed up with a determined, second-wicket stand of 67 that paved the way for the Windwards to reach their target with 13 balls remaining.
Windwards had suffered an early setback, when Johnson Charles edged the first delivery of the chase from Fidel Edwards and was caught behind for a duck.
Fletcher and Smith drew on their experience to defy the much-vaunted Barbadian attack, which had limited all of its opponents to totals under 100 for the entire tournament.
Smith lofted left-arm spinner Ryan Hinds to long-off for four to get into gear and Fletcher under-edged a sweep at a delivery from off-spinner Ashley Nurse for his first boundary.
The two mixed sound defence and aggressive running between the wickets with shots of enterprise to take Windwards towards victory.
Smith was run out in the 12th over for 34 from 44 balls that included four fours, and Fletcher was bowled three overs later for the top score of 42 from 39 balls that was enhanced with two fours and one six.
Newcomer Tade Carmichael took Windwards over the threshold, when he scooped the penultimate delivery of the 18th over from Nurse over the head of the ‘keeper for his second boundary.
Earlier, Johnson, a graduate of the West Indies High Performance Centre here, produced easily the best spell of bowling in a regional Twenty20 match to earn the Man-of-the-Match award.
He also tied with Anil Kumble for the 11th best figures in a T20 ever, the Indian leg-spinning legend finishing with the same figures for Royal Challengers Bangalore against Rajasthan Royals in the Indian Premier League two years ago.
Johnson turned the match into a genuine no-contest, when he snared Barbados captain Kirk Edwards, all-rounder Kevin Stoute and wicketkeeper/batsman Shane Dowrich in his first over, beaching the home team on four runs for three wickets.
He had Edwards and Stoute both caught behind driving loosely at wide deliveries, and bowled the pint-sized Dowrich, when he tried to cut a shortish delivery too close to him.
When Fletcher’s direct hit at the striker’s end ran Dwayne Smith out for three in the fourth over, Barbados were seven for four and had added just 10 more runs at the halfway stage of the innings.
Alcindor Holder joined left-hander Jonathan Carter, and they added 68 for the fifth wicket to add some beef to the Barbados total.
Windwards conceded their first boundary in the 12th over, when Holder struck a six over deep backward square leg off Windwards and West Indies captain Darren Sammy, whose medium-fast bowling yielded 28 runs in four overs.
Sammy and Liam Sebastien, whose three overs cost 30, allowed the partnership to flourish with some loose bowling before Holder was run out for 24 in the 16th over and Charles bowled Carter with a full-length delivery for the top score of 42 that included two fours and three sixes from 53 balls.
An expensive final over from Garey Mathurin, which cost 11 and included Sulieman Benn hitting a six over long-on, allowed Barbados to inch closer to the hundred-run threshold before the home team lost their last three wickets in the final over – Johnson collecting two to complete the demolition.
