PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad, CMC – Jamaica shockingly tumbled to their third consecutive loss of their Regional Four-Day campaign, when they crashed to a 145-run defeat to Trinidad and Tobago here Sunday.
On a day when 19 wickets fell at Queen’s Park Oval, the Jamaicans found themselves unable to arrest their alarming slide, surrendering late on the third day of the sixth round match, after being set 244 for victory.
Once again, only Andre McCarthy showed any mettle, top scoring with 42 to follow up his first innings 45, as Jamaica could muster only a mere 98 all out.
Pacer Marlon Richards, with three for 15, and leg-spinner Imran Khan, with three for 21, led the Trinidadian attack admirably.
The writing was on the wall from early for the Jamaicans after they were reduced to 28 for five in pursuit if their victory target. With just one run on the board, John Campbell was taken at fine leg off seamer Rayad Emrit without scoring and Richards then knocked over the next three wickets with the score on 20 to put T&T firmly on top.
He had Jon Ross Campbell taken down the leg-side for 11 and on the other side of a length rain-break, prised out Jermaine Blackwood in the same over without scoring. In his next over, he claimed captain Tamar Lambert without scoring, caught at the wicket driving ambitiously.
Jamaica were further reduced to 28 for five when Nkrumah Bonner cut fast bowler Shannon Gabriel straight to Imran Khan at point.
McCarthy then struck three fours and a six off 69 balls in 85 minutes at the crease, to prop up the Jamaican innings. However, once he edged Khan behind to give Steven Katwaroo his fourth catch of the innings, all Jamaican resistance ended.
Earlier, T&T had also collapsed after resuming the day on 94 for one, their last nine wickets falling for just 85 runs, to be 179 all out.
Test batsman Darren Bravo (45) and opener Evin Lewis (43) both failed to add to their overnight scores and it took Khan with an explosive unbeaten 56 from 63 balls, to lift the innings.
Khan counted seven fours and a six and helped to rally the hosts from a precarious 111 for six, after left-arm spinner Nikita Miller (4-40), and pacers Brian Buchanan (3-34) and Jerome Taylor (3-50) had ripped through the innings.
With the defeat, Jamaica slipped outside the top four in the standings, and are now in danger of missing out on the semi-finals with one round remaining in the preliminaries.