BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Stylish right-hander Shamarh Brooks stroked his third first class hundred in five games to lead a strong Barbados Pride fightback on the opening day of their Regional First Class Championship contest here yesterday.
The 27-year-old finished the day at Kensington Oval on 102 not out as Pride ended on 247 for four, after opting to bat first in the second round encounter against Trinidad and Tobago Red Force.
Roston Chase struck 59 and opener Kyle Corbin, 46, innings that also helped Pride recover from a tentative position of 91 for three after lunch.
Brooks put on 35 for the third wicket with Corbin before added a further 123 with Chase for the fourth wicket, a partnership that snuffed out any momentum Red Force had.
Leg-spinner Imran Khan has been the most successful bowler with two for 62 but Red Force’s attack generally lacked edge, allowing Brooks to reach his third first class hundred with ease.
The West Indies A batsman brought up the landmark in the day’s final over when he stroked captain and seamer Rayad Emrit to the cover boundary.
All told, he has faced 192 deliveries in 262 minutes at the crease and struck ten fours and one six – a straight down the ground off left-arm spinner Kavesh Kantasingh in the final session.
Red Force struck early at the start when West Indies fast bowler Shannon Gabriel had captain Kraigg Brathwaite caught at the wicket for five with the score on seven in the day’s fifth over.
Corbin then added 49 for the second wicket with West Indies batsman Shai Hope who made 18 before popping a catch to Kjorn Ottley at forward short leg off Kantasingh, in the second hour of the morning.
Corbin and Brooks took Pride to lunch at 73 for two but the right-handed Corbin perished in the fifth over on resumption, edging a prod at Imran Khan into wicketkeeper Steven Katwaroo’s gloves.
At that stage, Red Force were in control but Brooks and Chase wrenched away the advantage with an excellent partnership that kept the visitors without further success in the session and took Pride to tea at 166 for three.
Chase also played positively, hitting eight fours off 156 balls in just over 2-3/4 hours, but perished in the final hour in disappointing fashion when he mis-hit a long hop from Imran Khan to Yannic Cariah at long on.
SCOREBOARD
BARBADOS PRIDE 1st Innings
*K Brathwaite c wkp Katwaroo b Gabriel 5
K Corbin c wkp Katwaroo b Khan 46
S Hope c K Ottley b Kantasingh 18
S Brooks not out 102
R Chase c Cariah b Khan 59
+S Dowrich not out 15
Extras (w2) 2
TOTAL (4 wkts, 90 overs) 247
To bat: K Stoute, A Nurse, J Warrican, K Roach, M Cummins.
Fall of wickets: 1-7, 2-56, 3-91, 4-214.
Bowling: Gabriel 15-3-36-1 (w2), Emrit 15-6-36-0, Lewis 2-0-12-0, Kantasingh 22-5-72-1, Deonarine 11-2-22-0, Imran Khan 21-3-62-2, Cariah 4-0-7-0.
RED FORCE – Rayad Emrit (captain), Evin Lewis, Kjorn Ottley, Kyle Hope, Narsingh Deonarine, Yannic Cariah, Yannic Ottley, Steven Katwaroo, Imran Khan, Kavesh Kantasingh, Shannon Gabriel.
Toss: Pride.
Umpires: G Brathwaite, V Smith.
