BASSETERRE, CMC – Leeward Islands Hurricanes captain Rahkeem Cornwall led a lion-hearted effort from the bowling attack yesterday to leave his side with a final-day chase of 302 for victory against Jamaica Scorpions in the Regional 4-Day Championship.
The burly Cornwall collected 4-32 from 29 overs with his high-class off-spin, and fast-medium bowlers Sheeno Berridge and Jeremiah Louis shared five wickets, as the Scorpions were bowled out for 191 in their second innings just before the close on the third day of their fourth-round match at Warner Park.
Derval Green, batting at seven, led the way for the Scorpions with 51 that included nine fours from 48 balls in just over an hour at the crease.
A few others got starts without carrying on, as the unreliability of the Scorpions’ batting once again reared its head – their captain Nikita Miller scored 26, opener Garth Garvey made 23, left-handed opening partner John Campbell got 22 and Damion Jacobs was not out on 20.
Berridge scalped 3-47 from 12.3 overs and Louis 2-47 from 15 overs to complete the demolition of the Scorpions’ second innings batting.
Miller, playing his first match of the season, had finished with 5-56 from 28.4 overs with his left-arm spin and Jacobs supported with 3-35 from 20 overs, as the Hurricanes were dismissed for 232 inside the first hour to hand the visitors a 110-run, first-innings lead.
Campbell then gave the Scorpions a typical rollicking start before he edged to the ‘keeper off Berridge just before the visitors reached 41 for one at lunch.
After the interval, just when it looked like Garvey was getting into the swing of things, Louis also had him caught behind and Cornwall followed up in the next over to dismiss Brandon King for a three-ball duck, leaving Scorpions 55 for three.
They sunk to 73 for five, when Cornwall removed Assad Fudadin for 16 and former United States captain Steven Taylor for one before Louis left them wobbling on 99 for six, when he trapped first-innings batting hero Paul Palmer lbw for nine.
Green roasted the Hurricanes bowling to dominate a 46-run stand with Dennis Bulli for the seventh wicket that added some meat to the Scorpions total before they fell within 10 balls of each other.
Scorpions were 145 for eight, but Miller and Jacobs helped to make their workload on the final day a tad easier, when they put on 46 for the ninth wicket before Berridge returned to wrap up the innings.
Hurricanes, starting the day on 209 for six, lost Cornwall in the third over of the day with just one run added when he fell to Jacobs. He made 29.
Cornwall and Terence Warde had put on 60 for the seventh wicket, but there was token resistance from the rest of the Hurricanes batting before the innings closed..
Warde persevered, adding 17 to his overnight score, before he also fell to Jacobs for 38, as the home team lost their last three wickets for just one run in the space of 20 deliveries.
Scorpions – fifth in the standings on 18.2 points – have so far earned three batting points, three bowling points and 0.2 pace bowling points, and Hurricanes – third on 38.6 – have so far added three bowling points, one batting point plus two pace bowling points.
