A fiery spell from Nial Smith spurred Guyana Jaguars to a 278-run lead over Trinidad and Tobago Red Force at the end of the day two of the West Indies Championship yesterday.
The third round showdown saw Jaguars resuming on 263 for six and carrying on to post a first innings score of 323 from 111.3 overs before being dismissed 10 minutes prior to lunch.
Red Force, however, struggled to bat on the surface as they folded for 98 in 41 overs.
At close of play Jaguars were 53 without loss and overall lead of 331.
The after-lunch session belonged to Smith, who, in only in his third match, picked up his second five-wicket haul, claiming 5-7 from eight overs.
Smith began his blitzkrieg with a pyrotechnical in-swinger that cut Red Force skipper, Darren Bravo in half and clipped the top of middle stump.
The 24-year-old then stunned the visitors, ripping out their backbone when Jason Mohammed was given out leg before wicket off the following delivery.
The New Amsterdam native picked up where he left off in his next over trapping Joshua Da Silva, leg before wicket and then clean bowled Yannic Cariah within three balls to reduce the visitors to 20-5 after eight overs.
After a small resistance between Jeremy Solozano (27) and Yannick Ottley (22), left-arm spinner, Veerasammy Permaul moved within two wickets of becoming the fourth Guyanese with 500 first-class wickets with figures of 4-29 that dismantled the lower order.
A deflated Red Force looked unenthusiastic in the face of a 225-run deficit as Chandrapaul Hemraj, who was dropped on 12 carried on to be 22 not out.
His opening partner, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, finished unbeaten on 29.
Earlier, Jaguars’ seventh-wicket partnership between Anthony Bramble and Devendra Bishoo blossomed into a 45-run stand.
Bramble, converted his overnight score of 63 to 91 from just 77 balls after spending nearly two hours at the crease. The wicketkeeper/batsman stroked 14 fours and three sixes but after being dropped on 91, he trickled a catch to Da Silva behind the stumps off the next delivery from Terrance Hinds.
Bishoo, who resumed on 10, added 17 before having his stumps uprooted by Odean Smith. Permaul soon followed as a picturesque return catch by Bryan Charles saw the bowler claiming his fifth wicket of the innings. Charles ended with 5-87 while Darren Bravo bagged 2-18.
