BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, CMC – Trinidad and Tobago Red Force were left facing a heavy defeat on today’s final day after opener Shayne Moseley struck a career-best hundred and new-ball pacers Kemar Roach and Chemar Holder tore through their top order to leave an improbable run chase in strife.
Needing a massive effort on the penultimate day here yesterday in order to remain in the contest at Kensington Oval, Red Force found themselves battered by left-hander Moseley who stroked an unbeaten 155 as Red Force piled up 342 for five declared in their second innings.
All-rounder Kevin Stoute chipped in with an unbeaten 55 and Test wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich, 26, before Pride put Red Force out of their misery with a declaration about 45 minutes after tea.
Set 377 for victory, Red Force slumped to 48 for four at the close after Holder (2-13) and Roach (2-25) wiped out their top order in a lethal burst.
Left-handed opener Jeremy Solozano played back to one from Holder which kept low and was bowled in the second over for five with just nine runs on the board and captain Yannick Ottley (1) followed in the fifth over, caught at gully of the same bowler at 25 for two.
Roach then turned the game on its head in the next over when he knocked over the experienced duo of Jason Mohammed (5) and Denesh Ramdin (0) to leave the Red Force innings in disarray at 30 for four.
Mohammed, who never settled, offered no shot to the third ball of the over and had his stumps shattered while Ramdin lasted three balls before clipping a full length ball to mid-on where Holder pouched a simple catch above his head.
It was left to young opener Joshua DaSilva, who finished the day unbeaten on 23, to prop up the innings along with Yannic Cariah who was unbeaten on 12 at the close.
Pride had earlier taken a stranglehold on the encounter after resuming on 127 for two, as Moseley carved out his third first class hundred and Stoute struck his second half-century of the game.
On 49 at the start, Moseley made his way safely to 98 at lunch with Pride on 214 for three, before reaching his landmark in the second over after the interval when he whipped left-arm seamer Daniel St Clair to the backward square boundary for his 10th four.
All told, the 25-year-old carved out 17 fours off 314 deliveries in just over 7-¾ hours at the crease.
He extended his overnight stand with Justin Greaves to 48 before losing the all-rounder, holing out to deep mid-off off left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein (2-66), after adding just seven to his overnight three.
Moseley then anchored two key partnerships to bat Red Force out of the game. First, he posted 56 for the fourth wicket with Dowrich who struck two fours and a six off 47 balls before falling lbw to off-spinner Bryan Charles.
And when Kyle Mayers perished cheaply for six, 19 balls later, Moseley and Stoute combined in an unbroken 114-run, sixth wicket stand to further increase Red Force’s misery.
Stoute faced 99 balls and counted six fours, reaching his half-century after tea as Moseley also passed 150 for the first time in his career.