A brilliant all-round effort from Berbice U-19 player Crystal Durant helped her side to a 5-wicket win over Essequibo when the Guyana Cricket Board (GCB) Female U-19 Inter-County T20 competition continued yesterday at the Malteenoes Sports Club Ground, Thomas Lands.
Durant chipped in with 2-11 (2.4 overs) to help bowl out Essequibo for just 90 (16.4 overs) after they were sent in to bat by the Berbicians. Durant then returned to open the batting and carried her bat through the innings, making a responsible 26 not out to guide her side to victory.
After being inserted to bat, the Essequibo girls found the going tough and failed to form any substantial partnerships, losing wickets steadily. While 72 runs came off the bat, the Berbice bowlers gifted 18 extras to the Essequibians.
Only Tremaine Marks (13), Latoya Williams (15), Briana Samaroo (11) and Ashanti Mohamed (14) reached double figures for Essequibo. While Durant had 2-11, she found support from Daniela Hicks (2-15) and Trisha Hardat (2-25), while Realeanna Grimmond, Tiea Isaacs, and Danellie Manns copped a wicket each.
Chasing 91 for victory, Berbice were gifted a whopping 50 runs in extras as the Essequibo bowlers contrived to concede 10 byes, two leg byes, 35 wides, and three no-balls. Only Durant, with her unbeaten 26 (45 balls, 4sx1) produced with the bat, and were it not for extras, Essequibo could have had a shot at bowling out Berbice. However, Durant’s responsible knock ensured her team got across the line.
Berbice ended on 91/5 in 15.3 overs, registering a fairly comfortable win in the end. Leading Essequibo’s bowling was Marks, who took 2-15 (4 overs), while Laurene Williams and Qzel Sampson had a wicket apiece.
The tournament will wrap up today, with Berbice facing Demerara at the same venue at 1:30 p.m. While Essequibo and Berbice have a win apiece, should Demerara manage to defeat Berbice, the winner of the tournament will be decided via net run rate (NRR), as it would mean each team would have a win apiece. However, if Berbice is victorious, they will be crowned champions.
