Despite impressive half-centuries from Guyana Harpy Eagles Captain Tevin Imlach and Vice-captain Keemo Paul, which helped their side post 274/5, the Windward Islands Volcanoes clinched a last-over thriller to win by a wicket and three balls to spare at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba, Trinidad.
Playing in their opening Cricket West Indies (CWI) Regional Super50 match, the Harpy Eagles won the toss and elected to bat. Openers Tagenarine Chanderpaul and Matthew Nandu gave them a solid start, both getting starts but failing to bat on. Together they got to 83 before Chanderpaul fell for 49 (4sx5), just one run shy of a fifty, while Nandu would fall for 34 (4sx3).
The Harpy Eagles middle order built on the good start from the openers as Tevin Imlach made an unbeaten 65 from 67 balls (4sx5, 6sx1), sharing in solid partnerships with Kevlon Anderson (42) and Keemo Paul, who would smash a 29-ball 54, which included a solitary four and six sixes. He too remained not out as the Harpy Eagles posted what seemed to be a solid total.
However, the Volcanoes would chase it down after middle-order batsman Shadrack Descarte (60) and a lower-order 90 from wicketkeeper batsman Dillon Douglas staged a late revival. Earlier, the Volcanoes were in trouble at 58/5 in the 12th over, but Douglas and Descarte would pull them out of that situation with a counterattacking partnership.
Despite a valiant effort from the Guyanese bowlers, rearguard knocks from Darel Cyrus (29) and last pair Kenneth Dember (20 not out) and Gilon Tyson (17 not out) would see the Volcanoes to victory with three balls to spare in the final over.
The loss put a damper on the Guyanese start to the 2024 Super50 campaign as they seek to bring the trophy back home for the first time in almost two decades.
Their next opponents will be the Combined Campuses and Colleges tomorrow at the Sir Frank Worrell Memorial Ground in Augustine.
