Regional Four Day Competition 2013-14

ESPNcricinfo staff

Led by a hundred from Kieron Pollard and strong bowling performances, Trinidad & Tobago thumped Jamaica by 145 runs to move to the top of the Regional Four Day Competition table.

Pollard, playing his second match since his return to first-class cricket from an injury lay-off, was responsible for hauling T&T’s first-innings score from 58 for 3 to 244. He stroked eight fours and six sixes in his 111 before falling to Damian Jacobs, but his partnerships with Evin Lewis and Rayad Emrit help T&T tide over a rough start . Nikita Miller was the most successful bowler taking 4 for 78.

In reply, Jamaica lurched to 180 all out, their innings propped up by a 45 from Andre McCarthy and useful 20s from Miller and Damion Jacobs. Shannon Gabriel struck crucial blows at the top of the order in his 3 for 48 and was well supported by Marlon Richards and Imran Khan.

T&T’s innings second innings hardly fared better than Jamaica’s and save for forties from Darren Bravo and Lewis, and an unbeaten 56 from Imran lower down the order, their batsmen collapsed from 94 for 1 to 179 all out on the third day. Miller was the key bowler again, getting the wickets of Lewis and Pollard in his 4 for 40.

Set a target of 244 with more than a day’s play left, Jamaica had no answers to an early assault from Richards, who struck three times in consecutive overs. The only noteworthy performance, as they stumbled from one collapse to another, came from McCarthy, who again stuck around with a determined 42 in a total of 98. Richards and Imran were the best bowlers for T&T, taking six wickets between them to end the match in 33.3 overs.