An 83-run seventh wicket stand between Anthony Bramble (62) and Sherfane Rutherford (45) spearheaded a Guyana Jaguars recovery to see them to 258-8 against Jamaica Scorpions when day one of their CWI/ Digicel Regional Four-Day encounter ended at Providence yesterday under lights.
The 26-year-old Bramble, reached the boundary six times, faced 122 balls and batted for 165 minutes in his aggressive innings, while Rutherford made a consorted effort to temper his aggression; stroking six fours in his 105-ball and 150-minute innings after he joined Bramble with the hosts in a hole on 150-6.
Chanderpaul Hemraj, the 24-year-old left-hander hit seven fours and a six in his 60 from 101 balls and 179 minutes, while Rajendra Chandrika who made 25 with four boundaries and Skipper Leon Johnson, whose 20 contained four fours, were the other batsmen to reach 20.
Debutant off-spinner Damani Sewell captured 3-69, pacer Derval Green had 2-60 and left-arm Chinaman bowler Dennis Bulli, who left the field after bowling 17.4 overs with a shoulder injury, took 2-51.
Scorpions asked Jaguars to bat on a track which offered plenty of bounce and turn for the spinners in overcast conditions and a gathering of less than 20 fans watched as Chandrika and Tagenarine Chanderpaul laboured to 38.
Chandrika, who played five Tests, cover-drove Green for a couple of boundaries in the same over, while Chanderpaul tucked Green off his hips for rare boundary before Chandrika edged Derval Green to debutant Wicket-Keeper Romaine Morris after batting for 79 minutes.
Hemraj joined the sedate Chanderpaul and hit Bulli, who confused all the batsmen with his both ways turn, over mid-off’s head and past mid-on for boundaries and together they took the score to 51 before Chanderpaul, who struggled the get the ball away and took 111 minutes for his 14, edged Bulli to slip.
At Lunch the Jaguars were 65-2 from 28 overs with Hemraj unbeaten on 22 and Johnson on 2.
After the interval, Hemraj and his skipper took the score to 96 before Johnson was bowled with a quicker ball to give Sewell his first wicket at this level and five runs later Bhaskar Yadram, who seemed befuddled by the spin, reached for a drive and was bowled through the ‘gate’ for a duck by Bulli, who extracted tremendous bounce and turned his ‘Chinamans’ square.
Hemraj pulled Bulli for four to reach his third First-Class fifty from 89 balls, 126 minutes with six fours and a six but he soon pushed forward to one that bounced from Sewell to be caught at silly mid-off and leave Jaguars on 135-5.
When Kemo Paul, who hit the first ball for six off Sewell, hung his bat at one which left him from Green and was caught behind for 12, the three-times defending Champions were in trouble on 150-6 and it seemed that Jamaica would bat yesterday.
From a position of 151-6 at Tea, Bramble and Rutherford, who battled responsibly, staged ‘operation rebuild’ with their crucial partnership which resurrected the innings.
Bramble hammered Green for three boundaries in the same over, while Rutherford smashed left-arm spinner Fabien Allen like a bullet over the slow outfield due to overnight rain.
When Morris left the field for ‘comfort break’ Guyanese Trevon Griffith was handed the gloves.
Bramble then pulled a long hop behind square for four and Bulli left the field with a shoulder problem and his over had to be completed by Guyanese Assad Fudadin making his First-Class debut for Jamaica.
When well set for a maiden ton, Bramble lost concentration and threw his wicket away when he recklessly skied Jason Dawes to Fudadin at mid-off at 233-7.
Rutherford was bowled just before the close with another quicker ball from Sewell to leave the score on 251-8 but Romario Shepherd (17) and Veerasammy Permaul (0) saw Jaguars to the close hoping to reach at least 300 before unleashing their spinners on the team from Reggae Country.
(Source: www.kaieteurnewsonline.com)