Things just seem to be getting better for 31-year West Indies Test batsman Narsingh Deonarine, who yesterday joined three other Guyanese to score a century and capture five wickets in the same match. He achieved the feat on the third day of WICB four-day First-Class cricket Franchise game between Guyana Jaguars and Windwards Volcanoes at Providence yesterday.

By the close the Jaguars, with an overall lead of 240, were 133-5 in their second innings after Deonarine’s fourth five-wicket haul (5-25) had helped dismissed the Islanders for 184 despite a fighting 54 from Skipper Liam Sebastian.

The Jaguars, who made 291 in their first innings to gain an important 107 runs lead, will be pressing for an outright win on the final day today. But first they need to extend their lead to over 300 as early as possible and hope that Devon Smith, whose two highest scores at this level (212 and 193) are against Guyana in Grenada, don’t cut loose on what is a lightning fast outfield despite the recent rain in Guyana.

On a bright sunny yesterday, the Volcanoes resumed on 63-2 and the biggest crowd of the match which numbered about 120 spectators, watched as Deonarine produced a wonderful spell of his standard off-spin to follow-up his first innings 139 to become the first Guyana to get to three-figures and claim five wickets in the same game since Carl Hooper made 105 and took 5-52 against Barbados at Bourda 17 years ago.

Deonarine is enjoying a dream season so far and joins CR Browne (1926) and Roger Harper, who achieved the feat thrice (1987, ’95 and ’96) including 202 and 5-98 against the Windwards at Bourda in 1996.

Yesterday Deonarine bowled with plenty of guile, while using flight and turn to befuddle the batsman after Leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo had gotten rid of both overnight batsmen to leave the Volcanoes on 79-5.

Bishoo dismissed Andre Fletcher (10) and night watchman Kenroy Peters (11) while Sunil Ambris, who made a debut century against Guyana earlier this year, was removed by left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul for a duck as three wickets tumbled for 15 runs.

Deonarine, who has the second best bowling figures by a Guyanese in First-Class cricket of 7-26 behind Bishoo’s 9-97 earlier this year against T&T, broke a promising 45-run stand between Sebastian and Romel Currency (21) as the Volcanoes slipped to 126-6.

Vincentian Currency was lured down the track by a perfectly flighted delivery which pitched outside off-stump and dipped and spun between bat and pad as Currency played over an expansive drive.

Lindon James, dropped by Deonarine at cover off Chris Barnwell, missed a sweep at Deonarine and was LBW for 29 to end a promising 40-run partnership with his Captain and by Lunch the Volcanoes were 176-7 with the 30year-old Sebastian two short of his 10th First-Class fifty.

After the interval, Sebastian hammered Bishoo behind point for four. The Dominican left-hander leaned back and stroked Permaul to the square cover boundary as he continued to lead from the front with responsible batting.

Alton Bobb was dropped by Leon Johnson at short cover off Deonarine before his painstaking 34-ball duck ended when he was removed by the same bowler, who then induced Sabastian to cut at a quicker ball which was too close to him and he edged a catch to the keeper. He was ninth out at 183 and his 54 came from 130 balls and included seven fours.

Permaul (3-40) quickly finished off the innings by trapping Nelon Pascal LBW for a duck. Bishoo (2-66) picked up the other wickets for the Jaguars, who were 41-2 by Tea.

Rajindra Chandrika (9) amazingly played no shot for the second time in the contest and again lost his stumps, this time to Mervin Matthew, at 17-1. Assad Fudadin (19), stroked Pascal with effortless ease for four before caressing the Grenadian pacer past gully for another boundary as the re-called Test left-hander looked a lot more purposeful than in the first innings. However, with the score on 40 he seemed very unfortunate to given LBW to Matthew to a ball that appeared to be heading down the leg-side.

Johnson and Deonarine took the score 77 before Johnson (25) pushed forward to left-arm spinner Bobb and was taken at short-leg. Deonarine continued to play an array of audacious shots and along with Shiv Chanderpaul took the score to 110 before Deonarine, who made 110 not out in the first match, hit Bobb to mid-off trying to clear Smith. His 34 lasted 113 minutes and 67 balls and took his aggregate in the series to 283 from three innings.

Barnwell was promoted ahead of fellow all-rounder Raymond Reifer and was soon bowled by Matthew for six at 125-5 with one that cut back and kept very low.

Reifer joined Chanderpaul, who came out yesterday with a positive mindset which was displayed with his aggressive running between the wickets as the Jaguars tried to score quickly enough to give them a winning total and adequate time to bowl out the Islanders on a final day on a pitch which is expected to offer more assistance to Guyana’s three-prong spin attack. Scattered thunderstorms, which are forecast for today at Providence, could add to the drama of a predicted pulsating run-chase by the Windwards.

(Taken from Kaieteur News, by Sean Devers)