BATS TO WALL
by Keith Holder
A TALL order confronts Barbados at Kensington Oval over the next two days if they are to get the better of Guyana and maintain their lead in the PresidentÕs Cup cricket championship table.
Seemingly depressed by GuyanaÕs batting dominance that showed a first innings total of 435 Ð Shivnarine Chanderpaul completed a century following another by Clayton Lambert on Thursday Ð Barbados enter todayÕs third day on 173 for four, still 113 runs away from saving a crucial follow-on.
With the pitch remaining conducive to stroke-play, at least the follow-on target should be attainable.
But this is a depleted Barbados batting side even though Horace Waldron has played exceptionally well in reaching an unbeaten 68 including 12 boundaries, mainly between third man and extra-cover.
Waldron resumes with wicket-keeper Courtney Browne on eight, knowing that both, along with the rest, must put their heads down against an attack which is expected to bank on spin.
BarbadosÕ position represents something of a fightback after their three leading batsmen Ð Sherwin Campbell, Philo Wallace and Adrian Griffith Ð were back in the dressing room with 76 runs on the board.
Waldron and Terry Rollock (40) added 72 at a run-a-minute for the fourth wicket following a stand of 62 in just 48 minutes between Griffith and Waldron.
Griffith (37) and Rollock were out to ÒsoftÓ strokes. Campbell, currently the premier West Indies opener, was a victim of his favourite cut stroke in the third ball of the innings from Colin Stuart.
It was hit firmly but directly to gully without a run on the board.
WallaceÕs indifferent form continued when he was another third-ball victim of Stuart, edging to first slip in the bowlerÕs second over after scoring eight.
As Waldron joined Griffith, a quick look at the scoreboard left one wondering how Barbados would cope, bearing in mind that the team is minus Roland Holder, Floyd Reifer and Ricky Hoyte, all on duty, along with pacer Pedro Collins for the West Indies ÔAÕ team against England in Jamaica.
But Waldron and Griffith raised hopes of a fightback by counter-attacking.
Both timed the ball sweetly before Griffith hung his bat out to a ball of no merit from pacer Roderick Lovell in his first over of a second spell and was caught at the wicket by Vishal Nagamootoo.
Rollock, recalled after being dropped in the middle of his debut season last year, was hardly troubled.
He played a few wristy strokes in counting eight boundaries, while Waldron, like a craftsman, used an open-faced bat to gain several boundaries to third man and backward point.
When the occasion presented itself, Waldron drove through the covers gracefully.
Leg-spinner Mahendra Nagamootoo, whose bowling has declined in recent years and who looked quite ordinary, eventually succeeded in luring Rollock into a loose drive to mid-off in his third over of a second spell after switching to the southern end.
Earlier, 35-year-old left-arm spinner Winston Reid finished with five for 100 off 43.5Êovers Ð his second consecutive five-wicket haul Ð after Guyana, who resumed on 291 for four, consolidated their position.
Guyana lost nightwatchman Lovell in the third over of the day, caught at the wicket by Browne as he tried to pull a short ball outside the off-stump from pacer Ottis Gibson.
Test batsman Chanderpaul, who started the day on 68, took 20 minutes to add but once he got clicking, he found the gaps beautifully on both sides of the wicket and was mainly strong driving between extra-cover and mid-off.
Chanderpaul, who twice in succession put hapless pacer Hattian Graham to the mid-off boundary, went on to topscore with 115 which took 4 3/4-hours off 240 balls and included 14 boundaries.
Travis Dowlin also looked a classy batsman, scoring 26 in 70 minutes.
He was strong off the pads and played one lovely cover drive to the boundary before Reid had him caught brilliantly low to his right at short extra-cover by Wallace.
With the score 371 for six at lunch and Chanderpaul well entrenched on 112, Barbados would have been wondering when the end would come.
Chanderpaul was soon out, caught at slip by Campbell who threw himself to the left as the left-hander drove at a wide ball from Reid, but Neil McGarrell showed he was no slouch and there was some resistance from the tail.
McGarrell scored 25 off 48 balls before inside edging a pull off pacer Patterson Thompson into his stumps.
Vishal Nagamootoo soon lifted his head and found mid-off immediately after hitting Reid through the hands of mid-on in Graham.
Mahendra Nagamootoo and Stuart batted another 47 minutes in adding 27 for the last wicket as Barbados looked lethargic.
Reid had the former caught at cover point in mid-afternoon and trotted back to the pavilion, no doubt hoping that the Barbados batsmen would try as hard as he did.
Only time will tell.
Day 4: IT'S ALL GUYANA
by Keith Holder at Kensington Oval
INSPIRED by another telling all-round performance from captain Carl Hooper, Guyana beat Barbados by six wickets yesterday to leave the race for the 1998 PresidentÕs Cup wide open.
Hooper followed a classy 61 in the first innings with an unbeaten 35 off 73 balls after a couple hiccups as his side reached a relatively easy target of 94 in a minimum 40 overs off 26.1 overs.
The new West Indies vice-captain also completed match figures of seven for 91 off 57 overs with his off-spin, including four for 61 in the second innings and added to shrewd tactics in the field, was the undisputed Man-Of-The-Match.
Barbados, the pre-series front-runners and champions last season when the tournament was played under the banner of the Red Stripe Cup, were always in danger of defeat after following-on with a deficit of 166.
Their captain Philo Wallace fought gallantly to push his side towards a draw by completing a fifth first-class century but once he was ninth out half-an-hour after lunch, caught at the wicket as he cut at a short ball from nagging left-arm spinner Neil McGarrell, the die was well and truly cast.
Opener Wallace, under pressure to produce a significant score in his sixth innings this season, made 129 which stretched for five-and-a-half hours. He faced 341 balls and struck 17 boundaries. No other batsman passed 20.
Barbados, 154 for five in their second innings at the start of the fourth and final day, with Wallace on 72, were dismissed 35 minutes after lunch for 259.
Apart from the 31-year-old Hooper, who turned the ball appreciably throughout the match, McGarrell came into his own with four for 66.
The victory put Guyana level with Barbados in third position on 20 points Ð four behind joint front-runners Jamaica and Leeward Islands. The Leewards and Barbados have played three matches while Jamaica and Guyana have a game fewer. Trinidad and Tobago have 16 points and the Windward Islands, ten - both from two matches.
It was the first time since 1993 when they triumphed by four wickets, that Guyana had beaten Barbados in a first-class match, also at Kensington. It was also GuyanaÕs first success in 18 matches Ð the last being in their penultimate game of the 1995 season against Jamaica by 74 runs at Albion in Berbice.
In their victory chase yesterday, Guyana stumbled to 41 for four and Hooper had a couple close shaves early in his innings before ending the match by lifting leg-spinner Dave Marshall over long-on for six.
Nicholas deGroot was leg-before-wicket in the second over of the innings as he ducked into a full length ball from Patterson Thompson after driving the first to the cover boundary.
His opening partner, left-hander Clayton Lambert, who made 108 in the first innings, was another Thompson victim with the score on 19 and his four, driving into the hands of point.
Ottis Gibson, who bowled with genuine pace, hit the off stump of Zaheer Haniff (seven) with a ball which swung through the air.
A couple attacking strokes from West Indies cap Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who scored 115 in the first innings, eased the tension but after making 18 from 20 balls, he was dismissed off Winston ReidÕs first ball.
The left-arm spinner pushed it down the leg-side and in a jiffy, Courtney Browne brought off a maginificent stumping as the batsmen tried to turn.
Hooper, quiet at the start, was just three and the score 51 when he survived a very confident appeal for leg-before-wicket against Gibson. As the ball carried to Browne, Hooper amazingly ran down the pitch and was well out of the crease when BrowneÕs attempt for a run-out missed the stumps.
Gradually, Guyana moved to their target and Hooper and Travis Dowlin (18 not out) calmed their nerves with an unfinished partnership of 58.
BarbadosÕ hopes of saving the match faded from early when Gibson, advancing to drive a flighted ball from Hooper, was easily stumped by Vishal Nagamootoo for 16 after starting the day on three.
Reid was soon bowled without scoring, taking his bat away from a Hooper delivery.
But Wallace and Marshall revived BarbadosÕ hopes by adding 65 for the eighth wicket in 78 minutes but not without a couple alarms.
There was controversy when Wallace was 78, shortly after Gibson was out. He swept at McGarrell, missed and the bails fell as the wicket-keeper raced down to the bowler and joined teammates in celebrating what they believed was the batsmen being bowled.
Wallace remained at the crease with his feet planted as firmly as NelsonÕs Statue on Broad Street. It led to a consultation between the on umpire Halley Moore of Barbados and his Montserratian counterpart Basil Morgan at square-leg.
The Guyanese appeared dazed when Wallace was given the benefit of the doubt and he proceeded to play a few attacking strokes before reaching his hundred Ð his fourth in regional championships Ð by sweeping McGarrell for two runs to fine leg. It took 249 minutes off 276 balls and included 15 fours.
Marshall perished for 15 shortly before lunch, edging a backfoot drive off McGarrell into the stumps.
At the break, Barbados were 241 for eight with Wallace on 124. Shortly after the resumption, a light shower held up play for six minutes but what Barbados needed was non- stop rain.
WallaceÕs dismissal was quickly followed by that of Hattian Graham, leg- before-wicket as he padded up to McGarrell.
It was then left to the Barbados bowlers to pull the choke but their early efforts were stifled and ultimately buried by Hooper.