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Day 2: Trinidad and Tobago take control

Jamaica ended the second day of their third-round Busta Cup cricket match against Trinidad and Tobago at Sabina Park yesterday with an outside chance of victory.

Looking down the barrel in mid-afternoon with Trinidad and Tobago on 176 for two replying to the home teamÕs 161, Jamaica struck back, picked up six wickets for 104 runs, and although the visitors, on 280 for eight when bad light stopped play with three overs to go in the day's play, boasted a lead of 119 with two wickets in hand and remained favourites to win it, the match is far from over.

With two days to go, there is enough time for Jamaica to rise to the occasion - especially with Trinidad and Tobago batting last on a pitch which promises to respond to spin bowling in the final innings of the match, probably even generously to the offspin of Nehemiah Perry.

On the evidence of their batting performance in the first innings, however, the ease with which Trinidad and Tobago, led by Denis Rampersad who batted well for 84, strolled to first innings lead, and despite some impressive bowling by pacer Dwight Mais and part-time offspinner Chris Gayle, victory for Jamaica is possible but highly improbable.

Resuming at 45 for one, with Leon Romero on 15 and Rampersad on 12, Trinidad and Tobago survived some anxious moments at the start against Williams and Mais and were fortunate not to have lost a wicket when, with the total on 58 for one, Rampersad, on 25, hooked just out of the reach of Leon Garrick at square-leg, and when, on 71 for one, Romero, on 23, edged Mais a metre or so short of Mario Ventura at first slip.

With Rampersad playing some lovely drives on either side of the wicket, however, including moving down the pitch and driving Perry through the onside, Trinidad and Tobago gradually took control of the proceedings before, minutes to lunch, Romero swept at Gayle and was leg before wicket for 42 at 121 for two.

Suruj Ragoonath, batting like a man in a trance, survived a number of appeals for leg before wicket against Gayle before opening up against Perry with some lofted drives over long-off and long-on - one of which carried Trinidad and Tobago into the lead at 162 for two in the 61st over.

At that stage, with Rampersad driving the pacers from the creases and chipping and driving the spinners, with Ragoonath growing in confidence, and with Richard Smith and Phil Simmons waiting in the pavilion, Trinidad and Tobago appeared on the way to a lead which would have put the match beyond Jamaica's ability to win it.

Mais, however, who finished with figures of three for 54 off 24 overs, Gayle, with two for 43 off 25 overs, and pacer Audley Sanson who picked up his first firstclass wicket while taking two for 60 off 17 overs, stepped in with fine performances and bowled Jamaica back into contention as Trinidad and Tobago lost their way in the second half of the day.

At 176 for two, Ragoonath hooked at Mais, was beaten for pace, and wicket keeper Shane Ford dashed to his left to make it 176 for three. One run later, it should have been four down when, with Smith on zero and in trouble against Gayle and Mais, Mais nicked the outside edge of his bat and Ford failed to hold onto the low catch going to his right.

The Jamaicans, however, kept plugging away until Gayle trapped Rampersad leg before wicket at 193 for four and Sanson sent Simmons packing - leg before wicket for zero at 194 for five.

David Williams has always enjoyed himself against Jamaican bowling, and yesterday was no exception.

Playing some lovely strokes, including a beautiful square-cut off Laurie Williams and a drive through extra-cover off Gayle, the little Trinidadian shared a sixth-wicket partnership of 49 with Smith before Jamaica took the second new ball and removed Williams in the fourth over - bowled offstump through his defence by the impressive Mais at 243 for six.

Ian Bishop, attempting to drive Mais off the front-foot, offered a simple catch to Garrick at point to make it 247 for seven, and the last to fall in JamaicaÕs admirable bid to give themselves a chance of victory was Smith - leg before wicket to Sanson for 33 at 263 for eight as he went back and across his stumps.

Day 3: Persad bags five for 79, Powell in T&T's way

Tony Powell and Nehemiah Perry turned up at Sabina Park yesterday in fighting form and rescued Jamaica from what, at one stage, appeared certain defeat with over a day to spare. Midway the third day, Jamaica, trailing by 138 runs on first innings, were sliding at 96 for five when Powell and Perry came together and saved the home team's blushes with a wonderful sixth-wicket partnership of 114 in 31 overs.

With the scoreboard reading Jamaica 161, Trinidad and Tobago 229, and Jamaica 230 for seven at stumps, with the home team entering today's final day with a lead of only 92 runs with only three wickets in hand, the odds, however, still favour victory for the visitors thanks to offspinner Mukesh Persad who finished the day with five for 75 off 24 overs, and captain Ian Bishop who broke the partnership between Powell and Perry just when it seemed as if the pair would bat out the day and leave the home with a realistic chance of at least drawing the match.

Win, lose or draw, it was a fine performance by the left-handed Powell, who remained undefeated on 73, and Perry, who scored 59 before he was caught by wicketkeeper David Williams off Ian Bishop at 210 for six with 14 overs to go in the day's play.

Powell, who survived a chance at 18 at 104 for five when he edged Bishop to wicketkeeper Williams, locked away the hook and the cut shots, stroked the ball in front of the wicket, and thrilled his fans with some lovely strokes off the pacers. Going into the day's play with Trinidad and Tobago 280 for eight and leading by 119, Jamaica were still in the game - providing they could wrap up the visitors' first innings quickly, bat well in their second innings, chalk up a lead of around 160, and give their bowlers a fighting chance on a last day pitch.

Thanks to pace bowlers Dwight Mais and Audley Sanson, and despite wicketkeeper Shane Ford's failure when he dropped Persad off Mais, mission number one was accomplished. Mission number two, however, never got off the ground, and midway the innings, Basil Williams chairman of the selection committee, must have looked to the heavens and promised the Lord to sing his praises forever if some how he can find a batsman or two for Jamaica.

But for Powell, who was lucky to survive the slide, and Perry, Jamaica's batsmen not only once again performed disappointingly, but after a promising if not confident start, they shot themselves in the foot when Mario Ventura, going for a single off a Leon Garrick ondrive towards mid-on, was run out at 23 for one after he was sent back and lost his footing.

Persad, who grabbed four wickets in the first innings, then stepped up and ripped through the batting with four wickets as Jamaica skidded to 96 for five. Hinds was the first of Persad's victims - the left-hander going for 15 at 52 for two when he was caught in no-man's land and edged a delivery spinning across him to Ian Bishop at slip.

The second was James Adams, who went tentatively forward and tapped a return catch to the bowler to make it 69 for three, the third, at 69 for four, was Chris Gayle who shouldered arms and was caught at slip by Richard Smith for his second zero of the match and the fourth was Garrick, who committed the cardinal sin of cutting against the spin once too often and was caught by wicketkeeper Williams for 36 at 96 for five.

That was when, with the fans once again asking what had gone wrong with Jamaica's batsmanship, Powell and Perry came together, stopped the slide, and raised Jamaica's hopes.

Day 4: Jamaica beaten by Trinidad and Tobago

Jamaica's bid for a place in the semi-finals of the regional Busta Cup cricket tournament suffered another setback at Sabina Park yesterday when they went down to Trinidad and Tobago shortly after tea on the final day.

Set a victory target of 137 off a minimum 69 overs, Trinidad and Tobago survived the loss of an early wicket and then four quick ones before beating back the ambitious Jamaicans to win by five wickets. Final score: Jamaica 161 and 274, Trinidad and Tobago 299 and 137 for five.

In winning the match, Trinidad and Tobago, whose second match, against the Windward Islands, was abandoned due to rain, ticked off victory number two from three starts to reach 36 points and, unlike Jamaica on 16 after one victory and two defeats, have virtually booked their place in the last four. Although the odds were always against them, Jamaica made a brave attempt to snatch victory when, with Trinidad and Tobago on eight, pacer Dwight Mais, bowling well as usual, removed Leon Romero for four - caught by wicketkeeper Shane Ford, when offspinner Nehemiah Perry, belatedly called into the attack at 44 for one after 11 overs, picked up three quick wickets and when captain and left-arm spinner James Adams grabbed one to leave the visitors shaking on 95 for five before tea.

With Anil Balliram, batting quietly in support of Denis Rampersad who played some magnificent strokes - especially against pacer Audley Sanson whom he drove, cut and hooked for four boundaries in two overs, Trinidad and Tobago recovered from the early loss and were going great guns when Perry removed Balliram - caught by Leon Garrick at forward shortleg for eight at 63 for two, Suruj Ragoonath - leg before wicket for eight at 79 for three,and Rampersad - caught by Wavell Hinds at square leg for 46 at 80 for four. Adams made it 95 for five when Phil Simmons, after hitting Perry over long-on for six and looking dangerous on 15, played tentatively forward to a well pitched delivery from over the wicket and Garrick snapped up the bat/pad catch at silly point.

In the 10 minutes to tea, Jamaica shouted appeal after appeal for leg before wicket and bat/pad catches and the excitement was high as Trinidad and Tobago went to the interval on 100 for five with Richard Smith on four, David Williams on one, and the target still 37 runs away.

The end, however, was an anti-climax. Trinidad and Tobago knocked off the remaining runs in 30 minutes and without further loss with Smith finishing on 25 and Williams on 12.

Earlier in the day, Jamaica, resuming on 230 for seven with Tony Powell on 73 and Laurie Williams on six, lost their last three wickets for the addition of 44 runs with Powell left stranded on 95 after batting for 361 minutes, facing 243 deliveries and hitting 10 boundaries. Offspinner Mukesh Persad, who picked up one of the three wickets, finished with six for 86 off 28 overs, and pacer Ian Bishop, who claimed the other two, finished with three for 52 off 24 overs.