Caribbean Times 46th Issue - Tuesday 29th November 2016

14 c a r i b b e a n t i m e s . a g
Tuesday 29th November 2016
Uneventful day leads to predictable draw
KINGSTON, Jamaica
– There were precious few
sparks on a drama-less final
day as the third round game
between Jamaica Scorpions
and Barbados ended in
a dull draw at Sabina Park
here Monday.
Resuming the day on
153 for four, Pride failed to
muster anything spectacular
enough to turn the tide, and
were dismissed for 273 nearly
an hour after lunch.
Wicketkeeper Mario
Rampersaud struck 36 and
captain Kevin Stoute, 31,
while Justin Greaves finished
on 22 not out.
Debutant left-arm spinner
Fabian Allen claimed
three for 34 while fast bowler
Reynard Leveridge (2-
28), captain and left-arm
spinner Nikita Miller (2-65)
and leg-spinner Damion Jacobs
(2-69) all picked up
two wickets each.
Trailing by 49 on first innings,
Scorpions confidently
reached the close on 112
for two, with opener John
Campbell missing out on
his second half-century of
the game with 49 and opening
partner Shacaya Thomas
getting 43.
Test left-arm spinner
claimed two for 29.
Pride walked away from
the rain-ravaged outing with
nine points while the hosts
picked up 7.6.
The visitors made a safe
start to the day as Stoute and
Rampersaud stretched their
overnight fifth wicket stand
to 67.
Left-hander Rampersaud
was ultra-patient in a knock
requiring 133 deliveries and
144 minutes while Stoute,
a right-hander, struck two
fours and two sixes off 87
balls.
cont’d from pg 16
boundary and Moeen was oddly given two
exploratory overs ahead of either James
Anderson or Stokes.
Until Jadeja picked out long-on when
he tried to up the tempo after tea it had
been an innings largely out of character to
how he is perceived as a batsman.
In terms of balls faced it was the seventh-longest
innings of his first-class career
and one of his most significant in
Tests. Even when he departed the end did
not come swiftly for England as Jayant,
who played with barely an alarm, ticked
over to a 134-ball fifty.
Jadeja only had two previous fifties
in Test cricket: his swashbuckling effort
at Lord’s in 2014, which helped build a
match-winning lead, and a brisk innings
against New Zealand earlier this season,
which hastened a declaration.
This was certainly not a tail-end jolly.
On the second evening, after India had
suffered a wobble of 4 for 56, Jadeja allowed
Ashwin to take the lead and moved
to 8 off 34 balls.
He then sensed a moment to attack
shortly before the new ball, but, on the
third day, except for a skip down the pitch
against Moeen, he did not attempt anything
expansive until taking four boundaries
off a Woakes over shortly before his
dismissal.
Jadeja’s half-century came off 104
balls and was accompanied by the familiar
swordsman celebration but it was the only
bat throwing on display.
The disappointment of him missing a
Once the partnership was
broken, Pride lost their last
six wickets for 53 runs, after
going to lunch at 237 for
seven. Faced with a tricky
period before tea, Scorpions’
fears were eased by Campbell
and Thomas who put on
92 for the first wicket.
The left-handed Campbell,
unbeaten on 45 at the
interval with Scorpions on
81, faced 66 balls and struck
nine fours while Thomas hit
six fours in a 60-ball knock.
(CMC)
century meant we did not see what the follow-up
would be. Stokes tried to prey on
his patience by sending the ball wide outside
off, as he had done to Kohli, but Jadeja
ignored those balls. He benefited from a
bonus four runs when he took a sharp single
to mid-on and Jake Ball’s throw was
not backed up.
Ashwin had continued to time the ball
elegantly until he was lured into a wider
delivery by Stokes, in his first over of the
day, and spooned a catch to Jos Buttler at
backward point to end a stand of 97 with
Jadeja.
However, Jayant, in so many ways a
younger model of Ashwin, from his role
in the team to punching deliveries through
the off side, collected two sweetly-timed
boundaries off Anderson to set him on his
way, but there was no hurry from India.
England’s frustrations - and specifically
Stokes’ - almost reached boiling point
as they worked to break the ninth-wicket
stand.
Umesh Yadav was dropped on 9 by
Cook, to his right at a lone slip, then in
the same over Jayant nicked past Bairstow’s
right glove, leading to an angered
roar from Stokes. But before the over was
done, Jayant heaved low to midwicket.
Stokes and Adil Rashid shared the nine
wickets taken by the bowlers with Stokes
winning the race to a five-wicket haul, his
third in Tests, when he removed Umesh.
The catch for Bairstow meant he set a new
record for wicketkeeping dismissals in a
year. It was as good as the day got for England.
(ESPNcricinfo)