Barbados Pride and Jamaica Scorpions share thrilling draw

Barbados Pride almost snatched an unlikely victory, but in the end the Jamaica Scorpions held on to share the spoils in their second-round contest, which ended in an exciting draw here on Wednesday.

An outright result didn’t look to be on the cards with the Pride holding a slim three-run first innings lead heading into Wednesday’s final day.

Resuming the day on 460 for five, Kyle Mayers and Leniko Boucher extended their partnership to 104 runs to carry the Pride to 542 for five.

Mayers, who had batted cautiously on Tuesday’s penultimate day, changed gears with his side needing quick runs, smashing six fours and five sixes during a knock of 84 off 130 balls.

Medium pacer Odean Smith got the breakthrough for the Red Force when he had Mayers caught, and with 10 runs added he also snared the wicket of Boucher for 24 to make the score 552 for seven.

Johann Layne, who made an unbeaten 43 off just 31 balls with three sixes and three fours, and Shamar Springer, who made 36, then carried the score 626, with Springer’s dismissal prompting an immediate declaration.

Faced with a deficit of 169 runs, the Scorpions suffered an immediate setback when Kyle Mayers dismissed in-form opener Kirk McKenzie for a duck with just seven runs on the board.

One run later, Shamar Springer wasted an opportunity to put more pressure on the home side when he dropped Javelle Glenn at third slip off the bowling of pacer Johann Layne.

It didn’t prove to be very costly though, as Layne snapped up an easy caught and bowled opportunity offered by Glenn after tea, to make the score 22 for two.

When new batsman Brad Barnes was brilliantly caught by a diving Jair McAllister running in from fine leg off the bowling of Layne, the Pride would have been sensing an opportunity to push for an unlikely victory.

His dismissal brought a hobbling John Campbell to the crease, the skipper nursing a leg injury picked up while fielding.

Left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican then claimed the wicket of Carlos Brown with a superb delivery that spun away from the right hander and took a slight edge on its way through to wicketkeeper Leniko Boucher to put the Pride in the ascendancy at 46 for four.

However, Campbell rode his luck during an unbeaten knock of 42 off 91 balls and together with Romaine Morris, who scored a patient five runs from 62 balls, took the Scorpions to 90 for four when the teams agreed to a draw.

The Scorpions’ skipper was dropped on eight by McAllister, who failed to hold on to the catch running in from fine leg after his attempted sweep shot ballooned into the air.

He was also fortunate to survive a caught behind appeal of the bowling of Warrican, when the ball looked to have hit his bat on the way through to the keeper.

(CMC)