LUCAS STREET, Barbados, (CMC) - Out-of-favour West Indies fast bowler Pedro Collins served a timely reminder when he bowled unbeaten front-runners Barbados into a favourable position against Kenya in their fifth round match of the Carib Beer 2004 Cricket Series yesterday.
Swinging the ball both ways and bowling on a full length, the left-arm medium-fast bowler captured five wickets for 57 runs from 24 overs in Kenya’s modest first innings total of 171. When stumps were drawn on the opening day, Barbados were 45 without loss.
After the Kenyans batted with some aplomb throughout the morning period, Collins ripped the heart out of their batting after the lunch interval. Kennedy Otieno hit the top score of 52, but most of the other batsmen failed to carry on following useful starts.
Barbados, leading the Championship with a maximum 48 points from four straight victories, did not have the kind of success they might have anticipated after they sent Kenya in to bat on a hard, true Windward Sports Club pitch under sunny skies.
Opening batsmen Otieno and Ravindu Shah batted almost 1½ hours to share 40 for the first wicket before Tino Best made the breakthrough when Shah was caught behind for 16 to give wicketkeeper Courtney Browne, the Barbados captain, the first of five catches.
After Kenya reached 67 for one at the lunch interval, Otieno reached his half-century with the last of his seven boundaries before Collins got into the act when he had the opener, who batted 2¼ hours and faced 107 balls, caught behind.
This proved to be a purple patch for the Barbadians.
Two more wickets, both to Collins, fell for 12 runs in the space six overs. Kenyan captain Steve Tikolo was caught behind for seven and star batsman Maurice Odumbe was bowled for one to leave the visitors 89 for four.
For close to an hour, Hitesh Modi and Maurice Ouma defied the Barbadian attack with some circumspect batting. But they would have needed to spend a lot longer period at the crease if their work was to have any meaning.
Medium-paced bowler Antonio Mayers made the breakthrough when Hitesh Modi was caught at first slip for 16 after batting just over two hours and Rageb Aga was lbw to Collins for nought to leave Kenya on 129 for six at tea.
Soon after the break, Mayers had Ouma caught at first slip, but Collins Obuya with 18 and Martin Suji with 19 not out held the Barbadians up for just over half-hour before Best returned to take two of the last three wickets that fell for 16 runs in the space of six overs.
Best ended with three for 37 from 17.5 overs to take his tally of wickets to a season-leading 29 and Mayers took two for 20 from 11 overs.
Barbados are playing the same side that completed a 162-run victory over West Indies-B at Three Ws Oval in the previous round, while Kenya made one change to their team that drew with Jamaica last weekend, with leg-spin bowler Collins Obuya coming in for Brijal Patel.
KENYA 1st innings
K. Otieno c wkpr Browne b Collins 52
R. Shah c wkpr Browne b Best 16
H. Modi c Reifer b Mayers 16
S. Tikolo c wkpr Browne b Collins 7
M. Odumbe b Collins 1
M. Ouma c Reifer b Mayers 21
R. Aga lbw b Collins 0
C. Obuya c wkpr Browne b Best 18
M. Suji not out 19
P. Ongondo b Collins 0
L. Onyango c wkpr Browne b Best 1
Extras: (b-2, lb-8, w-1, nb-9) 20
Total: (all out) 171
Fall of wickets: 1-40, 2-77, 3-87, 4-89, 5-115, 6-116, 7-134, 8-155, 9-166.