ALBION, Berbice (CMC) - Guyana took first innings points for the first time in the Carib Beer 2004 Series, finishing with a lead of 94 runs with six wickets in hand and ideally placed to force for an outright win at the Albion Community Centre ground in Berbice.
While Trinidad & Tobago turned in their most forgettable performance in 2004, the Guyanese enjoyed their most pleasing day at the crease, overhauling the visitors’ 143 and ending on 237 for six.
Half-centuries from left-hander Narsingh Deonarine and Travis Dowlin blunted the disciplined Trinidad and Tobago attack for two sessions after Guyana began the day on 19 for two.
Imran Jan, the Trinidad & Tobago captain, unsuccessfully used eight bowlers throughout the first two sessions to dislodge the Guyanese duo, who combined for a third-wicket partnership of 131 which secured first innings points for the home team.
It took a devastating toe-crunching Reyad Emrit yorker to finally bring some joy to the Trinidad & Tobago camp after over four hours of patient and absorbing progression by the Guyanese batsmen.
Dowlin, the aggressor, had his stumps scattered by Emrit after he had compiled a solid 67 from 195 balls.
Dowlin, who started the day with Deonarine, batted with a perfect balance of sound defence and controlled aggression and spent 151 balls for his half-century.
By then he had belted four of his total seven fours and lifted spinner Rodney Sooklal into the unnamed stand at long on for his only six.
The two put on 48 runs by lunch (67 for two) and another 70 (137 for two) by tea to ensure that Guyana suffered no usual batting scares that had bedevilled them all season long.
After tea, their batting began unravelling when they lost four wickets to a Trinidadian fightback.
Dowlin went first at 150 for three, then with the first ball after a half-hour rain interruption that started at 3:40 p.m., Trinidad & Tobago struck again.
Playing back and across the line to spinner Amit Jaggernaught, teenager Leon Johnson was trapped lbw for four, to make it 155 for four.
In the next over, Deonarine survived a very confident caught-behind appeal off Emrit but was unfazed, playing an exquisite straight drive off the backfoot for four that brought his home crowd, small as it was, into a burst of delight.
It was easily the shot of the match.
Two more of his nine fours followed, to take him to 71, the best of his three half-centuries this season but then he was undone by Emrit.
As did Johnson, Deonarine looked to play across the line and was left to make his way back after five hours and 12 minutes of responsible batting.
With the score on 169 for five and Guyana looking tentative, their captain Neil McGarrell and Damodar Daesrath took them up to 237 with a hurried 68-run partnership.
McGarrell made a quick 34 with five boundaries, while Daesrath stayed to the end for 30.
Jaggernauth (2-45) got his second wicket of the day when one ballooned from McGarrell’s bat to the keeper in the last over of the day.
Two other bowlers got two wickets to their name. Emrit (2-44) and Dwayne Bravo, who spent most of the day off the field, took the two that had fallen at the end of the first day for eight runs.
Trinidad & Tobago were pegged back by the loss their leading wicket-taker Bravo, who bowled just 4.1 overs before he aggravated a knee injury which forced him out.