GEORGETOWN, Guyana (CMC) - Coming from a disastrous position of zero points from their first three matches, Guyana have virtually secured their semi-final place at the end of day three of the final preliminary round match against Kenya in the Carib Beer 2004 Series at Bourda.
After amassing 444 in the first two days, Guyana hustled through Kenya's first innings, finishing them off for 139 having started the day at 104 for 5.
Then, with a deficit of a mammoth 305 runs Guyana enforced the follow-on and for the second time had the Kenyans in a regrettable position, closing the day on 172 for 7.
With Trinidad and Tobago having lost outright to Barbados remaining on 40 points, Guyana are expected to secure their victory this morning and adding another 12 points to their 28. That would mean that they would go through to the semis by virtue of having beaten Trinidad and Tobago in their head-to-head clash at Albion two weeks ago.
Mahendra Nagamootoo, was Kenya's main tormentor in their first innings adding another two wickets to his overnight three for 30 to finish with five for 45 and take his regional first class wicket tally to 253.
Then he bagged another two wickets in the Kenyan second innings to move up to 255, just one behind Rangy Nanan, the Trinidadian spinner on 256, standing third behind Clyde Butts (270) and Courtney Walsh (264) on the all-time list.
The Africans added just another 35 runs for the loss of their last five wickets in the first innings. Rayon Griffith (2 for 34) started the rot when he had Collins Obuya who went to bed on 9 caught behind by 'keeper Vishal Nagamootoo for 18, which was the third highest score of the Kenyan innings, after Brigesh Patel's 59 and captain Steve Tikolo's 22.
Those figures emphasise the lacklustre performance of the Kenyans, who only managed to occupy the crease for 75.5 overs in their first innings when they needed to score 295 to avoid the follow on.
At the start of the day it took Kenya 26 minutes to and 59 deliveries to score a run, Damodar Daesrath and Nagamootoo combining to bowl nine consecutive maidens, Daesrath, bowling six on the trot as they strangled the Kenyan batting.
They lost wickets with tremendous rapidity, and twenty minutes before lunch the first innings came to an end when a lively last-wicket partnership of 15 was ended by Nagamootoo, who had Peter Ongondo caught at long on by Zaheer Mohamed for 9.
Lameck Onyango was left not out on 7, inclusive of a mighty six - the only one of the Kenyan innings - which sent the ball crashing onto the nearby Regent Street, forcing the umpires to use a replacement ball.
Kenya feared only slightly better when they took the crease for a second time. Their top run-getter in this year's tournament, Kennedy Otieno, proved to a fair-sized, but disappointing Saturday crowd that he was a batsman of class and quality.
He plundered eleven fours in a pulsating knock of 70. One boundary, a straight drive over the head of Griffith was a shot that typified his audacious and unforgiving knock. So dominating was he that by the time he left the crease at 91 for 2, he had scored just under three quarters of his team's runs. His 116-ball innings was the only performance of imposing delight for the Kenyans as they struggled to build enduring partnerships on a pitch, which generally kept low, but was not devoid of the odd bounce.
Otieno, took a mere 64 balls to register his half-century taking his run aggregate for the series to 512.
After a first-wicket partnership of 54, with Brigesh Patel (05) and 37 with Ragheb Aga (10) Otieno departed and Kenya looked to be in trouble of losing within three days for the second consecutive game after having lost their last game to the Windward Islands.
They managed to avoid that, staving off an unrelenting Neil McGarrell who bowled a marathon 29-over spell, broken only by the tea interval when the Kenyans were 96 for 3. McGarrell has so far pocketed three of the seven wickets to fall for 43 runs.
Guyana are expected to formalise their victory this morning with Kenyan still needing to score another 132 runs to make the home team bat for a second time.
The last three wickets should not pose many problems for the likes of McGarrell and Nagamootoo who took 2 for 37 to take his wickets tally in the game to 7.
GUYANA first innings 444, R. Sarwan 199, S. Chanderpaul 75, S. Chattergoon 60. R. Aga 4-72.
KENYA first innings o/n 105 for 5
K. Otieno lbw Daesrath 3
B. Patel c Sarwan b Nagamootoo 59
R. Aga b Daesrath 1
S. Tikolo c McGarrell b Nagamootoo 22
H. Modi c & b Nagamootoo 0
C. Obuya c wkp. Nagamootoo b Griffith 18
F. Otieno c Mohamed b Nagamootoo 6
M. Ouma c Chanderpaul b Griffith 0
M. Suji run-out 5
P. Ogondo c Mohamed b Nagamootoo 9
L. Onyango not out 7
Extras: (b-4, nb-3, lb-2) 9
Total: (all out from 75.5 overs) 139
Fall of wickets: 1-9, 2-15, 3-82, 4-82, 5-99, 6-115, 7-117, 8-119, 9-124.