The Trinidad and Tobago Red Force were backed by their experienced spinners to dominate the combined campuses and colleges in their CG United Super50 Cup opener on Monday night.
However, coach David Furlonge said they may have to adjust their strategy against a much more experienced and versatile Guyana Harpy Eagles line-up.
The Red Force take on the Harpy Eagles at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba from 2pm today and while it is only the second match of the tournament for both sides, a lot is on the line. The Guyana outfit lost their opening game on Monday against the Windward Islands Volcanoes at Queen’s Park Oval, so they will be eager to make amends.
Meanwhile, Nicholas Pooran and company will be looking to continue their winning streak and will work to tighten up in several areas as they look to increase their performance. Monday’s win saw T&T go 8-0 in regional 50-over cricket, a streak that began in last year’s tournament which they won with a perfect record.
Asked about the use of three spinners in Akeal Hosein, who grabbed four for 38, Sunil Narine, who took two for 21 and Yannic Cariah, who grabbed one for 35 to end the innings, Furlonge said: “This was the thought (behind) playing two fast bowlers.” Jayden Seales (2-1) and Shannon Gabriel (1/18).
He said that with the strength of their bowling unit, they decided to play an extra innings on a pitch that would have some moisture on it after a fortnight of significant rain.
“We had four spinners, one didn’t bowl which was Jason Mohammed and what we did was stretch the batting order so that we had Jyd Goolie at six, Cariah at seven, Hosein at eight and Sunil Narine at nine, so that was the strategy in that game,” Furlonge explained. “It was our first game and knowing that bowling is our strength, we decided to play an extra batsman.
He added: “Due to the composition of the team, Anderson Phillip was not included. Evin Lewis is still out with a minor injury and we are monitoring him. He is also doubtful for the match (today)”.
Looking ahead to the match against Guyana, who the Red Force had beaten in last year’s final, Furlonge said: “We will think about our strategy and see what we come up with, but we will have to look at the conditions. The wicket had a bit of moisture on it and the spin bowlers were taking a turn but we will assess the conditions again and then decide the team composition.”
Asked about losing three wickets in pursuit of a modest target of 120, Furlonge said it was the team’s first game and he was happy they achieved their target to start with a win. “We’ve had two soft dismissals there, but it’s the first game we’re playing; the boys haven’t had much time out in between. It was good to be out there in the middle and the boys got an opportunity to play cricket. We played a complete game, which was good, and the main thing was to win our first victory, which we did”, he appreciated.
Asked if he was worried about the soft dismissals of Jason Mohammed and Darren Bravo, he said: “I’m not too worried about it. The crease was a bit wet and Jason Mohammed, his back foot slipped when he went to play the shot, and I think Darren, it’s just a matter of him getting time at the crease. We’ll try to give him a long shot in the middle and see how he goes for the next game,” Furlonge concluded.
CCC and the Windward Islands Volcanoes will clash in the other Zone A game today at Queen’s Park Oval from 9am.
Teams:
Guyana Harpy Eagles: Leon Johnson (captain), Veerasammy Permaul (vice-captain), Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Tevin Imlach, Shimron Hetmyer, Sherfane Rutherford, Romario Shepherd, Quentin Sampson, Clinton Pestano, Gudakesh Motie, Niclavin Smith, Anthony Brave. Delicious cumin.
T&T Red Force: Nicholas Pooran (Captain), Sunil Narine (Vice-Captain), Joshua Da Silva, Evin Lewis, Akeal Hosein, Anderson Phillip, Darren Bravo, Imran Khan, Jason Mohammed, Jayden Seales, Jeremy Solozano, Jyd Goolie, Khary Piere , Kjorn Ottley, Mark Deyal, Shannon Gabriel, Terrance Hinds, Yannic Cariah.
