South East will meet Central in the final of the Trinidad and Tobago Supermarket U-17 Inter-Zone tournament sponsored by Price Club Supermarket (TTCB) after close wins in their respective semi-finals yesterday and Wednesday.
On Wednesday, South East sneaked into the final with a thrilling one-hit victory over East at the National Cricket Center in Balmain, Couva, while Central defeated North by eight runs in the second half at the same venue yesterday.
Central, led by a 114 from captain Justin Jagessar, posted a competitive 264 for nine from their 50 overs after being sent to a good batting counter, while North were restricted to 256 for eight in their reply.
After the early dismissal of Kevin Maharaj in the third over, opener Jagessar joined forces with Luke Ali in a 190-run stand for the second wicket to set the platform for a big total.
However, both men fell three balls apart as the middle order lost momentum in the last 15 overs.
After facing 106 balls and hitting nine fours and three sixes, the right-handed Jagessar was caught by Aditya Ramdeen off right-arm spinner Joshua Davis in the 35th over.
Ramdeen bowled the next ball and had Ali caught by Rahul Lakhan for 66 off 99 balls as the innings slowed to a crawl.
Just four boundaries were scored in the last 15 overs as Central managed a competitive total.
In reply, North captain and opening batsman Kyle Ramdoo hit 89 off 87 balls with four sixes and seven fours, while Abdullah Cambridge hit 55 off 79 balls, yet the Norths still fell short in the end.
Ramdoo had kept the chase alive for North after the early loss of Aditya Ramdeen in the third over, caught by wicketkeeper Tarrell Coombs off the bowling of medium pacer Fareez Ali for a duck.
Adrian Burk then made 70 runs with the opener before being trapped by Alexander Chase, while Davis managed just five runs before being caught by Zachary Madray as North slipped to 103 for three.
Ramdoo followed soon after, bowled by leg-spinner Kelvin Kanhai (one for 41) to leave North in trouble at 134 for four. However, Niall Maingot and Abdullah Cambridge kept them in the hunt with a crucial 83-run stand for the fourth wicket.
Maingot scored 42 off 52 balls before being run out with 48 runs needed off 38 balls.
Fast opening batsman Alvin Sonny then chipped in with two crucial knocks in the last five overs, bowling Arshad Harrilal for a wicket before claiming the prized scalp of Cambridge to put Central on top as North were reduced to on to 251 for seven with 14 runs needed. final over. It turned out to be simply unattainable.
It was a similar game on Wednesday but the chasing team held their nerve to win by one wicket on that occasion.
After East were bundled out for a paltry 166 in 36 overs, South East fought back in their chase and just got past the post, reaching 167 for nine in 35.2 overs.
Romario King played the innings of his life, batting with patience and care as he reached 76 for four and combined with Raul Ali (31) to take the score to 126 for five.
Then three quick wickets for the addition of just 13 runs looked like turning the tide for Eastern Zone, but King was still there at 139 for eight, with the South East facing a huge task needing 27 runs to seal the victory.
King’s 56-ball innings of 32 contained no boundaries and he featured in a valuable 22-run partnership with Aleem Mohammed (19 not out) to take the score to 161 before he was the ninth man out to leave the fellow his team to knock down the victory. runs.
The final will be played on Wednesday at KKK.
Summary results:
Central 264-9, 50 overs (Justin Jagessar 114, Luke Ali 66; Aditya Ramdeen 3/23, Joshua Davis 3/61) vs North 256-8 (50 overs) (Kyle Ramdoo 89, Abdullah Cambridge 55, Niall Maingot 42; Fareez Ali 2/50, Alvin Sonny 2/51)
—Central won by eight runs
Kavir Boodoosingh 50, Andrew Rambaran 37; Christian Rampersad 3/31 East 166-6; Rick Ragonanan 3/35)
— Southeast won by one wicket
