SPORTS
Newsday reporter
Tobago’s under-15 cricketers are aiming for a better performance in the second round of the Scotiabank NextGen 50-overs development program on Wednesday. Tobago take on East at the Aranguez Recreation Ground at 9.30am.
The East players will be full of confidence after beating the North zone by seven wickets in their opening match.
Tobago, fielding Trini players to ensure a full complement, lost their tournament opener against North East by five wickets on Friday.
Tobago won the toss and elected to bat first at the Knowles Road Recreation Ground in Curepe.
Alex Ramdeen and Sameer Khan began the quest for a competitive total, but both players returned to the pavilion very early, with the score on 12 off 11 balls.
Jedidiah Mohammed, at number seven, provided the best resistance for the visitors, with a top score of 35 runs.
Bowling for the home side, Zakilon Beckles kept the Tobago boys in check with a spell of five wickets for 22 runs in 7.1 overs. Joshua Alfred chipped in with two scalps as the visitors were bowled out for 132 in 22.1 overs.
North East got off to a positive start with Israel Gonzales and Amir Singh posting 50 runs for the first wicket. They eventually overhaul the visitors’ total in the 32nd over, losing five wickets for 133 runs.
Sameer Khan was the pick of the Tobago bowlers, claiming three wickets for 34 runs in nine overs, which included a maiden.
Tobago coach Brian Browne said the players put up a good fight, given their challenges.
“Our preparation was not the best,” he lamented. “We were actually working with a depleted squad of six guys in Tobago, who are inexperienced at that level, and we didn’t have training sessions with the Trinidad players, who are reserves in their zone, before the game.”
Browne added, “We’ve lost two years of development through the Covid19 pandemic, which will hurt a small area like Tobago. So we are practically starting from scratch. But still, considering all these factors, I thought we put up a good fight.”
The Tobago team, which features nine players from Trinidad, is coached by Tracey Coldeira.
