Barbados defeated Bermuda by seven wickets at National Sports Centre, North Field today [Sunday] to win the inaugural Bermuda Premier League [BPL] championship.
Barbados scored 126 for three in response to Bermuda’s posted total of 124 for seven in 20 overs.
After losing the toss and being made to chase Barbados’ score during the tournament’s opening encounter last Tuesday, the situation was reversed this time around for Bermuda, as the host country guessed correctly the coin’s landing and made the decision to bat.
Nevertheless, the final result was the same, as Barbados demonstrated exactly why they maintain a top place among the Caribbean’s powerhouse, cricketing nations.
On a challenging, slow-paced wicket that held early, Bermuda got off to the worst of starts, as opening batsman Kamau Leverock was bowled on the game’s first ball by off-spinner, Kemar Smith, who would late be named Man of the Series.
The Bermuda innings deteriorated further with the dismissals of Terryn Fray (12) and Delray Rawlins (five), leaving the hosts reeling at 28 for three.
Unwilling to fold, Tre Manders (38) showed great resilience, while finding an able partner in Dominic Sabir (34). The pair pressed forward resolutely, crafting a 53-run fourth wicket partnership that took Bermuda to 81, before the former was caught behind by wicket-keeper Leniko Boucher.
Sabir then put on 34 runs with Charles Trott (21) in moving the score to 115, when Sabir was run out by Amari Goodridge.
The innings closed with Bermuda amassing 124, a below par total and one seen as not easily defensible against a well drilled Barbados ‘A’ outfit made up of emerging players anxious to impress the national selection committee.
Among those were Smith, the brother of former West Indies batsman Dwayne Smith, who revelled on a turning pitch, returning two for 14 from four overs, while right-arm, fast bowler Zidane Clarke seized two for 21 as the fourth bowler used.
In contrast to the home team’s batmen, Barbados made it look easy, even as they lost Rashawn Worrell (seven) with the total just 25.
Boucher (40) and Jonathan Drakes (14) would move the score to 76, when the former was dismissed by the left-arm orthodox spin of Derrick Brangman and the latter followed him to the sidelines at 108, a victim of Cejay Outerbridge’ left-arm, medium-pace.
Shaquelle Parris (50 not out) and Yvan Grant (14 not out) saw Barbados past the set target, with Parris emphasising Bajan dominance in ending the affair with a flurry of boundaries, that included two massive sixes off the last two balls.
Among the Bermuda bowlers Brangman returned figures of one for 17, Outerbridge claimed one for 20 and Leverock’s one wicket cost 30 runs.
Boucher was named Man of the Match by virtue of his work behind the stumps, recording three dismissals – two catches and a single stumping – as well as his valuable batting contribution at the top of the order.
“For me, every time I step on the field I look to give 100 percent, whether it is batting, wicket-keeping or even if I’m in the field,” said Boucher, who was immaculate in his role throughout the tournament. “I just went out there with the mindset that, listen, ‘I’m not going to take this game lightly and put my best foot forward’.
“As it relates to the chase, I know small totals can be tricky sometimes, so it was up to me to get the team off to a good start.
“Unfortunately I wasn’t able to carry it right down to the end, but I’m still happy I was able to put the team in a strong position.”
Barbados captain Jones noted how the squad’s dedication to training ahead of the competition had enabled them to reap the reward of a first BPL championship.
“Fortunately enough we were granted the opportunity to prepare for the tournament extremely well,” said the skipper after the award ceremony. “So, with all of the hard work that we put in before this competition, we were able to execute it and it showed in every player we put out there.”
Barbados ‘A’ team coach Henderson Springer, while impressed with the initial instance of the BPL and happy to have had his team win the tournament, yet noted himself as a harsh judge of his team’s performance and viewed the result as one he expected from a group of players looking to progress to the country’s senior team.
And Springer well knows the game and what to expect, having played 26 first class and 31 List A matches as a right-handed batsman and a right-arm off-break bowler, appearing mainly for Barbados as well as Western Transvaal, of Australia, between 1987 and 1998.
His resume lists him as a graduate of Cricket Australia, while having operated as a director of coaching, as well as being skilled in sports writing, sponsorship sales, sports psychology, rugby, and marketing strategy.
“I thought it (BPL) was a very good initiative,” said Springer, who previously visited the Island with Barbados in the early 2000s. “I hope it will get a lot bigger as time goes on.”
“Our guys played well to come out on top, but I’m still marking them a bit harder, because they were coming from a situation where they play a lot more cricket.
“Bermuda is preparing for the ICC engagement and stuff and I wish them well, they still have a couple more weeks to go.
“It won’t be easy, but I’m glad if we could come and lend something of substance to their preparation.”
Bermuda’s coach Niraj Odedra conceded that his side had been beaten by a better team, at least on this day, however he was optimistic of Bermuda being able to use the lessons learned from Barbados to improve going forward to the upcoming ICC T20 World Cup 2024 Americas Region Qualifier later this month against Canada, Panama and Cayman Islands.
“First of all, congratulations to Barbados, they played very good cricket,” said Odedra, who, in February, guided Indian regional outfit Saurashtra to the prestigious Ranji Trophy title over Bengal. “Very well played to my team as well, but most importantly I’d like to compliment the BCB for the way they organised this tournament.
“This is how we wanted it and we got it. These were proper practice matches for ourselves.
“However, I won’t even say practice matches, because we lost, so I hope the rain didn’t leave you too wet and you can go home and dry off and when you come back to support us we hope to win one or two matches.”
As the competition’s leading wicket-taker, with seven wickets claimed, at an average of 6.43, Kemar Smith was named Man of the Series.
Grassroots Cricket Academy wicket-keeper/batsman, Michael Dover, received the Batsman of the Series award for scoring a total of 135 runs in four outings, at an average of 45 runs per innings.
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