Trinidad and Tobago Under-19 men's cricketers got their second win of the Cricket West Indies (CWI) Rising Stars Men's Under-19 50-over Championships when they got a nail-biting one-wicket victory in a low-scoring affair against home team Windward Islands at the Sion Hill Playing Field, St Vincent on July 28.
Opting to bat first, Windwards had an almighty struggle with the bat and they were bowled out for a paltry 96 after 35.5 overs. Middle-order batsman Kirt Murray was the only batsman to get a score of note as he top-scored with 29 off 60 balls.
Off-spinner Joshua Davis led the way for TT with figures of three for 16, with captain Olando James (three for 29) also featuring among the wickets. Leg-spinner Aneal Rooplal also chipped in with figures of two for 25.
A 97-run target looked an easy enough chase on paper, but the TT team also had their difficulties on the Sion Hill surface and they were in all sorts of trouble in the 19th over when in-form batsman Andrew Rambaran was dismissed for a three-ball duck after being caught off the bowling of Murray to leave his team on 44 for six.
TT's woes magnified just a few overs later as James was bowled by a Murray peach for duck and Abdul-Raheem Toppin (four) was dismissed by off-spinner Lee John, who finished as the pick of the bowlers with three for 18.
With TT's score on 62 for eight at that stage, the weight of the team fell on the shoulders of middle-order batsman Fareez Ali, who played a level-headed anchor knock to take his team home. Ali struck 40 not out off 60 balls with five boundaries, and he showed great poise as he batted with the tail and picked off singles and put away the odd bad ball when the opportunities were presented.
Ali shared in a crucial 21-run stand with number ten batsman Kevin Kanhai for the ninth wicket. And although the latter player didn't score during his 38-ball stay at the crease, he showed a resolute defence until he was bowled by left-arm seamer Aaron Joseph (one for 16) to leave TT on 83 for nine in the 34th over.
With TT still needing 14 runs for victory, the hosts appeared to be in the driver's seat. However, Ali found one more reliable partner in Rooplal (one off 13 balls), who quietly played his role in a game-sealing 14-run partnership.
After a few anxious overs, Ali swung TT to their second win in four matches when he drove a Joseph delivery into the backward point boundary for four — giving his team the narrow one-wicket win with over 12 overs to spare.
TT's other win in the competition to date was also in a low-scoring affair, as they defeated Leeward Islands by a 31-run margin at Sion Hill on July 23 after making a modest score of 108. TT were then beaten by Barbados and Guyana in their next two matches.
TT will play their final game of the tournament against defending champions Jamaica on July 30 at the Arnos Vale Playing Field.
Summarised Scores:
WINDWARD ISLANDS: 96 from 35.5 overs (Kirt Murray 29, Stephan Pascal 10; Joshua Davis 3/16, Olando James 3/29) vs TT: 97/9 from 37.2 overs (Fareez Ali 4
