Port-of-Spain, Trinidad – Both coaches involved in Sunday’s rain-hit Caribbean T20 opening contest felt they had a good chance of pulling off a victory.
The match was abandoned after heavy showers interrupted the second half at Queen’s Park Oval. Trinidad and Tobago made 128-9 off 20 overs and Jamaica reached 5-0 off 1.2 overs before the rain came and ended the night’s entertainment for a crowd of over 15,000.
David Williams, Head Coach of defending champs Trinidad and Tobago, said: "It was going to be a cracker. On that pitch, in those conditions, we felt we could defend our score.
"We felt we were about 15 runs short of the target we were originally looking for, but we knew we had the bowling to restrict Jamaica. It was looking like a tight finish in the making. We felt it would go down to the wire, but we were confident of winning," added the former T&T and West Indies wicket-keeper.
Junior Bennett, Jamaica’s longstanding coach, was also confident his players could pull off what would have been a surprise win against the two-time defending champions.
"We bowled and fielded well and that was the ideal start we were looking for in this tournament. There was a lot of energy from the fielders and this helped to back up from good bowling from start to finish.
"Chasing a score of six-and-a-half per over was ideal for us. We knew we didn’t have to take any undue risks when we batted so we could pace our innings. We didn’t come away with a victory, but this match was a good start for us."
The home team won the toss and batted first, but met a slow pitch and heavy outfield. They faced eight overs of dot balls and only managed to clear the boundary on two occasions.
Dwayne Bravo showed the value of his experience as he worked the balls into the gaps to reach a topscore of 30 off 27 balls. Krishmar Santokie was again Jamaica’s best bowler with 2-17 off four overs to move to 35 wickets and maintain his record as the leading wicket-taker in the tournament.
The Caribbean T20 continues at Queen’s Park Oval on Monday with two matches. Barbados face Leeward Islands at 4 pm while 2010 champions Guyana take on Combined Campuses and Colleges at 8 pm.
FULL TOURNAMENT SCHEDULE
(AT QUEEN’S PARK OVAL, Port-of-Spain, Trinidad)
Sunday, January 6
Trinidad & Tobago vs Jamaica – Match abandoned due to rain
Monday, January 7
Barbados vs Leeward Islands – 4 p.m.
Guyana vs Combined Campuses & Colleges – 8 p.m.
Tuesday, January 8
Jamaica vs Barbados – 4 p.m.
Trinidad & Tobago vs Combined Campuses & Colleges – 8 p.m.
Wednesday, January 9
Windward Islands vs Jamaica – 4 p.m.
Trinidad & Tobago vs Leeward Islands – 8 p.m.
Thursday, January 10
Combined Campuses & Colleges vs Windward Islands – 4 p.m.
Guyana vs Barbados – 8 p.m.
Friday, January 11
Leeward Islands vs Jamaica – 4 p.m.
Combined Campuses & Colleges vs Barbados – 8 p.m.
Saturday, January 12
Windward Islands vs Leeward Islands – 4 p.m.
Trinidad & Tobago vs Guyana – 8 p.m.
(AT BEAUSEJOUR CRICKET GROUND, Gros Islet, St. Lucia)
Tuesday, January 15
Guyana vs Jamaica – 4 p.m.
Windward Islands vs Trinidad & Tobago – 8 p.m.
Wednesday, January 16
Combined Campuses & Colleges vs Leeward Islands – 4 p.m.
Barbados vs Trinidad & Tobago – 8 p.m.
Thursday, January 17
Leeward Islands vs Guyana – 4 p.m.
Windward Islands vs Barbados – 8 p.m.
Friday, January 18
Combined Campuses & Colleges vs Jamaica – 4 p.m.
Windward Islands vs Guyana – 8 p.m.
Saturday, January 19
Play-off: 2nd Place vs 3rd Place – 8 p.m.
Sunday, January 20
Grand Final: 1st Place vs Winner of Play-off – 8 p.m.