Christian Lall scored a century in vain as North fell short against South in the Under-15 Price Club Supermarket North-South Classic at the National Cricket Centre in Balmain, Couva on Wednesday.
Lall scored a solid 119 but North fell apart as South snatched a five-run victory out of the jaws of defeat after North seemed to have the match sewed up.
North won the toss and scored 254 for 3 in 50 overs. Skipper Brendan Boodoo scored an impressive 60 before he retired as South wanted to allow all the players to showcase their talent in a match where all 13 players in the team played, with 11 batting and 11 fielding.
Zane Maraj scored 52 before he too was recalled to the pavilion giving another batsman to face the North bowlers. Dimitri Ramjattan scored 41 in his time at the crease.
In reply, North was in some early problems but Lall played a glorious inning as he tries to rescue his team. The right-handed batsman batted purposefully but when he settled in he changed gear and belted 16 fours and one six. But when he was out with a score on 206 for 5, things fell apart for North. They consistently lost wickets and were eventually bowled out for 249 in 49.3 overs, losing by five runs.
Zane Maraj took 2 for 38 and Ra’ed Ali Khan took 3 for 36 to help South secure the win.
After the win, Boodoo, who was also named T&T U-15 captain, said despite Lall’s innings, he believed in his players. “And as captain, I motivated them.”
The Presentation College batsman also stressed the importance of getting the wicket of Lall, who was threatening to take the game for North. “the way he was batting we knew the game was in their hands, it is a good relief to get him out”.
The T&T Cricket Board has named the following team for the regional U-15 tournament to be played in April.
They are Boodoo (captain), Yasir Deen (vice-captain), Ganesh Gobin, Aaryon Mohammed, Scyon Charles, Re’ad Ali Khan, Dimitri Ramjattan, Aadi Ramsaran, Cristiano Ramanan, Darius Battosingh, Zane Maraj, Christian Lall, Alejandro Kassiram, Zakilon Beckles and reserves: Reynaldo Fourniller, Israel Gonzales and Amrit Pittiman.
SCORES
SOUTH 254/3 (50 overs) (Brenda Boodoo 60, Zane Maraj 52, Dimitri Ramjattan 41, Tyler Ramroop 1 for 17, Qadeer Juman 1 for 38, Yasir Deen 1 for 49) vs NORTH 249 (49.3 overs) (Christian Lall 119, Alejandro Kassiram 41, Maleek Lewis 43, Ra’ed Ali Khan 2 for 36, Zane Maraj 2 for 38)
South won by five runs.
