Jamaica Scorpions fought gamely with ball and bat to haul themselves back into contention against the visitors Windward Islands Volcanoes going into the final day of the Digicel Regional four-day match at Sabina Park in Kingston.
Play is scheduled to start 9:30 this morning.
The Scorpions closed yesterday on 92-2 in their second innings, giving them a lead of 38 runs with eight wickets in hand. Left-hand opener John Campbell is on 43, while West Indies middle-order batsman Jermaine Blackwood is unbeaten on 16.
Earlier, the Volcanoes, who began the day on one without loss, were bowled out for 205 on the stroke of tea. Wicketkeeper batsman Sunil Ambris and all-rounder Kyle Mayers made identical scores of 61.
The Volcanoes had restricted Scorpions to 151 just before close of play on Saturday.
Scores: Scorpions 151 (60.3 overs) & 92-2 (29 overs); Volcanoes 205 (64.2 overs)
Yesterday, the sunlight took centre stage after the first two days of the match saw severely limited play due to intermittent rain and a saturated outfield.
To the relief of those anxious to see a full day of cricket, a combined 93 overs and two balls were bowled on a grass covered pitch that offered seam movement for the pacers and spin and bounce for the slow bowlers.
The Scorpions began with the 19-year-old Thomas and fellow pace bowler Reynard Leveridge, 26 — both playing their first game in regional four-day cricket.
Thomas shone immediately when he had the major scalp of sidelined West Indies opener Devon Thomas for zero.
And it was a very good delivery, too, pitching on middle and off and moving away from the left-handed batsman to shave the edge of the bat for the Scorpions wicketkeeper Chadwick Walton to take a low catch.
It was testing spell from the pair of fast bowlers, who ran in with great enthusiasm and worried the batsmen with pace.
But it was the medium pacer Green who made the next breakthrough.
He struck when opener Tyrone Theophile played a wild drive at a wide and edged a catch to Walton at 21-2.
It was 30-3 as another wide away swinger from Green brought more reward. Robinson was the man to fall to the trap this time when he edged to Walton for 19.
Leveridge, who was particularly impressive without the success to match, finally got reward when he produced steep bounce from a short delivery to Kavem Hodge (26), who fended a catch to Devon Thomas at just behind square on the off-side at 96-4.
Immediately after lunch Captain Liam Sebastien (one) nicked a catch to Walton off leg-spinner Damion Jacobs.
The free-scoring Ambris batted well before he played loosely against the spin of Jacobs and was caught at midwicket by Green at 148-6. He hit eight fours off 94 deliveries.
Scorpions’ skipper Nikita Miller had Shane Shillingford (zero) leg before wicket as the screws tightened on the Volcanoes batsmen.
Mervin Matthew could do nothing about one from Miller that turned across him and clipped the glove for Walton to snap the catch.
Delorn Johnson executed a few hefty blows against the slower bowlers, however the re-introduction of Thomas ended his innings. The batsman tried to carve a delivery from Thomas over the top but miscued the shot for Campbell to run to his right and complete an excellent diving catch.
Mayers, who mixed solid defence with a number of crunching blows, was the last man dismissed when he tried to force a quick single and was run out by Trevon Griffith. His 61 runs came off 98 deliveries and included six fours and a six.
Behind by 54 runs in the first innings, the Scorpions got a solid 53-run start thanks to the left-handed opening duo of Campbell and Griffith.
But Griffith was sent back to the pavilion for 22 when he was struck in front of the stumps by the brilliant Mayers, who swung the ball prodigiously, particularly inward to the right-handers.
The bowler then produced a swinging yorker to uproot the leg stump of Thomas (nine) at 75-2.
The Barbadian-born Mayers has so far taken 2-22 from nine overs.
Campbell’s 43 runs have come off 95 deliveries and includes three boundaries.
SCOREBOARD
SCORPIONS 1st Innings 151
VOLCANOES 1st Innings
(overnight one without loss)
D Smith c wkp Walton b Thomas 0
T Theophile c wkp Walton b Green 3
J Robinson c wkp Walton b Green 19
K Hodge c Thomas b Leveridge 26
+S Ambris c Green b Jacobs 61
*L Sebastien c wkp Walton b Jacobs 1
K Mayers run out 61
S Shillingford lbw b Miller 0
M Matthew c wkp Walton b Miller 5
D Johnson c Campbell b Thomas 23
L Edward not out 0
Extras (b1, lb2, w1, nb2) 6
TOTAL (all out, 64.2 overs) 205
Fall of wickets: 1-1, 2-21, 3-30, 4-96, 5-97, 6-148, 7-149, 8-175,9-204, 10-205.
Bowling: Miller 18-3-45-2, Thomas 7-1-26-2, Leveridge 13.2-3-34-1, Green 10-2-37-2, Jacobs 14-4-43-2, Campbell 2-0-17-0.
SCORPIONS 2nd Innings
J Campbell not out 43
T Griffith lbw b Mayers 22
D Thomas b Mayers 9
J Blackwood not out 16
Extras (lb1, nb1) 2
TOTAL (2 wkts, 29 overs) 92
Fall of wickets: 1-53, 2-75.
Bowling: Shillingford 9-0-37-0, Johnson 4-0-14-0, Matthew 6-1-17-0, Mayers 9-2-22-2, Edwards 1-0-1-0.
Position: Scorpions lead by 38 runs.
Toss: Volcanoes.
Umpires: Verdayne Smith, Leslie Reifer Jr.
