As far as Suriname go in cricket, they are certainly not world-beaters. They are ranked at 41st in the world - and only the sixth best team in the Americas, with minnow nations such as the Cayman Islands ranking higher than them. They have never been a force in international cricket and recent results have seen them competing in the World Cricket League Division 6.
Suriname is the smallest country in South America, and is situated between French Guinea, Guyana and Brazil. Suriname is extremely diverse ethnically and religiously, and it is also a very poor country with the majority of residents living on under $2 USD a day. Soccer is the main sport in Suriname, with many famous players consisting of Surinamese decent - such as Ryan Babel, Clarence Seedorf, Frank Rijkaard and Edgar Davids. They have also produced a few track and field athletes - however, cricket has never been their primary focus.
This all changed upon the arrival of new manager and coach, in Mr Blake. The players of Suriname were a friendly, laidback group who had never really trained terribly hard - so the arrival of the Australian Blake was quite something to them. The players were keen to take advice on board and were confident of putting up a good showing in the WCL Division 6.
Division 6 didn't feature many competent cricketing nations, but it was still going to be a challenge for the growing Suriname. They had to face off against Nigeria, Bahrain, Guernsey, Malaysia and Gibraltar - a division which might prove tough to start. However, immediately manager Blake took to work with the squad, taking them into their one net training academy and teaching many of them the basics of technique - which some had not learnt before. It was going to be a tough haul, but with the aims of manager Blake, Suriname was going to become a far more competitive cricketing nation in the distant future.
After a study of all of the domestic players of Suriname, Blake announced the squad and letters were sent out to the lucky 18 players who would be competing for their nation in WCL 6.
Squad:
Matthew Beaven
Wesley Bragg
Kevin Caddick
Glen Chapman
Irfan Finegan
Jason Fisher
Rhun Franks
Paul Gazzard
Andrew Hodgson
Edward Hole
Roger Lloyd
David Lynch
Haroon Mason
Michael McGarry (c)
Jason Paskins (wk)
Zafran Ryan
Rob Saggers
William Whitney
Of the squad named, Blake stated that Michael McGarry would be captaining the Surinamese squad. At the age of 36, McGarry already has plenty of experience and is perhaps the best batsman in the squad, preferring to play a middle order role such as Michael Hussey played for the Australians.
Blake was also impressed with off spinner Rhun Franks, who he expects will be one of the leading wicket takers in WCL 6. He stated that he has a lot of confidence and time for the 33 year old, who appears to be the best bowler in the Surinamese squad.
From the young players, Blake was most excited with Haroon Mason, who at just 24 has a lot of time to get better, and he expects Mason will hold down the number 4 position with the bat.
Expected Lineup:
1. Matthew Beaven
2. Edward Hole
3. Jason Paskins (wk)
4. Haroon Mason
5. Michael McGarry (c)
6. Paul Gazzard
7. Rhun Franks
8. Jason Fisher
9. David Lynch
10. Rob Saggers
11. Andrew Hodgson
Suriname's first fixture is a month away, and will be played at St. Peter Port, the capital of Guernsey. Many of the players have never flown in an aeroplane before, and the 18 man squad will be leaving on the 1st of May, 11 days before their game on the 12th. It will certainly be an exciting new time for the coach and players alike. For Suriname, their quest is just beginning.
After a month of intense training regumes and some serious skills work, the Surinamese team is finally ready to compete in their first game under new manager and coach Blake. The team has already showed slight improvements after just weeks of training and Blake insists they are as ready as ever to play Guernsey. The team flew out to the small island of Guernsey on the 1st of May, 10 days ago, and as it is the first trip together for much of the team, they are still bonding and beginning to come together as a team.
The team is now in their final day of rest and relaxation before their match begins. Other matches being played in their division consist of Bahrain taking on Nigeria, as well as Gibraltar hosing Malaysia in one that Malaysia has been touted a comfortable favourite for victory.
On further inspection of the pitch, it was revealed that the groundsmen of St Peter Port had turned out a superb deck - almost capable of international quality. There would certainly be runs scored on it, and it would play very well for the batsmen indeed. The weather forecast showed sunshine for the next seven days of the week - there would be no need to worry about any interruptions at all, and generally the conditions looked very good for cricket. It looked set to be an entertaining match, with the new look Suriname keen to kickstart their WCL6 season.
Guernsey
1. T Bartley
2. G Roopnarine
3. C Ali
4. T Johnson
5. A Awan (c) (wk)
6. S Javed
7. I Awan
8. R Alexander
9. R Johnson
10. R Staple
11. N Johnson
Suriname
1. Matthew Beaven
2. Edward Hole
3. Jason Paskins (wk)
4. Haroon Mason
5. Michael McGarry (c)
6. Paul Gazzard
7. Rhun Franks
8. Jason Fisher
9. David Lynch
10. Rob Saggers
11. Andrew Hodgson
With the two sides looking fairly evenly contested, there didn't appear to be a whole lot of difference, and with such a good batting pitch available, the match tomorrow looked set to turn out a cracker.
12 May, 2009
Finally, match day arrives for the two teams and they are both ready for a huge game of cricket - the home team Guernsey up against South American visitors Suriname. This match could be a key factor already in deciding promotion and relegation and both teams will be fighting desperately for victory. Guernsey will be wanting to start strongly, but Suriname have a new-found desperation from their Australian-born coach Blake and that could be enough to get them over the line.
The team lineups have already been named from yesterday, and there are no changes in either team, as expected. As time drew around to 1:00PM local time, play finally commenced. Guernsey won the toss, after a call of heads, and their captain Aijaz Awan chose to bat first - a very sensible decision considering the pitch. It was going to be an uphill battle for Suriname now; they would just have to hope they could restrict Guernsey to anything under 220 and they would have a chance.
As Tony Bartley and Gowkaran Roopnarine strutted out to the wicket for Guernsey, the Suriname team quickly assembled in a huddle where Michael McGarry spoke a few words before they jogged out on to the field. David Lynch had the new ball in his hands, and it was going to be Bartley to face the first delivery.
Suriname didn't exactly get off to the greatest of starts though, with the first and much anticipated delivery of the match whipped through midwicket for a boundary, with Bartley opening his account early. Lynch looked down-hearted already, but a few quick words from his skipper saw him find a better line for the rest of the over and he didn't concede any more runs.
As it turned out, it wasn't long before the first wicket fell. The opening bowler at the other end, Rob Saggers, was finding an excellent line and after a few dot balls Bartley grew impatient and attempted a lofted drive back down the ground - however, Beaven, running under it managed to cling on to the catch and pick up the first wicket of the innings, to loud celebrations. Bartley looked disappointed with his short innings, and Saggers was delighted with a wicket in just his second over. Guernsey were now 1/13 after 3.5 overs, and Suriname definitely had their tails up now.
The new batsman, Clayton Ali, began to lift the scoring rate with 11 runs from as many deliveries upon arrival at the crease. But, it was at the other end when a chance was offered. Lynch pitched the ball up, encouraging the drive, and Roopnarine attempted to scoop it over mid off. Beaven had a fairly regulation catch come straight to him - but he seemed to lose his footing embarrassingly and he fumbled the catch, letting Roopnarine off the hook. Lynch didn't look impressed with the missed effort, but Beaven already had taken one catch and the Suriname fielders still had a lot to work on.
After 10 overs, the partnership had begun to form and was now 25 from 37 deliveries, with Ali looking confiden on 17 off 22 and Roopnarine pacing his innings at 10 off 29 deliveries. Michael McGarry conceded that his opening bowlers were now tiring, and decided to bring on a new bowler - a fast medium in Hodgson, in an attempt to break the building partnership. His first over started poorly, however, with Ali hitting a superb off drive from the first delivery down the ground for four.
The next bowler into the attack was off spinner Rhun Franks. McGarry was hoping his subtle changes of pace and turn would be enough to draw one of their batsmen out of their crease and hit a loose shot, but the move didn't seem too successful as Franks was hit for 9 from his first over, including another boundary from Clayton Ali. After 12 overs, Guernsey were 1/55 at a run rate of 4.58 and were looking quite confident now in the match.
After some more aggressive batting from Roopnarine and Ali, finally the partnership was broken by Hodgson. This time it was Roopnarine on his second life, hitting one straight to point. Saggers made no mistake of the lobbed chance, taking it comfortably with cupped hands to send Roopnarine back to the pavilion for a well played 24 from 41. Guernsey were now 2/75 from 14.4 overs, and whilst they were scoring at a good run rate, they needed to make sure they didn't lose too many more wickets. Clayton Ali was still looking confident though, on an even 38 from 38, and he was definitely looking like the dangerman at this stage for Suriname.
In the next over alone, Ali was given a second chance with McGarry failing to take a difficult catch. Franks drew Ali down the track with a well flighted delivery, but Ali at least managed to send it high in the air and McGarry misjudged it completely, running underneath the ball as it fell short of him. That could prove to be a key turning point in the match, if he went on to make further runs from here.
But none of the Suriname bowlers were having any luck from there, and another partnership began to form - this time between Tony Johnson and Clayton Ali. A change of the bowling didn't help causes, with Ali gliding Fisher through the off-side to bring up a hard earned half century - 51 from 58 balls. It had been an excellent knock from the Guernsey number 3, and his side was looking confident at 2/105, although the run rate had now dropped under 5.
It was in the 31st over that the partnership finally ended between the two batsmen. None of the bowlers were having much success until Saggers was reintroduced into the attack, which proved to be a good move by McGarry. Ali was finally bowled for a good innings of 60 off 82 - however, now the threat posed at the other end, with Johnson racing to 43 off 51. Things didn't look too much better either for Suriname, with the skipper now coming to the crease for Guernsey.
The runs quickly started to dry up for Guernsey, however. The bowlers began to find a probing line, and the partnership carried along at a run rate of just under 4. Awan never looked overly confident in his innings, and it finally came to an end - after one LBW shout from Lynch was turned down, he was hit in front again just four balls later - and this time, he was gone for 17 off 31. It hadn't been a great innings with Guernsey having just 10 overs left to bat - he really needed to stay in and start hitting. Guernsey were now 4/179 after 41 overs - but on such a sublime wicket, was that really enough? They were travelling at 4.37 an over, and they really needed to lift their score to 230+ to assure Suriname a very tough chase.
Just two overs later, David Lynch struck yet again - this time, the confident Tony Johnson was finally dismissed. He had batted wonderfully for 66 off 88, but he attempted a poor paddle shot which saw to his dismissal - the ball striking him on the pad in front of the stumps. The umpire had no hesitation in awarding the dismissal, and suddenly Lynch had his tail up after two quick wickets to his name.
The two next batsmen worked very well together though to lift Guernsey's run rate, and in the end Suriname couldn't find a breakthrough. Javed added 26 off 28, and Imran Awan hit 18 off 21 as both remained not out at the end of the innings to lift Guernsey's score. The end of the innings total was 5/233 - a good score, but it would still be chaseable. Suriname were going to have to bat out of their skins though to chase this down - and on their first match together as a team, it was looking very tough indeed.
After the innings break, Guernsey returned out into the field, in high spirits after posting a competitive innings of 5/233. Suriname were prone to batting collapses and hardly had a strong base to hold them together, and it seemed that Guernsey were heading for victory early - but still, anything could happen. For Suriname it was Matthew Beaven and Edward Hole to open the batting - they came out as a pair, stretching their arms and practising some of their shots. Rubbing the ball against his trousers was opening bowler Imran Awan for Guernsey.
Beaven took guard for the first delivery, and he managed to get some bat on it, pushing it on a back foot defense for the first ball of the innings. He also managed to get off the mark the next delivery, pushing it out into the leg side and collecting 2 runs. However, the next delivery Beaven miscued his shot completely and it went sailing deep to Roopnarine at point who was jogging backwards, and he looked certain to be out.. but Roopnarine put down the catch, a simple one really, and Beaven was given life on just his third delivery! Meanwhile, Edward Hole wasted no time getting started with a crunching boundary kickstarting his innings, and Suriname were 0/9 after 1 over - although it hadn't been without a chance.
The two opening batsmen worked hard against the Guernsey bowlers - they were determined to lay on a good foundation for their team. The run rate slowed a little bit, and after 5 overs they were 0/19. Not a bad start for Suriname, as long as these two batsmen didn't get bogged down - but it seemed Beaven had lost his head.
In the 7th over Beaven again attempted to hit it over the point fielder, but he didn't even get close - this one spiralled down towards Bartley, who wasn't letting him off the hook this time. Beaven was gone after a disappointing innings, out for 7 off 16 and he didn't look too pleased with himself. Suriname were in trouble early at 1/23, and needed a recovery. Now at the crease was Jason Paskins, who was hardly the most inspiring of batsman but he did have a sturdy technique which was the reasoning behind his number 3 position.
Meanwhile, Edward Hole was keeping the runs flowing with a mixture of singles and well-placed off drives, and after 10 overs Suriname were in a respectable position at 1/42, with Hole batting well on 25* off 34. It was crucial he kept his head down and went on for the big innings - Suriname sure needed him here.
However, that wasn't to be the case. He seemed to lose focus and played all around a straight one from Awan, who grabbed his second wicket by knocking out Hole's middle stump. He was gone for 26 off 38 - Suriname were now 2/48 and certainly in a bit of strife. Now it was young Haroon Mason out to rescue his team and play a big innings - was he up to the task?
He was only just off the mark when his partner fell - Paskins hitting a loose shot to fall for 23 from 26. Everyone was getting tentative starts but nobody was going on with it - a lack of experience shown by the players here and Suriname were now in a right bit of trouble at 3/68. Thankfully it was 36 year old McGarry at the crease now, to rescue the innings - surely he was mature enough to play a gritty knock.
The partnership began to build, and Suriname were nearing 100 - however, then Mason had a lapse in concentration and tried to work one around the corner - instead, it rapped him on the pad in front. A huge appeal went up and Mason was gone, a slow innings that hadn't really been worthwhile - he was gone for 12 off 30. Suriname were folding up now at 4/97, and there appeared no hope for them at all.
However, Suriname refused to say die. McGarry and Gazzard formed an excellent partnership to keep them alive - bringing up the 50 run mark from 67 deliveries, an ideal partnership. After 34 overs, Suriname were back in the match at 4/149, with McGarry 47* and Gazzard 22*. There was still plenty to do, with Suriname requiring 5.31 an over, but if these two could continue there was still hope. But, the 50 partnership proved to be the jynx of McGarry who went not long after lbw to Johnson for 48.
There was no time to waste now for Rhun Franks, who was arriving at the crease. He had to bat fast, with the run rate required at 5.5 an over now. But, he batted perfectly to the needs of the team, and the two quickly builded a partnership of 34 from 34 deliveries, with Gazzard moving on to 44* from 54 and Franks 16* from 14.
Suddenly, the last thing on everyone's mind struck - rain. Clouds had just been moving over recently and it began to shower down briefly, with players coming off the field. There was worries play was done for, but then Suriname came back out after the rain stopped. The target had now been revised to 224 from 48 overs maximum.
The rain break proved to be horror, with a maiden over coming up first and then Franks wicket falling as he was caught at third man for 16 off 16. Now it was Fisher forced to hit hard, with the required run rate just over 6 now. Suriname needed 30 to win off 29, it was going to be a tough chase. However, there was nothing doing and it was Gazzard who went next for 47 off 66 - he just couldn't go on with his knock.
Suriname were now 7/199 after 44 overs, needing 25 to win from 24. It was looking extremely unlikely, but they were not saying die. Suddenly, Fisher began to attack with some graceful shots, working 5 runs from the next over, and then 5 more, and then 7 from the second last over. This was turning out to be a thriller! After 47 overs, Suriname were 7/216 - needing 8 to win from 6 deliveries.
Fisher was 17* off 16, Lynch 5* off 4. Could Suriname pull it off? 8 runs needed.
47.1 Javed to Fisher, Glided off the hips for a single, 7 off 5!
47.2 Javed to Lynch, Leg glance again for a single to fine leg, 6 off 4! Boundary needed
47.3 Javed to Fisher, Dot ball! Way too good. Suriname need 6 off 3, it's all over now surely.
47.4 Javed to Fisher, Still hope! Punched through the off-side to the deep fielder for two runs, 4 off 2 now!
47.5 Javed to Fisher, Dot ball, Oh no! Play and a miss, now it's a boundary or nothing.
Fisher to face the last ball, he needs a boundary to win the match..
And he can't do it! Whacks it out but doesn't get full contact, only gets the single, Guernsey win by 2 runs!
So, that's that - a disappointing loss for Suriname by just 2 runs in the end! it was a thrilling chase, but nobody went on with their innings which proved to be their downfall. They just couldn't do it in the end - but what an effort from their first match under Blake. They showed a lot of promising signs today.
Are those made up players? How come you didn't use their official squad? (Wouldn't work in CC?). Probably close to impossible to get decent player info too.
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