Jameel?Stuart?may have been St Michael Merchants’ youngest cricketer but he came up with a big all-round performance on Wednesday night to hand St John Crusaders a 11-run defeat and his team a semi-final berth in the UWI C.O. Williams Inter-Parish Twenty20 Tournament.
Playing at 3Ws Oval, St Michael Merchants rallied to 138 for five in their 20 overs and sent St John crashing out of the competition by restricting them to 127 for nine.
Stuart, this year’s Barbados Under-19 captain, hit two sixes and a four in a top score of 36 off 24 balls for St Michael Merchants, whose final total was boosted by two late sixes from Omar Marshall in an unbeaten 24 not out off 26 balls.
Craig St Hill (30) and Jaibari Yarde (22) had given the Merchants an opening stand of 50 in 9.1 overs before both were dismissed by left-arm pacer Adeko Collymore (2-14).
After captain Kevin Stoute fell for nine, Stuart stepped up the tempo in the face of some tight bowling from Barbados and West Indies “A” Team off-spinner Ashley Nurse (2-22).
He then returned with the ball, to take two for 12 in his four overs, combining with left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican (2-15) and miserly medium pacer Andre Evelyn, who captured three for 15 in four one-over spells to stifle the Crusaders’ batsmen.
Stuart also held a fine diving catch, running around to his left from long-on to remove Collymore, who was making a late-ditch effort for the Crusaders with two sixes in a breezy 16 off 10 balls.
Earlier, Barbados Twenty20 opener Justin Brathwaite had given the St John Crusaders a blazing start, smashing three of his four sixes in one over from West Indies “A” Team pacer Miguel Cummins in a quickfire 29 off 13 balls.
Brathwaite shared an opening stand of 51 with fellow left-hander Shayne Moseley, who made the eventual top score of 43 off 42 balls with three sixes and two fours.
But Evelyn shattered Brathwaite’s stumps in his first over as the batsman missed a big heave.
St John then suffered a middle order collapse with Shamar Cooke (1), Vonrick Nurse (2), Ashley Nurse (3), Amory Holder (0) and skipper Ulric Batson (3) all falling cheaply.
Summarized scores
St Michael Merchants 138-5 in 20 overs (J. Stuart 36, C. St. Hill 30, O. Marshall 24 n.o., J. Yarde 22; A. Collymore 2-14, A. Nurse 2-22).
St John Crusaders 127-9 in 20 overs (S. Moseley 43, J. Brathwaite 29, A. Collymore 16, J. Padmore 12 n.o.; A. Evelyn 3-15, J. Stuart 2-12, J. Warrican 2-15). St Michael Merchants won by 11 runs. (EZS)
