Barbados Pride mounted a resilient fightback on the opening day of their regional four-day first-class encounter against Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC) at Kensington Oval today.
After winning the toss and electing to bat, CCC looked well in command at 208-3 by the tea interval. However, their innings unravelled spectacularly as they lost their final seven wickets for a mere 54 runs, collapsing to 262 all out. The chief architect of their downfall was Roston Chase, who claimed his tenth five-wicket haul in first-class cricket. In response, Barbados Pride closed the day at 29 without loss, with captain Kraigg Brathwaite unbeaten on 13 alongside Zachary McCaskie on five.
Though much of the pre-match attention centred on Pride’s international stars, it was the relatively unknown Barbadian Damel Evelyn who stole the spotlight. The 23-year-old opener exhibited remarkable poise against an attack spearheaded by Test veterans Kemar Roach, Jason Holder, and Roston Chase –who collectively boast 531 Test wickets – crafting a magnificent maiden first-class century at the historic Kensington Oval.
