There was a fair-sized gathering of local fans at the Conaree grounds on Friday 21st January, as the Windies under 19 team engaged their Sri Lankan counterparts, in a must-win game, in order for the maroon team to qualify for the quarter-finals of 2022 under 19 world cup.
The first bit of disappointing news was to learn that two of the Nevisian players in the team, in Jaden Carmichael and Onaje Amory, had contracted the covid-19 virus and were in isolation.
The Windies team batted first and demonstrated that there was some real, batting talent among the players, with Wickham, Bishop, Clarke and Johnson, all getting scores of 40 plus.
When the Sri Lankans batted, however, despite the loss of an early wicket, Rajapaksa batted soundly for 76, to hold off the home team.
The intriguing contest went right down to the 49th over, as the visitors held on, to secure victory, winning by three wickets and effectively knocking the home team out of the quarter-finals.
Summarized scores: Sri Lanka 251 for 7 (Rajapaksa 76, Bandara 40, Clarke 2-38, Thorne 2 for 41) beat West Indies 250 for 9 (Wickham 56, Johnson 47, Bishop 45, Clarke 45; Wellalage 3-56) by three wickets