Gidman inspires Guyana win
Sunday 11th February 2018
Will Gidman took a career-best 4/20 and top-scored with an unbeaten 29 as Kent beat West Indies four-day champions Guyana and go top of the group on the FGS Plant Tour in Antigua.
Debutant Grant Stewart grabbed three wickets as Kent dismissed the seven-time Super50 champions for 158 after being invited to bowl first on a tricky surface in their first day-night match at the Coolidge Cricket Ground.
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Skipper Joe Denly took two wickets as his leg breaks continued to pay dividends in Caribbean conditions with a trademark tidy spell of 1/25 by James Tredwell applying pressure in the middle overs after a whirlwind opening.
Stewart took the new ball with Ivan Thomas and both bowlers showed patient and accuracy bowling in the corridor outside off-stump to the Jaguars’ quartet of top-order left-handers.
The Sandwich Town seamer struck in his third over and his maiden one-day scalp was a famous one as former Windies Test star Shiv Chanderpaul had an uncharacteristic swipe and nicked behind to Adam Rouse.
Then, Will Gidman entered the fray and struck four times in his first four overs to leave Guyana reeling on 29/5 after 13.1 overs.
Hemraj was unluckily adjudged LBW in his opening over before current Test player Hetmeyer’s airy drive was gratefully pouched by Denly at mid-on.
Bowling a nagging stump-to-stump line, the 32-year-old got one to stick in the pitch as Leon Johnson offered a comfortable return catch before Anthony Bramable nicked behind to Rouse.
Guyana were forced to consolidate and built their biggest partnership through Christopher Barnwell (36) and Shefane Rutherford (22) sharing 58 for the sixth wicket before both fell in quick succession to spin.
Tredwell broke the deadlock by bowling Rutherford before Joe Denly struck with the next ball as Barnwell offered a catch to Tredwell at slip.
Under-19 World Cup winner Keemo Paul offered brief resistance and a return catch to Denly before Grant Stewart mopped up the tail with two wickets: Veerasammy Permaul bowled and Devendra Bishoo caught in the deep by Crawley.
In reply, Daniel Bell-Drummond and Zak Crawley saw off the new-ball bowlers with a stand of 57 before falling in quick succession to the first-change attack in successive overs.
Bell-Drummond chopped seamer Romario Shepherd to Hetmyer at gully before Crawley was stumped, advancing to West Indies leg-spinner Bishoo.
Joe Denly was caught behind as Shepherd struck again before Bishoo ran through the Kent middle-order, collecting 4/35 in ten overs.
Alex Blake blasted two sixes and two fours to reach a brisk 25 off 21 balls before smashing Bishoo to Shepherd on the deep mid-wicket boundary and was the only batsman to score at more than a run a ball.
Dickson and Rouse were trapped LBW before Grant Stewart feathered Bishoo behind as Kent had plenty of overs but not batsmen in hand.
The older heads of man-of-the-match Gidman and Tredwell steadied the ship and read the game situation well, seeing off the dangerous Bishoo before reaching the target with 13 overs to spare to chalk up the first five-point win of the tour.