TT women whip St Lucia for regional crown

ST GEORGE’S: Trinidad and Tobago made a clean sweep of the 2003 West Indies Women’s Cricket Tournament, winning their match yesterday against former champion St Lucia and claiming the regional title. In a nail-biting final match at Tanteen Playing Field in Grenada, Trinidad beat the six-time champs by five runs. Trinidad batted first and was restricted to a mere 135 for seven in 48 overs, with St. Lucia’s slow bowling rate cutting the innings short by two overs. St Lucia’s response fell short of their goal in reaching 130 in 42 overs. The St Lucian bowling against Trinidad was impressive, with Leona Vitalis capturing four Trinidadian wickets for 24 runs from 10 overs, and Captain Verena Felicien capturing two for 19 from 10 overs. At bat, Trinidad’s Erica George hit 31, Shane De Silva was run out for 20, Brenda Sulzano made 17 and Stephanie Power hit 12. St Lucia began their response in style, with some big hitting from opener Nadine George until she was bowled by Lee-Ann Kirby for 21 with the score on 27. St Lucia then began losing wickets at regular intervals.

An impressive eight-wicket stand of 62 between Lorena Vitte and Philippa Thomas gave the St. Lucians a glimmer of hope, putting the team seven runs close to victory. Attempting to pull a short delivery from Lee-Ann Kirby, Vitte was caught in short backward square when she was on 34. St. Lucia then lost their remaining three wickets for just six runs, short of their 135 target by five runs. At the end, St. Lucian player Philippa Thomas was not out on 23. Bowling for Trinidad, Anisa Mohammed captured three wickets for 19 from nine overs and Kirby caught three for 28 from seven overs. Envis Williams, Sharon Wharton and Shane De Silva each claimed a wicket. Trinidad manager Jean Camino said despite the team’s low innings total, she never gave up hope for victory. “Once the bowlers were out there, there was always this chance,” Camino said. Organisers were also expected to name 15 players from the tournament, selected to train for the West Indies women’s team ahead of a July tour in the Netherlands. The president of the West Indies Women’s Cricket Association said strong performances by individuals during this year’s tournament showed there was a future for women’s cricket. “I think women’s cricket in the West Indies is on the rise,” Carol Wirlby-Maxwell said after the match. The sport was being limited, however, by a lack of sponsorship, she said.