ALBION: Guyana pulled off a final-hour win against the Windward Islands yesterday, bringing their points tally to a second-place 48 and ensuring qualification for one of four semi-final spots in the Carib Beer International Shield regional cricket tournament.

SCORES: Guyana 412 and 161/5 dec vs Windward Islands 307 and 193.

Resuming at 27 with out loss, Guyana quickly lost the wickets of Azeemul Haniff, Siewnarine Chattergoon and Andre Percival with less than 70 runs on the board. But the team managed to reached 161 for five on the stroke of lunch from a 71-run sixth-wicket partnership between Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Travis Dowlin. The solid middle order partnership allowed the home team to declare their innings closed, setting the visitors a total of 267 to win in 60 overs. But the Windwards faltered for 193 as they chased the tally in an attempt to qualify for a semi-final place. Looking for quick runs, Chanderpaul was stumped by wicketkeeper Junior Murray on 47 on the last ball before lunch, leading to the Guyana declaration. Dowlin was unbeaten on 25.

The win means that Guyana, last year’s Shield champions, will host one of the semi-final matches because they placed second in the league stage of the tournament. The other teams to qualify for the semi-finals so far are Barbados and Jamaica, with the final place being a toss up between India “A” and Trinidad and Tobago. The Indians have an additional match against last-place West Indies “B.” The semi-final round, originally scheduled to begin Friday, was postponed until March 28 to allow India “A,” who arrived late to the tournament, a chance to qualify. An outright win could just push them ahead of Trinidad. The start of the final was pushed back until April 4.

The West Indies women cricketers, down two matches against the visiting Sri Lankans in the six-match series, will be making a bid to get back into contention in the third One-Day International at the Queen’s Park Oval, Port-of-Spain today.

After defeats in the opening match in St Vincent and the Grenadines and in the second encounter  at the National Cricket Centre, Balmain, the West Indies will be out to get a win today. They lost the first match narrowly by 29 runs but were slammed by seven wickets in the next. Coach of the team Ann Browne had the girls in a serious practice session at the Oval yesterday and will be looking to the batters to get among the runs to give the bowlers a chance of making a match against the visitors. The Sri Lankans have already qualified for the World Cup in South Africa in 2005, while the West Indies face a play-off for one of the final two spots in Holland later this year.

SACRAMENTO: After each of the Dallas Mavericks’ seven losses to Sacramento over the past 10 months, Steve Nash insisted his team was good enough to beat the Kings in a big match.

Nash probably didn’t imagine the heroics he would have to perform just to prove it. The All-Star point guard hit a match-tying three-pointer with 2.5 seconds left in regulation, then scored 12 points in overtime as Dallas defeated Sacramento 129-123 on Sunday — avoiding a season sweep by another prime contender for the league title. Nash finished with 27 points and 10 assists as the Mavericks got their league-high 50th victory of the season. But it was Nash’s tying shot — set up by Michael Finley’s heady offensive rebound — that gave the Mavericks a momentum and confidence boost.

Despite the Mavericks’ run to the top of the league standings, they had lost seven of their previous eight matches against Sacramento: a 4-1 series defeat in last spring’s conference semifinals, and three straight losses this season. Dirk Nowitzki had 34 points and 18 rebounds, and Finley scored 21 points as the Mavericks displayed all of the poise and execution many doubted they could produce against the veteran Kings. It was a compelling match, but it still was only one fixture — as players and coaches on both sides were quick to point out. Elsewhere, Houston downed Phoenix 85-75; Philadelphia defeated New Jersey 92-87; Cleveland beat Utah 122-95; Minnesota beat Portland 111-95; Memphis crushed Atlanta 124-92; San Antonio defeated Chicago 108-97; New York beat Milwaukee 120-111; Seattle topped Denver 92-84; and the Los Angeles Clippers edged Toronto 111-110. 

INDIAN WELLS: Love, game, set, match. Lleyton Hewitt and Kim Clijsters left the Pacific Life Open tennis tournament with matching “his” and “hers” titles, the Australian winning the men’s championship and his Belgian girlfriend taking the women’s.

“He’s been in these types of situations, in big finals more than I have,” said the 19-year-old Clijsters, who beat Lindsay Davenport 6-4, 7-5 on Sunday. “I was happy I got to play first because otherwise I would have been watching more of his match. I think then it would have been harder for me to focus for my own match.” The top-ranked Hewitt beat the weary Gustavo Kuerten 6-1, 6-1. “It’s obviously fantastic for both of us to come here, No 1 seeds, and everyone wants to knock you off, and we’ve both been able to handle the pressure and situation very well this week,” said Hewitt, a 22-year-old Australian who not only defended his Indian Wells title but won his second tournament in as many weeks.

“It’s a bit awkward going on straight after her. I’d much rather be out there supporting her than sitting in the locker room waiting.” Clijsters, ranked No 3, said earlier that she’s almost more nervous watching her boyfriend of some three years play than when she’s on the court herself. Was Hewitt worried about her match? “He was still sleeping when I had to leave,” she said. Clijsters earned US $332,000, and Hewitt got US $400,000. Asked if the champions pool their money, Hewitt smiled and said, “I don’t know about that.” Hewitt was never threatened by Kuerten, who had only about two hours to rest after finishing his rain-delayed semifinal with a 6-2, 3-6, 6-2 victory over Rainer Schuettler.

PORT ELIZABETH: Defending champion Australia face a semi-final showdown against a plucky Sri Lanka after losing their best batsman in an otherwise record-breaking tournament.

No 4 batsman Damien Martyn, 31, was ruled out yesterday, on the eve of the Sri Lanka match, after medical scans revealed he had a broken right index finger. Already ruled out were fast bowler Jason Gillespie (heel) and allrounder Shane Watson (back) to injuries and legspinner Shane Warne, who failed a drug test. It will be Australia’s biggest test mentally under Ricky Ponting’s leadership and coach John Buchanan conceded losing Martyn was a setback. “It’s a setback, obviously Damien is a key member of our top-order,” said Buchanan. “We’d prefer to have him in the side, but it’s just (hoped) that another player comes in and replaces him adequately.” Michael Bevan, one of the leading batsmen in limited-overs cricket, is expected to return from a back problem that kept him out of the five-wicket win over Kenya and slot in at No. 4 for Australia.

That would allow Buchanan to retain allrounders Andrew Symonds and Ian Harvey to build the all-around strength of the lineup. Australia have won a record 15 consecutive one-dayers and is just one match away from reaching their third final in as many World Cups. They lost to Sri Lanka in the 1996 final at Lahore and beat Pakistan in the final at Lord’s in 1999. Australia have only lost three times in 10 matches against Sri Lanka since winning the last World Cup. Both of Australia’s losses in their last 24 One-Day Internationals have come against Sri Lanka, including a seven-wicket loss at Colombo in the Champions Trophy semi-final last September and a 79-run defeat in Sydney on January 9.

The ruthless Australians will use anything to win, but the controversial St George’s Park pitch might curtail their fast bowlers. Paceman Brett Lee left Sri Lanka battered and bruised in Australia’s 96-run win in the opening Super Six match at Centurion and will once again be called upon to crush the Lankans. Ponting said the Australians have been promised of a “quicker and bouncier” pitch after he’d criticised the wicket following narrow wins over England and New Zealand. “If it looks like it’s going to be bit quicker and bouncier … he’ll be able to bowl the same way at Sri Lanka as he’s done in the last few matches,” Ponting said. “If it’s not conducive to bounce, then swing them out or beat them with pace.” “Intent and intimidate,” Ponting added, were the key words in the campaign.

Despite just scraping into the final four ahead of New Zealand with a win over Zimbabwe on Saturday, Sri Lanka skipper Sanath Jayasuriya said his lineup could match the “aggressive and in-your-face” style of the Aussies. Sri Lanka are considering a two-pronged pace attack — Vaas and Pulasthi Gunaratne —and replacing the third seamer Dilhara Fernando with a batting allrounder Jehan Mubarak, who can bowl offspin. Sri Lanka is confident the Port Elizabeth pitch will encourage spin bowling. Despite being upgraded, the pitch is expected to make run-chasing difficult, particularly against a Sri Lankan attack which has mastered the art of taking the pace off the ball.

“We’re underdogs. We’ll just go and enjoy our game. Nothing to worry about,” he said. “We play a similar brand of cricket to theirs … that’s why we’ve been able to beat Australia. We need to play our aggressive and positive cricket. “This is an important match … It will be anybody’s match. There is no guarantee that Australia is going to win if our boys can match them on the particular day.” Jayasuriya said the team that won the World Cup seven years ago was more experienced than the present one. “This side has youth and experience and we have been sometimes playing extremely well and sometimes badly,” he said. “The problem is with the middle-order batting. We have been going through a hard time with Mahela (Jayawardene) out of form. We have to make it solid,” Jayasuriya said. 

DURBAN: Kenyan wicketkeeper Kennedy Otieno was back in business behind the stumps yesterday, albeit with a heavily-bandaged arm and the occasional grimace.

Otieno was struck on the left arm by a Brett Lee thunderbolt in the five-wicket loss to Australia on Saturday and had to be helped from the field and rushed to hospital for scans. “Fortunately, it wasn’t broken,” said Kenya captain Steve Tikolo, revealing Otieno would be OK for Thursday’s semi-final against India. “It was still numb yesterday, but the feeling came back today,” was Tikolo’s diagnosis of Otieno’s rehabilitation. Otieno is a crucial member of the Kenyan lineup. He opens the innings, holds the national record for highest score in a One-Day International (144 against Bangladesh in 1997) and is handy with the wicketkeeper’s gloves.

The other injury concerns for the Kenyans surrounded Tikolo himself, and allrounders Maurice Odumbe and Thomas Odoyo. Tikolo is on the mend from tonsillitis, and, with his batting form apparently coming back with his voice, he should play a big role in Kenya’s first eve World Cup semi-final. Both Odumbe and Odoyo suffered from minor groin strains, and were rested against Australia. “They are both coming good now,” said Tikolo. “I expect them to be part of the team for India.” The likable Odoyo, 24, is his country’s leading wicket-taker in One-Day Internationals with 53, and is key to Kenya’s success with his nagging line and length. His hard hitting, which helped Kenya to its victory over Zimbabwe on March 12 in the Super Six and catapulted them to the semi-finals, is also a critical element.

Odumbe won “Man-of-the-Match” honours when Kenya defeated Bangladesh in Johannesburg on March 1, then said he objected to being called a part-time bowler. He has taken 39 wickets and scored 1,277 runs for Kenya. The Kenyans face overwhelming odds to beat India, who have won seven consecutive matches since their nine-wicket loss to Australia here. Kenya lost to South Africa and the West Indies in the group phase and both Australia and India in the Super Six round, but took enough confidence from their six-wicket loss to India and their  five-wicket loss to Australia to be contemplating a spot in the final.

TRIPLE CROWN winner Carnival Messiah has begun to get his act together since arriving from Barbados last week and is expected do combat soon.

The five-year-old son of Freshly Squeezed/Lady Of The Moment who is currently stationed at the quarantine barn adjacent to Santa Rosa Park, Arima, was out on Sunday to re-acquaint himself with surroundings and to stretch his legs with some long pace work. The strapping individual who raced with limited success in the United States,  returned to the track yesterday to step up his work under the watchful eyes of trainer Glenn Mendez who saddled the Wilma Primus-owned colt to win all three legs of the 2001Triple Crown.

After doing one round of light work, the dark bay began increasing the tempo from the 1200 metres marker and maintained a steady clip to the finish line in 1:06.65 seconds. Trainer Mendez was pleased with Carnival Messiah’s performance and gave a hint of a re-appearance later this month with the top money earner of two years ago. He promised to sharpen him up with some speed work later this week. Infallibility was another oldstager seen out over the last two days. The Grant Lourenco inmate who is making a return to racing after serving in the breeding sheds, seemed to have lost none of his ability, covering the last 1000 metres of the sand course in an “easy” 1:05.19 seconds. Following are gallops recorded over the past two days.

SUNDAY –
400 METRES: Movietowne Magic – 29.99, pacing. Sure Ting – 29.14, pacing. Bound To Win – 29.98, pacing. Golden Honour – 29.50, pacing. Mary Magdalene – 28.99, pacing. Tribal Place and Ex Perhaps Love – 25.13, handily – Tribal Place better. Once In A Lifetime – 24.33, good – ridden out. Chelsea’s Song – 29.77, pacing. Preffered Share – 29.96, pacing. Hazey Hill – 29.98, pacing. Fresh Mandate and Freshly Minted – 25.26, handily. Hyarima – 25.86, handily.
600 METRES: Magen – 44.96, pacing. Digital Alarm – 43.65, pacing. Outrageous Victory – 42.65, pacing. Panama Belle – 39.71, handily. Reign Of Fire – 43.45, pacing. The Chairman and Panama Canal – 40.84, handily. Dare To Dream and X To Board – 37.79, good. Affirmed Dancer – 44.98, pacing. Silk Runner – 44.67, pacing, Ruby Rich – 44.96, pacing.Sweet Tempo – 40.48,  handily. Royal Flush – 39.61, handily. Ring Dang Do – 42.08, pacing. Ichiban – 44.70, pacing. Street Wise- 43.25, pacing. Pattie’s No Angel – 38.95, handily. Ballybunion – 38.00, handily. Regent Street and Pharmist – 39.08, handily. Fortunate Flag, Boundtodotcom, and Millenium Reign – 36.55, good – Boxes. Joan Of Arc and Hatrick – 37.19, good – Hatrick better. Trini Gold – 37.96, handily.

800 METRES: Cat Woman – 55.98, pacing. Punto A Punto – 53.18, handily. Pehnomenon and Balthazar – 57.34, pacing. Millennium Dancer – 52.68, handily. Finest Gem – 59.98, pacing. Naturelly Classy and You Got Mail – 53.84, handily.
1000 METRES: Kaser’s Gold – 1.11.54, pacing. Isle Be True and Game High – 1.03.07 – good. Tactical Bid – 1.04.38, handily. Super Grey – 1.07.70, handily. Infallibility – 1.05.19, easy. Hundred Percent – 1.09.20, easy. Van Lou and Peace of Mind – 1.09/14, handily. Invincibility – 1.06.62, handily. Due Dilligence and Cornerstone – 1.09.95, handily. Free Zone – 1.13.30, pacing. Out Swinger – 1.03.09, good. Sonic Wind – 1.02.65 good, Sure Wager – 1.05.93, handily. Carnival Messiah – 1.12.00, pacing. Undisputed – 1.13. 19, pacing.    
YESTERDAY: 400 METRES: Brandy – 28.78, pacing. Sunny – 29.98, pacing. Colour of Peace – 29.99, pacing. Mister Tick and Julia – 29.98, pacing. Sir Vidia – 29.93, pacing.
600 METRES: Cheer Leader – 44.97, pacing. Ex Trouble Rips It – 44.99, pacing. Mary Magdalene – 38.59, handily. Saratone – 42.85, pacing.
800 METRES: Movietowne Magic – 50.25, good. Sure Ting – 49.17, good.
1000 METRES: Carnival Messiah – 1.06.65, easy.
1200 METRES: Top Of The Class – 1.18.68, handily. Sweet Tempo – 1.20.07, handily.

McBean United have defeated Lange Park by 106 runs in the latest round of matches in the Ramsingh sponsored Central Zone limited overs cricket series.

Batting first at McBean, playing at home, reached an impressive 273 all out with Sookram Jagmohan batting at number eight, scorching an aggressive 64. Steve Bachan supported him well with 34. Lambert “Bertie” Lee Ahyen was the pick of the bowlers for Lange Park with four wickets for 76.  The veteran bowler had his figures spoilt in the end by Jagmohan after he ripped out the McBean middle order with a combination of medium pace and spin bowling. With such a huge score to chase, Lange Park were always going to be up against it and were humbled for 167. Bob Sarafat was the leading batsman getting 45 runs to continue an impressive run this season in the Central Zone. O’Niel Kalloo fought gallantly until the end to score 20 but it wasn’t enough. Anthony Sammy kept the Lange Park boys in check with two for 19.

McBean met Exchange in their final Group “A” clash on Sunday. Last weekend they got the better of Gordon Sports by the huge margin of 95 runs. Batting first Exchange made 273/6 off their allotted 35 overs with Shane Ramlagan getting 65 and Shakeer Mano 53. Brent Buckredee grabbed four wickets in four overs for 31 runs. Gordon Sports were then routed for 178 with Sylvan Soogrim scoring 41 and Nimbal Bassant, 49. Kevin Narine nabbed 5/37 and his father David Narine took 3/15. The victory puts Exchange on 10 points with one match to play.

RAMSINGH LIMITED OVERS SCORES
At McBean: McBean 273 (Sookram Jagmohan 64, Steve Bachan 34, Lambert Lee Ahyen 4/76, Anderson Ramdath 3/38) def Lange Park 167 (Bob Sarafat 45, O’Neil Kalloo 20, Anthony Sammy 2/19) —- By 106 runs.

At Exchange: Exchange 273/6 (35) (Shane Ramlagan 65, Shakeer Mano 53, Lindsay Rondon 33no, Brent Buckredee 4/31) def Gordon Sports 178 all out (28.3) (Slyvan Soogrim 41, Nimbal Bassant 49, Kevin Narine 5/37, David Narine 3/15) – by 95 runs.

It was judgement day in the NGC/Express Secondary Schools Association  basketball competition (Northern Conference) with the divisional finals played in front of an ecstatic crowd at the St Paul’s Street Gymnasium, Port-of-Spain on Sunday.

The first match was the Under-15 final between Excel Composite and Diego Martin Junior Secondary which Excel won 62-60. Diego’s Makesi Lewis fought hard to score a match high 38 points which was the highest individual score of the day, but his effort was overshadowed by Excel’s Kurt Snaggs (23) and Marcus Allert’s 20 points. Both Josimar Phillip and Michael Sandiford of Excel and Diego’s Kensley Sandy contributed 10 points each in the tight match which was 26-27 at the half, evidence of the fervor of the players. Malick Secondary who had a dream run all season long continued their unbeaten streak with a 34-24 win over Mucurapo Senior Secondary in the girls final. Malick’s Crystal Kirton stepped up her game for the event and gave a season high 26-point performance which could not be countered by Mucurapo’s duo of Affeisha Noel and Corisa Blugh who scored 14 and six points respectively in their battle for top honours in the conference.

Dylaun Skeete tortured Diego Martin Secondary from around the three-point border with six three-pointers on his way to a match-high 34 points which led his team to a 87-62 victory in the Under-17 Boys’ championship. The Morvant/Laventille Secondary player was part of a machine that met all challengers for the season with devastating force reaching the final with a perfect win record. Morvant/Laventille won the Under-15 division last year and retained the same players as they advanced to the Under-17 Division final showing the spirit and drive which won them the title. Sadiqi Guerra attempted as usual to win the match for his team with 32 points from his heart but Kyle Bruno with 12 points, Anthony Husbands, 12, and Carrill Mollineau’s 10 assisted the Morvant/Laventille victory. This year coach Anthony Lewis has seen his formula work once again as the Morvant/Laventille team he bred has developed into a force to be reckoned with and will be remembered for their two-year, two-division winning streak. The feature match on the day was the Under-20 final between Malick Secondary and Tranquillity Secondary with the former keen to complete a double but fell short of glory.

Tranquil captain Vonelle Applewhite led the charge with a match-high 26 points and Sherman Diaz scored an essential 13 points to help Tranquillity win the crown. A true warrior, Julius Sprott beat his body in aid of Malick scoring a team high 17 points while Steven Edwards’ scored 10 and as usual Akiel Wharfe provided precarious dribbles and angular passes but their collective efforts were not enough to help their team’s aspirations as Tranquil fought their way to their third championship. “Tranquil” coach Rudolph King expressed pleasure at his team’s performance stating that they stuck to their game plan and broke their opponents’ rhythm. He said that they were looking forward to going all the way to take the National Under-20 championship.

A Memorial Invitational Games honouring Manny Ramjohn, one of Trinidad and Tobago’s greatest athletes will come off on Friday at the stadium which has been named in his honour in south Trinidad.

The programme, organised by the Southern Sports and Cultural Foundation will get going from 5.30 pm at the Marabella venue. Ramjohn, now deceased, was the first TT athlete to capture a gold medal at an international meeting when he won the 5,000 metres race at the 1946 CAC Games in Colombia. This race will be the main event on the 34-event programme. Yesterday, Jim Clarke, of the organising committee, said invitations have been sent to all clubs whose athletes have qualified for the upcoming Southern Games. Leading the foreign challenge for honours is TT Marathon winner Pamenos Ballantyne from St. Vincent and the Grenadines along with teenaged sensation Jamil Williams of Antigua. Also athletes from the US, St Vincent, Guyana, Antigua and Venezuela have confirmed their participation.