As one of the biggest softball tournaments was taking place in Guyana, softball teams here in New York were stirring with excitement. For the foreigners, it gave them the opportunity to showcase their talents and prove to their ex-countrymen that their skills had not faded since they migrated from “The Land of Many Waters.”
For the home teams, it gave them a chance to defend their home turf. If pride and glory were not enough, a prize of $800,000 GYD and $600,000 GYD for the Open and Masters categories would have been enough incentive for the players to provide an exciting three-days of cricket. All of these was at stake in the Guyana Softball Cup.
The tournament, which is in its third consecutive year of competition, showcases some of the best softball talent that Guyana and United States have to offer.
The NY Better Hope team led by Ronald Evelyn and managed by Alfred Madray was loaded with some best softball talent in New York. Team members were on a mission to capture the Masters titles as they overcame an early round loss to claim the championship.
In their first match, Better Hope went up against Floodlights Cricket Club at the DCC, Floodlights elected to bat first and reached 134 in their 20 overs. Openers L. Ganda and R. Persaud got them off to a fantastic start as they scored 27 and 31 respectively; however they were removed in quick succession of each other and Better Hope bowlers kept the pressure mounting from that point.
Ronald Evelyn was the pick of the bowlers as he finished with figures of 4-0-12-2. In response to the modest total, Gus Gordon got Better Hope off to a terrific start with 56 but no other batsman was there to stick around with the skipper as wickets fell steadily.
E. Dodson eventually brought them home in the 20th over as Better Hope claimed a narrow victory of 2 wickets.
In the second match of the day, Better Hope went up against Kayume Savage Cricket Club. Better Hope took the strike and mustered up a score of 149 in their 20 overs. J. Arjune led the way for Better Hope with 36 but it proved not to be good enough as Kayume Savage chased it down in the 19th over. Led by F. Mohamed, 50, and B. Lakram 36, Kayume Savages reached their total with ease as the Better Hope bowlers could only claim two of their wickets.
With day one of the competition coming to a close, Better Hope found themselves splitting the day’s honors after winning the first game and losing the second. With the dawn of a new day, they looked to rebound from their late night loss as they went up against fellow New York team -The Brooklyn Legends. Batting first, Legends were kept in check by opening bowlers E.Dodson and R.Etwaroo. The two bowled webs around Legends’ batsmen as they accounted for the first four wickets.
Some late hitting from G. Gowlarhan, 51, and V. McLonnon, 27, along with 25 Better Hope extras saw Legends reach 146 in their 20 overs.
In response Better Hope got off to a horrible start as Gordon was bowled for 1 in the first over. J. Arjune, 59, and K. Sanichar, 54, saw that the early setback wouldn’t cause Better Hope the game, the two had a 128-run second wicket partnership as Better Hope reached their total comfortably in the 16th over.
In the second match of the day Better Hope squared off against Wellman Cricket Club. Having lost their previous night’s match, Better Hope was looking to avoid losing under the stars once again for consecutive nights.
Batting first, they got off to a horrible start as K. Sanichar was run out for 0 and in walked J. Arjune looking to rebuild the innings for the second time that day. As they say, “the stars shine brightest at night” and so was the case for Arjune as he lit up the DCC ground with boundary after boundary. He single-handedly demolished the Wellman bowling line up and would eventually go on to reach 96 as he was run out late in the innings, robbing him of a well-deserved ton .
R. Sugrim, 32, provided some late hitting as Better Hope reached a competitive total of 162. Wellman Cricket Club in response kept the match interesting as M. Chumundath , 56, and H. Wright, 33, kept the team in the chase. However, Better Hope bowlers were able to hold their nerve as they held Wellman to 154.
A 3 and 1 record earned Better Hope a place in the finals the next day against the Industry Super Kings. The stage was set for a grand finale between the two teams as Industry Super Kings took the strike.
They were immediately put under pressure by the Better Hope bowlers as they were bowling tight spells. Ronald Evelyn once again proved to be too much for the oppositions as he ran through the Super Kings lineup claiming 3 wickets for only 15 runs in his 4 overs. With wickets falling at constant intervals, Industry Super Kings were eventually bowled out 117. With this being the lowest score that they had to chase during the entire tournament, Better Hope felt good about their chances of winning.
Gus Gordon and K. Sanichar got the chase off to a flying start adding 48 for the first wicket before Sanichar was dismissed for 28. Gordon would go on to score 47, but a few late wickets by the Super Kings stifled Better Hope’s chase.
Three wickets fell for 15 runs as D. Harper and G. Persaud restricted the batsmen. Eventually Better Hope reached their total in the 20th over and emerged as champions. Making the journey from New York to Guyana, Better Hope was rewarded for their travels as they were the undisputed victors of the Guyana Softball Cup Masters Category. They truly did save their best performance for last as the bowlers had their best performance of the tournament.
