Harpy Eagles soar to innings victory as Looknauth stars with ball and bat

ST JOHN’S – The Guyana Harpy Eagles warmed up for the final of the West Indies Championship with a commanding victory over the West Indies Academy on Day 4 at the Antigua Recreation Ground, triumphing by an innings and 21 runs to wrap up the contest in emphatic fashion on Wednesday.

Resuming the morning at 655 for 8, the Harpy Eagles, replying to 485, wasted little time in padding their already mammoth total.

Richie Looknauth, overnight on 71 off 108 balls, added six more runs to his tally before becoming the last man dismissed for a polished 77.

His innings featured ten boundaries and one six, in a composed knock that further demoralised the Academy attack.

The only interruption to Guyana’s run-flow came with the fall of the ninth wicket, when Thaddeus Lovell was adjudged lbw to Zishan Motara for 6, bringing the score to 663 for 9.

Looknauth’s departure soon after at the same total brought the innings to a close, with the Eagles all out for 663.

Motara, the West Indies Academy leg spinner, toiled through 46 overs to finish with figures of 6 for 202.

Facing an imposing deficit of 178 runs, the Academy’s second innings never gained traction. They were skittled for just 157 in 42 overs, succumbing to a ruthless bowling display, fittingly led by Looknauth.

The young allrounder completed a remarkable all-round performance, claiming 6 for 36 from 12 overs, with his gentle off-spin proving unplayable on the deteriorating surface.

He received excellent support from Gudakesh Motie 2 for 27 and Thaddeus Lovell 2 for 56.

The Academy’s batting crumbled in clusters. Early blows saw Opener Damel Evelyn fall at 1 for 2 in the second over of the innings, and despite Mbeki Joseph’s breezy 28 and Mavendra Dindyal’s top score of 41, wickets fell at regular intervals.

Giovante Depeiza contributed a fighting 34, but once he departed at 125 for 5, the tail offered little resistance. The last three wickets fell for zero runs in the space of nine deliveries, with Raneico Smith and Kelvin Pitman both dismissed without scoring as the innings closed at 157 all out.

The Harpy Eagles will now take on the Trinidad & Tobago Red Force in the Championship decider, May 17-20 at the Sir Vivian Richards stadium in North Sound, Antigua.

CMC

Summarised scores

WEST INDIES ACADEMY 485 & 157 (Mavendra Dindyal 41, Giovante Depeiza; Richie Looknauth 6-36) vs GUYANA HARPY EAGLES 663 (Matthew Nandu 237, Jonathan Van Lange 133, Richie Looknauth 77; Zishan Motara 6-202). Guyana won by an innings and 21 runs.