Harpy Eagles extend lead after clobbering of Red Force

BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC):

Guyana Harpy Eagles have opened up a significant lead at the top of the West Indies Championship standings, following the third round of matches, which wrapped up last weekend.

The Leon Johnson-led unit crushed hosts Trinidad and Tobago Red Force by 143 runs on Saturday’s final day at the Brian Lara Stadium to register their second win of the campaign and climb to 49 points.

Harpy Eagles, one of three unbeaten teams in the tournament, are now nearly 12 points clear of secondplace Windward Islands Volcanoes on 37.8.

At the start of the third round last week, Harpy Eagles held a five and a half points lead over reigning champions Barbados Pride.

They produced a dominant all-round display to brush aside Red Force, 26-year-old rookie batsman Kemol Savory hitting a maiden firstc=lass hundred, Johnson gathering half-centuries in each innings and pacer Ronsford Beaton and veteran left-arm spinner Veerasammy Permaul finishing with six-wicket match hauls apiece.

Harpy Eagles will now conclude their campaign at home at the Guyana National Stadium, starting with their penultimate round game against winless Jamaica Scorpions beginning on Wednesday.

Volcanoes, meanwhile, fourth after the second round, were equally dominant last weekend in pulling off a 181-run victory over Scorpions at the Guyana National Stadium, to leap into second spot in the standings and also remain unbeaten.

They were carried by a 50 in each innings from captain Alick Athanaze and a splendid all-round effort from Justin Greaves, who cracked a half-century and claimed an eight-wicket match haul.

Leeward Islands Hurricanes, fifth in the standings at the start of the third round after drawing both their opening-round games, edged Pride by two wickets in a tense finish at Queen’s Park Oval to post their first win of the season and climb into third spot on 34.2 points.

Pride are narrowly behind in fourth on 31.2 while Red Force have slipped to fifth on 24.8, leaving winless Scorpions bottom on 15.4 points.

In the remaining fourth-round games, Red Force take on Pride at Queen’s Park Oval while Hurricanes clash with Volcanoes at the Brian Lara Stadium.