Jamaica large and in charge

Jamaican flags and voices once more held sway at Kensington Oval in spite of an unwavering effort by Barbados yesterday. About two dozen Jamaicans, sitting in the front of the Eric Inniss Stand, made their presence felt by vociferously greeting every boundary and every landmark on the second day of the Busta International Shield semifinal.

Even though Ian Bradshaw worked for more than a day's pay in an extended, quality spell of 18 successive overs, Jamaica managed to build significantly on their overnight 293 for two by going on to make their highest total in 27 matches at Kensington.

They were eventually dismissed for 496, subjecting Barbados to more than 11 hours in the field in which they had to deliver 157 overs.

Stuttering start

Left with 19 overs to survive until the close, Barbados made a stuttering start when Philo Wallace was lbw to Franklyn Rose's third ball of the innings.

Poor Wallace could do nothing with a ball that kept very low and made him an lbw victim for his third duck of the season.

Captain Sherwin Campbell responded with a couple of on-side boundaries off Rose and he and Adrian Griffith were able to carry the hosts to 47 for one when bad light ended play with two overs remaining.

Earlier, Jamaica opener Leon Garrick was again in the type of scintillating form of the opening day when he closed on 139.

The little right-hander arrived at 150 with a cover-driven boundary off Corey Collymore, the ball rebounded more than 25 yards after cannoning into the wall of the Kensington Stand.

It was soon followed by a square-drive off Hendy Bryan for Garrick's 26th four of the innings, but when he was 28 short of his second successive double hundred, he was prised out by Bradshaw's best ball of the match, and possibly the season.

Nothing troubled the opener for the seven-and-a-half-hours he was in until he attracted a ball from Bradshaw that bounced appreciably from a good length. It took Garrick's glove and gave wicket-keeper Courtney Browne a simple catch an hour-and-a-half into the day.

As Garrick walked off the ground with 172 to his name, a season aggregate of 764 runs and to rousing cheers from his fellow countrymen, captain Jimmy Adams came out to a cacophony of boos from certain sections of a big Saturday crowd.

Adams' fan-club around the Caribbean has diminished in recent months, but there was no justifiable reason why the West Indies captain should have been given such an unfriendly welcome.

If that was not enough, when he completed a solid half-century, there was another chorus of boos. Again, there was no reason for it and those who took part in it deserve to be criticised.

Adams, in his first innings since returning from Australia, anchored the Jamaica effort in the course of an impressive spell by Bradshaw in which he sent down 18 successive overs.

On the stroke of lunch, the left-arm fast-medium bowler dismissed the potentially dangerous Ricardo Powell, whose inside edge onto pad resulted in a lobbed catch to gully.

It meant that Jamaica had lost three wickets in the pre-lunch session in which they scored 73 runs.

The session's other casualty was Marlon Samuels who hit a slower ball from Hendy Bryan to mid-on after spanking boundaries off the previous two balls.

Surprised

On resumption after lunch, Bradshaw continued for another 11 overs in which he removed Keith Hibbert, who might have been surprised he was lbw as he tried to push forward.

Before that, left-arm spinner Ryan Hinds accounted for the busy Gareth Breese, who struck five fours in a knock of 27 before edging an intended cut to the keeper.

Hibbert fell an hour and ten minutes after lunch, but Barbados had to toil until half-hour after tea before they gained another strike.

Nehemiah Perry, good enough to make 160 at this level at which he is considered an all-rounder, batted intelligently in adding 64 with Adams.

Adams was by no means spectacular, but in his cool, calm way, frustrated Barbados on the way to an unbeaten 56 that lasted threeand-three-quarter hours.

He eventually ran out of partners as Barbados polished off the last three wickets for 19 runs.

Perry was lbw playing across to Collymore and Rose's stumps were knocked over by an unplayable yorker two balls later.

As usual, Courtney Walsh came out to a big ovation and offered a little entertainment before skiing a catch to mid-wicket.

It left Barbados with a tall order if they are to keep in contention for a regional double by adding the Shield to the Cup title they won six days ago.

Jamaica clearly cannot lose from here, but they can be denied a place in the final if they fail to take nine wickets over the next two days.