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After the opening match of the CG United Regional Super50 tournament was washed out on Tuesday, Trinidad and Tobago Red Force will be going after their first victory on Thursday when they meet the Windward Islands Volcanoes from 9 am at the Queen's Park Oval in St Clair.
Led by captain Daren Bravo's unbeaten knock of 81, the Red Force posted a competitive score of 246 for four in 44 overs after being sent in to have first strike by the Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC). The CCC team got off to a brisk start in their reply, but rain had the final say as the game was called off with CCC on 53 without loss in the seventh over.
Coach David Furlonge was pleased with Red Force's showing with the bat in their opening match, and he is hoping for more of the same versus the Windwards. The Windwards were beaten by ten runs by the Guyana Harpy Eagles in their opening encounter at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy (BLCA) in Tarouba on Tuesday.
"We would have liked to see some of the earlier batsmen go on, but everybody got starts. We are glad with what we saw on Tuesday," Furlonge told Newsday.
Against CCC, TT progressed to 226 for four by the end of the 42nd over before the second of three rain-stoppages saw the game being reduced to 44 overs per team.
"We were on line all the time to finish with batting bonus points and to finish off with 300-plus runs. That was the target there. I was very happy with the batting.
"You always want to get that first win under your belt. It was unfortunate that the game ended in a no-result (on Tuesday). We had a good practice session (on Wednesday) and everybody is working on the areas they want to improve. We're prepared for the game against Windwards and it's just to execute our plans."
Red Force were without the services of experienced opening batsman Evin Lewis on Tuesday, as he was ruled through a niggle. Furlonge said Lewis has a "slight hamstring strain" and he's currently being monitored.
"Evin has a slight niggle. It was more of a management team's decision to give him an extra day's rest this early in the tournament," Furlonge said.
"He's fine. We will look at it again and see. It's something we have to look at in terms of giving him another couple of days' rest or letting him play on Thursday. The medical team will have the final say on that."
While the Red Force sweat over the fitness of Lewis, who has played over 100 matches for the West Indies, they are also keeping an eye on the bonus points system which was announced by Cricket West Indies (CWI) on Monday.
"We had a meeting about a week ago on the bonus points system. We were aware of the bonus points so we just have to be aware and keep in touch with it – and we did that (versus CCC).
"We are fully aware of it and it's about keeping in check of it all the time during the course of the game. It's about making (decisions on the fly)."
Furlonge said it was important to strike a balance between chasing bonus points and playing the game situation correctly.
"For the first ten overs you need to have 60 runs and we did that. For the next 30 overs, you had to be at 210 (runs) because you had to be at five runs an over in that time – we did that as well. From then, it was about pushing on for that extra batting point by getting 300-plus.
"It's just a case of monitoring it and deciding if we will go for the extra point at that particular time. We have to play by the rules. It's a rule we have to play with."
On Wednesday, the Leeward Island Hurricanes made an emphatic statement at the BLCA, as they got a convincing eight-wicket win over defending champions Jamaica Scorpions. The Scorpions were bundled out for a paltry score of 123, with left-arm spinner Daniel Doram ripping through the Jamaican order with remarkable figures of seven for 29. Born in Sint Maarten, the 26-year-old Doram has represented the Netherlands at youth level. The lanky Doram definitely introduced himself to the Scorpions as he took the last seven wickets to fall – accounting for the scalps of captain Rovman Powell and the dangerous pair of Fabian Allen and Odean Smith.
Another Powell – Kieran – made light work of the Jamaica total, as he blazed a ruthless 80 off just 36 balls to guide Leewards to victory with 35 overs to spare. Powell hit six sixes and six boundaries in his knock as the Hurricanes completely blew the Scorpions out of the water.
Also on Thursday, CCC will face the WI Academy from 1 pm at the BLCA.

The post Red Force chase win, bonus points vs Windwards appeared first on Trinidad and Tobago Newsday.