Amsterdam’s Ton Sinks Richmond Hill

By Sam Sooppersaud
There is a truism “catches win matches,” and conversely, failure to take catches contributes to the losing cause. This was exactly the scenario at Baisley Park (The Cage), Queens, last Sunday, July 26, 2015, when Richmond Hill Cricket Club and the Atlantis Cricket Club clashed in their 40-over scheduled game of the Eastern American Cricket Association’s 2015 cricket season.

Atlantis skipper Alex Amsterdam. Photo by Shiek Mohamed

The large crowd on hand to watch the proceedings was totally entertained with good bowling, some superb batting, and fleet-footed fielding. A fielding and catching coach would have been proud of the performance of their wards, except in one crucial possible play. This lapse on the part of the fielder helped his club mark another check on its loosing column.

USA national all-rounder Alex Amsterdam put on a masterful batting performance to propel his club Atlantis, to victory. His 102 not out was “class’” He reminded me of the stylish Berbice and Guyana left-handed batsman, Leslie Amsterdam. I am told that Alex is a relative of Leslie. Well, apart from biological genes, Alex surely must have inherited some “cricket” genes from Leslie. He was a complete entertainer with the cricket bat. Even fans who were supporting the Richmond Hill club offered their “hand claps” at his numerous glorious shots all around the cricket field. His cover and extra cover drives were reminiscent of the great batsman Leslie Amsterdam. He hit the ball back over the bowler’s head with equal ease, for fours and sixes.

The game commenced with Richmond Hill taking first knock. They lost openers Marlon Kallicharran and Pradip Roopchan cheaply, in quick succession. A second wicket stand of 81 between Nedesh Basdeo (63) and Wahid Ward (46) put some respectability back on the Richmond Hill scorecard. Once those two fell, one immediately after the other, chaos again reigned on the Richmond Hill inning.  Wickets fell at regular intervals. The Atlantis bowlers were on top. Runs were hard to come by. The boundaries dried out. Yes, there was a maximum, here and there.

An eighth-wicket stand between Skipper Shameer Sadloo (47) and Jerald Mangal (35) turned the tides seemingly in Richmond Hill’s favor. At the close of their 40 overs they were 256 for 7, requiring Atlantis to score at the rate of 6.4 runs per over for victory. The following bowling figures were returned by the Atlantis hurlers: Keon Lake 3 for 30, Michael Noble 2 for 30, Prashanth Nair 2 for 67, Jamiel Jackman 1 for 46, Jermaine Horatio 0 for 34, and Alex Amsterdam 0 for 45.

Atlantis commenced their run chase in a positive mood. The first ball was a dot. The second, a boundary. Openers Henderson Blades (35) and Shawn Mason (56) set about carving the bowlers’ offerings. Skipper Sadloo rotated his bowlers using short spells, but without success. In the partnership of 71 runs Blades was the aggressor, striking eight boundaries in his inning. Mason, in the meanwhile contributed with his frequent doubles and singles.

After Atlantis lost its first two wickets, the artiste with a cricket bat, Alex Amsterdam, walked out to the middle to join Shawn Mason. He took complete command of the game, batting with style and class, and dominating the bowlers put up against him. Like I said before, it was like seeing the great Leslie Amsterdam at his trade. In my time I played with, and against Leslie. The man was a genius. While I was at Baisley Park last Sunday, I saw the same dominance by Alex Amsterdam over the bowlers. It was like Leslie Amsterdam, resurrected!

When on 39, Alex offered a skier to backward point. The ball flew “mile high” into the sky.  With the strong wind blowing across the field it made the catch so much more difficult for the fieldsman. Everyone’s “heart was in their hand.” This was a crucial wicket for Richmond Hill, and would be a crucial loss for Atlantis. The chance was grassed, much to the relief of the Atlantis club and its supporters, and the disappointment of the opponents.

Together, Mason and Amsterdam batted their club closer and closer to the winning total. With the fall of Mason’s wicket and that of Kavishwar Bridgepaul, Dwayne Smith joined Amsterdam and together they saw their club home to victory. In the end Amsterdam was 102 not out, 11×4’s and 3×6’s. Smith contributed 19. Final score, Atlantis 257 for 6.

Bowling for Richmond Hill: Shameer Sadloo 2 for 44, Jerald Mangal 1 for 51, Deryck McDonald 0 for 36, and Wahid Ward 0 for 20.