NAIN, St Elizabeth — Wrist spinner Odean Brown grabbed the 11th fivewicket haul of his first-class career as champions Jamaica romped to a thumping 165-run win over Guyana in the opening round of the WICB four-day tournament at Alpart Sports Club yesterday.

Brown, who turns 29 today, made the most of the worn down fourth day pitch, generating alarming bounce and sharp turn to capture 5-69 and lead Jamaica home. The heavy-set wrist spinner who has been consistently hammering at the door of the regional selectors in recent seasons ended with match figures of 8-122.

The Guyanese, who had actually taken first innings points and a lead of 33 on the second day, collapsed in a heap yesterday once a promising opening stand of 77 between 21-year-old Rajindra Chandrika (47) and 23-year-old Shemroy Barrington (31) was ended.

Scores in the game which ended at 1:56 pm with 50.5 overs of the mandatory 90 already bowled on the final day: Jamaica 150 and 391-4 declared; Guyana 183 and 193.

Heavy rain which tumbled down 80 minutes after the loss of the final wicket and lasted about 20 minutes would surely have left the Guyanese wondering ‘what if’ they had shown greater resolve.

Twenty-six-year-old West Indies fast bowler Jerome Taylor, who appears to be back to full fitness following an injuryplagued 2010, had the satisfaction of dismissing Chandrika and finished with 3-40 and match figures of 5-70.

Jamaican skipper Tamar Lambert, who is continuing an extraordinary run of success as Jamaica captain, would also have been satisfied with his performance as the only off-spinner for Jamaica in this opening game, ending with a match haul of 5-50, including a second innings 2-43.

Predictably, Marlon Samuels won the man of the match award for his masterful unbeaten 250, the only score in excess of 50 in the match.

Jamaica coach Augustine Logie paid rich tribute to the 30-year-old righthander who was in his maiden regional first-class game since the completion of a two-year ICC ban for allegedly bringing the game into disrepute. “Marlon is a quality player, he has always been and it’s good to see him come back after a long break and bat the way he did.

“To score 250 in a game where nobody else could manage 50 shows the quality of his talent,” said Logie.

The victory and maximum points after stuttering on the first two days meant a solid start for the Jamaicans, who have won three four-day titles in a row entering the 2011 season.

But Logie said his team would be taking nothing for granted as they prepare to depart for a three-match tour of the eastern Caribbean. “We will be taking one game at a time,” he said.

Samuels apart, Logie had high praise for opener Simon Jackson, who stroked a second innings 49 on regional debut for Jamaica. He also voiced satisfaction with the performance of Brown, Taylor and Lambert — as captain and bowler — as well as wicketkeeper Chadwick Walton who was on first-class debut for Jamaica after campaigning for the Combined Campuses and Colleges in recent seasons.

Guyana captain Assad Fudadin was confident that his young team will “get better” and “win some games” as the season progresses. His team would take heart from the starring role of the big fast bowler Brandon Bess, who grabbed a first innings 5-28, as well as the promise shown by “some of our young batsmen”, the Guyana skipper said.

Resuming yesterday at 58-0, Guyana survived the first 33 minutes before Taylor’s slowerball full toss trapped Chandrika in front. The little righthander, who mixed solid defence with an attractive willingness to attack, had hit three fours and a six and faced 82 balls.

The loss of three more wickets before Lunch — Shemroy Barrington (31) to Lambert, Leon Johnson (23) and Fudadin (0) to Brown left the Guyanese with no hope, though Derwin Christian 32 from 23 balls (four fours, one six) and Devendrsa Bishoo 19 (15 balls, four fours) hit out lustily.

Post Lunch, the last six wickets fell for 74 runs in 76 minutes. For those watching, the most memorable event of the final few minutes was a comedy of errors as wicketkeeper Walton unaware that the last pair Bishoo and Bess were stranded at one end, missed a simple run-out chance. It was just about the only blemish in an otherwise fine game behind the stumps for the 25-year-old Walton.