BARBADOS Pride remained in control against Jamaica Franchise heading into today’s last day of the final-round WICB Professional Cricket League four-day match at Sabina Park in Kingston.

At the close yesterday, Barbados were 168-2 off 81 overs in their second innings, giving them a commanding lead of 250 runs on a slow and docile batting strip.

Their position could have been even stronger had it not been for the attritional tactics used by the visiting team’s opener and captain Kraigg Brathwaite, who is unbeaten on 78 from 236 balls.

After a bright start, the 22-year-old batsman shelved any attacking instinct late in the afternoon which saw him adding only nine runs to his individual tally in the post-tea session. He has hit seven boundaries in his marathon knock.

When play resumes today at the scheduled 10:00 am start, Brathwaite will be accompanied by first innings century-maker Shamarh Brooks, who is on 21.

Jamaica 26-year-old fast bowler Jason Dawes, running in from the northern Courtney Walsh End, held a tidy line and length in his second spell of the innings, and finished the day with 2-28 off 15 overs.

Scores: Barbados 310 (97.3 overs) & 168-2 (81 overs); Jamaica 228 (94.1 overs)

Barbados off-spinner Ashley Nurse, who captured 2-97 in Jamaica’s first-innings 228 all out, praised the bowlers for dismissing Jamaica for under 250 runs and suggested that the batsmen can afford to score at a slow pace.

“I feel really good about the lead because the pitch is very hard on the bowlers. The guys did a fantastic job in restricting Jamaica to 228. The pitch is very slow and batsman-friendly and this is the last game, and it really is about the batsmen filling their boots,” the 26-year-old told the Jamaica Observer at the close.

Tamar Lambert, in his final game as Jamaica captain, commended his bowlers for slowing the Pride’s batsmen.

“I think Barbados are ahead at the moment, but I must give credit to my team for bowling 81 overs and keeping them to 168-2. The only disappointment is that we didn’t pick up a few more wickets,” he said.

Earlier, Jamaica Franchise resumed from their overnight 222-9 and could only add a further six runs as left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican, who claimed career-best figures of 8-72 off 41.1 overs, bowled Marquino Mindley for 10.

Warrican, 22, and Nurse, the Barbados side’s two front line slow bowlers, combined for over 80 per cent of the overs bowled in the innings and accounted for all 10 wickets.

Dawes was left unbeaten on 20.

Barbados, having a lead of 82 runs, cemented their position by putting on 131 runs for the first wicket.

The opening duo of Brathwaite and 28-year-old left-hander Omar Phillips was largely untroubled on a dry-looking surface which held little terror. Phillips, who on 34, was dropped at slip by Lambert off leg-spinner Damion Jacobs in the 32nd over, struck 59 off 172 balls. He hit eight fours before he miscued a pull off Dawes and was caught by David Bernard at mid-on.

Shai Hope (four), who hit a fifty in the first innings, followed soon after when Dawes’ lifting delivery outside off-stump which also swerved away from the right-hander, hit the bat edge and was caught by wicketkeeper Chadwick Walton at 135-2.

During that time, Brathwaite, the West Indies Test opener, appeared to retreat into a shell as Barbados’ run scoring slowed to a crawl toward the close.