Jamaica Scorpions were left ruing poor execution in the final session which saw Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC) end on 260-7 in the second-round West Indies Championship match at Sabina Park in Kingston on Wednesday.

At the heart of the CCC day-one effort was the veteran Jonathan Carter, who is unbeaten on 108 for his sixth first-class hundred. Zishan Motara, on 28, is the other not out batsman.

The Scorpions wrist spinner Abhijai Mansingh has taken 2-37, while fast bowler Ojay Shields, who turned 28 on Wednesday, and playing his first match of the season after recovering from a knee injury, has figures of 2-42.

Andrew Richardson, the Scorpions head coach, says his players had deviated from the plan, which saw them restricting the visitors to 142-6 at one stage after they won the toss and opted to bowl first in sunny conditions.

“At the start of play we were almost where we wanted to be, we were aggressive, we picked up wickets, though we still could have picked up two more wickets before lunch,” he told the
Jamaica Observer at close of play. “After lunch, we had some intensity and energy going and the plans were working.

“As the day went on, we strayed away from our plans…we weren’t as disciplined as we could have been. We certainly could have squeezed a little more, bowled some more maidens and create some more pressure.

“Instead, we allowed CCC to score over 100 runs in the last session. We could have done things a little bit differently but that’s for me to have a discussion with the captain.”

The 36-year-old Carter, the CCC captain, was pleased with how his youthful team ended the day.

“I’m very satisfied about our recovery,” he said. “The guys are learning very fast and I’m proud of them and their efforts today.”

He said his second century at Sabina Park had extra special meaning to him, hence his passionate celebration when he reached three figures.

“Sabina Park is always my place to score runs, and the Jamaican players here were reminding me of my score of 99 here years ago, and I also got out for another 90-odd here, so it meant a lot to me,” Carter said. “The team was in trouble also, so to guide the team to a respectable total for day one meant a lot to me.”

Earlier, the Scorpions began with hopes of making the most of the movement on offer for the pacer bowlers due to the preparation moisture.

They got the early wickets of Shaqkere Parris and Kirstan Kallicharan, who both made four, and Shatrughan Rambaran (16) fell just after lunch though the Shields-led pace attack was far from accurate.

The slow bowlers got success too, off spinner Peat Salmon removing out-of-favour West Indies batsman Shamarh Brooks for 36, and Mansingh getting rid of Demario Richards (eight) and Romario Greaves (four).

But just as the Scorpions might have felt they would run through the CCC batting, they hit a wall in the pair of Carter and Sion Hackett. The duo counter-punched with an entertaining stand of 63 runs for the seventh wicket on a good-looking batting pitch.

Even after Hackett was dismissed for 30, Carter found another competent partner in Zishan Motara. Bryan put down a return catch opportunity that Carter offered on 95, and the left-hand stroke player made full use by scampering to his hundred soon after.

Carter, who has played a number of classy shots all around the wicket, has struck 12 fours off 182 deliveries.

In the other match hosted in Jamaica, the Windward Islands Volcanoes, who won the toss and bowled first, were 123 without loss in reply to Barbados Pride’s 214 all out at Kensington Park in Kingston.

— Sanjay Myers