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Wet balls, Super Over for practice simulation

Published:Thursday | December 30, 2010 | 12:00 AM
Fast bowler André Russell moves to field the ball, following a stroke by Marlon Pinnock, during the Jamaica Cricket Associa-tion senior team Twenty20 practice match between Wavell Hinds' XI and Chris Gayle's XI at Sabina Park last week Wednesday. The team will play its fourth practice match today at Kensington Park. - Ian Allen/Photographer

Jermaine Lannaman, Gleaner Writer

In a bid to simulate match situations that could face the team at next month's second Caribbean Twenty20 tournament, Jamaica's new head coach, Gus Logie, will today employ the tactics of playing with wet balls and responding to the demands of the idea of a Super Over during the team's fourth practice match at Kensingston Park.

The tactics, which are somewhat new to most of the team members, will see Logie continuing where he left off in the first three practice matches, in which he utilised the spin bowlers to open the attack and batsmen batting in different positions, as could be the case in the January 10-23 tournament.

"It's about continuing to prepare for all eventualities," said Logie, who will be hoping to break the team's jinx of not being able to win a regional Twenty20 title in three attempts.

"We want to see how the bowlers will respond and how the batsmen will cope, as we could very well find ourselves playing in wet or rainy conditions.

"As it relates to the Super Over, it's about having the players face up to pressures and demands of a Super Over, which could ultimately determine our future," he pointed out.

A Super Over, sometimes referred to as an 'Eliminator', is one of two extra overs (one apiece to each team) and acts as a tie-breaker in a Twenty20 match.

Instead of equally dividing the points between the participating teams, the team that scores the most runs off the Super Over takes all the points.

It replaced the 'Bowl Out' method that was previously used.

The first implementation of a Super Over was in a match that the West Indies won against New Zealand on December 26, 2008. The West Indies scored 25/1 in their Super Over and New Zealand replied with 15/2.

Jamaica, who have been drawn in Group A and are one of the favourites for the title, will open their account against title holders Guyana on the tournament's opening day.

The other teams in the group are England Friends Provident Twenty20 runners-up, Somerset, the Combined Campuses and Colleges and the Windward Islands.