Tony Becca, Contributing Editor

Wavell Hinds drives on his way to 87 in the Carib Beer Series match against Combined Campuses and Colleges at Kensington Oval yesterday. - Junior Dowie/Staff Photographer

THE CARIB Beer Series match between Jamaica and Combined Campuses and Colleges (CCC) enters its third and penultimate day at Kensington Park today with the home team well in front and looking set to notch its second victory and make it two from two.

At stumps on yesterday's second day, the scoreboard read: CCC 99 and 36 for one when bad light stopped play with four overs to go, Jamaica 286, and with the home team leading by 151, with the visitors having already lost one second innings wicket, with two days to go, Jamaica are well positioned to win the match, probably, based on CCC's surrender in their first innings, with a day to spare.

Solid defence

Powered, or rather paced by a solid innings from former captain Wavell Hinds, Jamaica, on 248 for four with Hinds on 66 and Brendan Nash on 22, were looking set for an impressive total before they lost their last six wickets for 38 runs in 73 minutes and 11.3 overs.

Joining the action at 152 for three, Hinds, the 31-year-old left-hander who, probably has given up hope of regaining a place on the West Indies team, batted for 209 minutes, faced 140 deliveries, and in an innings which was a mixture of solid defence, powerful driving off the front-foot and a few reckless strokes, scored 87 while smashing 10 fours and two sixes.

One of them was a drive off off-spinner Shirley Clarke that sailed over long-off, the other, a swing off left-arm spinner Kavesh Kantasingh that landed beyond the mid-wicket boundary.

In missing out on his 19th first-class century, Hinds, driving at pacer Jowayne Robinson and dropped by Clarke at short extra-cover with his score on 26, going back, cutting at pacer Jamel Noel, and dropped by Nekoli Parris at square cover at 52, was a shadow of his best.

Apart from his two big hits, however, two front-foot drives reminded of the Jamaica veteran at his best.

One, off Robinson, flashed to the point boundary in the twinkling of an eye, the other, also off the big pacer and to the delight of the spectators on hand, raced away to the long-off boundary.

good use of pitch

Although he is more a bowler than a batsman, the other innings of note came from Andre Russell - the young fast bowler who made good use of a pitch that, despite the scores to date, despite the collapse of both teams in their first innings, was made in heaven for batsmen.

Resuming on zero after going in the previous evening as nightwatch-man, Russell batted like a man inspired while outscoring his more accomplished partner, Xavier Marshall.

In 71 minutes, Jamaica, resuming on 103 for two, added 49 runs with Russell scoring 33 of them off 70 deliveries with authentic strokes - five of which, including a vicious pull to the long-on boundary off Noel, speeding away to the boun-dary, one of which, a huge hit off Kantasingh, sailing over it at wide long-on.

Russell's gem ended at 153 for three when the right-hander played forward defensively to Noel, was beaten for pace, and lost his off-stump.