BRIDGETOWN, Barbados (CMC):

THE WINDWARDS Islands handed Jamaica their second consecutive defeat as they romped to a five-wicket victory in rainy conditions on the third and final day of the third-round TCL Group West Indies Under-19 match yesterday.

Set 126 to win, the Windwards achieved their first victory of the championship just before tea at Kensington Oval, reaching 127 for five.

Opening batsman Dennis Louis hit 32 and top scored for the Windwards as the carefully carved out a slow run-chase to snap a two-game losing skid.

The win vaulted the Windwards from bottom of the standings to third on 16 points, trailing the front-runners Guyana (28) and Barbados (22), whose game was reduced to a no-decision because of rain at Cable and Wireless Sports Club.

Cautious play

From an overnight position of 41 without loss, the Windwards had their morning session plans aborted by rain after only 11 minutes.

A shower chased the players off the field with the score on 47 without loss and there was no further play for the remainder of the session.

Intent on ensuring they would not suffer the same fate as their second-round match, when they led on first innings and lost to Guyana after a dramatic last-day collapse, the Windwards openers were very cautious when play restarted at 12:40.

They batted very slowly in a 54-run stand that ended when Wayne Harper was caught at slip off pacer Gifton Wray.

Harper scored 25 in 115 minutes with three boundaries, and Louis fell 15 runs later, bowled by the 14-year-old leg-spinner Donovan Nelson, as the scored dipped to 69 for two.

Louis batted 164 minutes for his 32 that contained just one boundary.

With rain threatening, the Windwards promoted the hard-hitting lower-order batsman Delorn Johnson to number four to accelerate the innings and avoid the possibility of bad weather, denying them a victory they worked hard to secure.

Johnson, who belted a brisk 20, batting at number 10 in the first innings, delivered another aggressive display that pulled the Windwards closer to victory.

Kavem Hodge (seven) fell cheaply - at 98 for three - when he drove pacer Jermaine Blackwood to mid-off and Johnson hit 27, laced with two fours and a six, before he was caught at long-on by substitute fielder Courtney Allen off Wray at 103 for four.

Jamaica's innings wrecked

Blackwood struck again three runs later, dislodging Dalton Polius for four, also caught at long-on by Allen.

There was no further stutter as captain Keron Cottoy (eight) and Junior Jervier (14) completed a good win for the Windwards, who had lost their first two games to Barbados and Guyana. Cottoy's haul of five for 13 off 4.4 overs that wrecked Jamaica's second innings at 59 all out, had swung the game for the Windwards on Tuesday's second day and coach Raymond Duncan praised his side although he remains concerned about its moderate batting.

"We won because of the bowling strength and fielding, and the character of the guys because they showed real fighting spirit after the disappointment of the Guyana match," Duncan said.

"However, I am still concerned about the batting and I hope this will be rectified in the other two games against T&T and the Leewards," he said.

Bowling for Jamaica, Wray finished with two for 31 off 10 overs and Blackwood claimed very tidy figures two for 37 off 23 overs with 13 maidens.