Bermuda 18-0 USA 297-9

A sparkling century by Steve Massiah (104) dominated opening day's play of the 2004 Intercontinental Cup match between Bermuda and the USA at the National Sports Centre yesterday.

Coming to the crease at first-wicket down after the departure of opener Jignesh Desai (six), caught at first slip by Bermuda skipper Clay Smith off the bowling of Mackie Crane, Massiah quickly dug in for what would be a marathon innings spanning some 295 minutes - an innings which ultimately laid the foundation for his team's first innings total of 297 runs for nine wickets in their allotted 90 overs.

Exhibiting an array of immaculate drives through the covers and forceful thrusts off the back foot, the 24 year-old Guyanese right-handed batsman frustrated the local bowling attack, recording his half-century with a pull-shot to the mid-wicket boundary after facing 129 balls in 229 minutes before completing his maiden international First-Class ton off an additional 99 deliveries in 56 minutes.

Massiah featured in three half-century stands, putting on 53 runs for the second wicket with skipper Richard Staple (21); another 53 runs for the fifth-wicket along with all-rounder Charles Reid (26) and 79 runs - the highest stand of the innings- for the sixth with Zamin Amin (29).

But earlier the Americans, who won the toss and elected to bat, found runs hard to come by during yesterday's morning session as the local team maintained a vice-like grip in the field, backed up by some tidy bowling from veteran seamers Dennis Archer and Saleem Mukuddem and left-arm leg-spinner Dwayne (Sluggo) Leverock - who put on yet another industrious performance belying his burly frame.

Bermuda, who made three changes from last Sunday's team which went down to the same opposition, managed to contain the USA batsmen, restricting the visitors to 88 runs after 33 overs at the luncheon interval - in spite of a costly 17th over which saw Crane toss down eight no balls and yield 31 runs to the opposition's total.

Inexplicably, both Archer and Mukuddem were taken off the ball after yielding only 11 runs each from ten and eight overs respectively - the latter tossing down four consecutive maidens. Only two wickets fell in the opening session.

USA also lost opener Mark Johnson (19) in the 16th over after the batsman was struck just above the mouth by a rising Mukuddem delivery playing too early into a pull shot. Johnson was whisked away to hospital where he received several stitches to close the nasty wound, returning to the ground just prior to the tea break and bravely soldiering on before he was the seventh wicket to fall.

Former West Indies Test player Clayton Lambert scored 13 - including two towering sixes off Leverock - while Aijaz Ali added 14 runs batting at number five.

Following the lunch break, USA picked up the tempo by plundering 143 runs in the afternoon session at the expense of three wickets to place themselves at 231 for five at tea after 70 overs.

However Bermuda managed to get back on top of the US batsmen, conceding only 54 runs in the day's final session and grabbing four wickets in the process before the visitor's innings came to a close at 5.30 p.m. after batting the maximum of 90 overs with only one wicket in hand.

USA scored their first 50 in 17 overs; 100 in the 38th; 150 in the 51st; 200 in the 62nd over while the 250 came up in the 77th over.

Archer, who grabbed the key wicket of Massiah with the fourth ball of the first over of his second spell, led the local bowling attack with superb figures of three for 30 from 15 overs, including six maidens while Mukuddem and Leverock - who bowled a marathon 32 overs from the southern end of the grounds - seized two scalps apiece.

Mukuddem also took two difficult running catches in the field.

Bermuda were poised at 18 without loss when stumps were drawn at 6.30 p.m. with opener Stephen Outerbridge (3) and overnight watchman Wendell White - elevated up the batting order - remaining unbeaten at the crease.

The pair withstood 13 nail-biting overs; a couple of confident appeals and an intimidating USA umbrella.

Bermuda managed to grab 4.5 bowling points while USA received 5.5 first-innings batting points.

Play resumes at 10 a.m. today.