North Field, National Sports Centre (Sandys Spartans won the toss): Sandys Spartans beat Smith Sixers by 71 runs

Sandys Spartans hit their way to the highest total in this year’s Bermuda Smash to beat Smith Sixers in the second semi-final on Saturday.

Sandys smashed 223 runs for three in their allotted 20 overs with the top four Spartans batters combining for a total of 17 fours and 11 sixes, with the charge led by Namibian Gerhard Erasmus. He scored a team-high 72 not out and then claimed two wickets for 27 runs to cap a good all-round performance.

“This was a good, clinical week for us”, said man-of-the-match Erasmus.

“We went through the group stage by bowling and batting well to be undefeated and we have a good all-round team now. We are in a good place to win it but the game is played on the field, so hopefully the luck off the draw goes our way tomorrow.”

Spartans won the toss and elected to bat with New Zealander Chad Bowes and captain Kamau Leverock opening the innings.

Bowes faced the first ball and set the town by pulling it for four, a shot he had practised in the nets just minutes earlier, as Nial Smith gave up 19 runs in his opening over. Malachi Jones was treated just as harshly in the next over, with Bowes pulling him for two maximums as the score raced to 37 after just two overs.

Trinidadian Justin Manick, who was called up to replace the injured Keemo Paul, bowled the third over and conceded 11 runs with the Spartans comfortably placed at 48 without loss from just three overs.

Manick, bowling the fifth over, came in for more punishment as Bowes raced to his 50 in just 22 deliveries with a four to the mid-wicket boundary, which was followed by a hook for six.

The 77-run opening partnership was finally broken when Bowes skied out to Manick off the bowling of Smith for an aggressive 58, which included six fours and four sixes.

With Erasmus joining Leverock, the Spartans were well in command at 78 for one at the end of the six-over powerplay. The two brought up the 100 in 9.4 overs before Leverock would sky to Justin Pitcher on the boundary off Jones’ last ball of the over for 19 with the score 104 for two at the halfway stage.

Delray Rawlins replaced Leverock at the crease and the fireworks continued as the new batter and Erasmus rotated strike regularly with the occasional boundary. Both would score a half century with the former hitting a massive six to cow corner, which cleared the tents lining the ropes.

The two would put on a team-high 103-run partnership before Rawlins was caught by Allan Douglas Jr off Manick for 57 with the score at 207.

Erasmus, unbeaten on 72, finished the innings with a six to long on as the Spartans racked up 223 runs for the loss of only three wickets. Manick, Jones and Smith finished with one wicket each for 36, 44 and 40 runs respectively.

Needing 11.2 runs an over in their chase, Smith’s Sixers opened with Malachi Jones and Macai Simmons, but the former would be dismissed in the second over when caught by Rawlins off the bowling of Marcus Bean for six.

Yannic Cariah joined Simmons and the pair put on 25 runs before Bean knocked the latter’s stumps over when he reached 18 to bring captain Onias Bascome to the wicket.

Bascome threatened to do what he had done against Smith’s on Thursday after hitting Erasmus’s second and third deliveries for boundaries, but the Namibian got the last laugh when trapping Bascome leg before for ten of the next ball.

Douglas Jr came and went without troubling the score when caught off the bowling off Isaiah O’Brien.

Manick joined Cariah with the Sixers in a spot of bother at 54 for four after the six-over powerplay, some 13 runs behind the run rate.

The two would put on a patient 18-run partnership before both fell victim to Sharye Tavares in the same over.

Cariah was caught at point by Ajie Richardson for 14 and Manick was trapped lbw for 17 to levae the Sixers struggling at 73 for six. Deunte Darrell and Zeri Tomlinson would carry the score to 87 for six at the halfway mark before Tavares continued the onslaught by bowling Darrell in his next over for 13.

Justin Pitcher joined Tomlinson and the two brought some respectability to the scoreline with a team-high 53 run partnership to carry the score to 141 before the former was bowled by Erasmus for 21.

With the game just about done, Tomlinson retired hurt with an elbow injury after scoring a team-high 36 to bring the game to a close and giving Spartans the victory.

Tavares was the pick of the Spartans bowlers with three for 16 runs from his allotted four overs and was ably supported by Erasmus, who bowled four overs and claimed two wickets for 27 runs.

The Spartans will face defending champions Hamilton Parish Hurricanes in what promises to be an entertaining finale to this year’s Smash Invitational, with the match starting at 4.30pm on Sunday.