CPL 2021: St Kitts & Nevis Patriots make it two in two against Guyana Amazon Warriors

A fantastic opening partnership of 113 runs between Evin Lewis and Devon Thomas helped St Kitts & Nevis Patriots chase down a target of 147 runs against Guyana Amazon Warriors without much ado. The franchise has now jumped to the top of the points table in the ongoing edition of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL). The eight-wicket win was recorded with 1.1 overs to spare, showcasing the dominance of the two openers. Lewis smashed 62 runs from 39 deliveries, making full use of the final over of the powerplay after a slow start to the innings. The Patriots had started cautiously with just 29 runs in the first five overs, with the pressure released in an authoritative manner.

Lewis smashed Imran Tahir for two sixes in a row, with the first over the bowler’s head after the spinner tossed one up in the eighth over. When Tahir went flat, the opener smashed him over deep midwicket for a big hit in subsequent overs. While the South African cricketer managed to get Lewis stumped off a googly in the 14th over, the Patriots were well in command of proceedings by then. Thomas further broke the shackles having been fairly cautious on 11 from 26 balls at one stage. The opener smashed Odean Smith for two fours, followed by Ashmead Nedd being smashed over deep square for a six. Thomas remained unbeaten on 55 off 54 deliveries.

Drakes delivers a stunning performance to help restrict Guyana Amazon Warriors

The Guyana Amazon Warriors were hit hard following a fantastic spell by Dominic Drakes, who finished with figures of 3 for 26 in four overs. The Warriors were reduced to 31 for 3, with Odean who had been sent at No.3 in the win against Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR), failing to replicate his success this time. He was dismissed for a seven-ball duck by Drakes who further accounted for the dismissal of Shoaib Malik, who huffed and puffed to 5 off 12, before being caught brilliantly by Joshua Da Silva behind the stumps.

Chandrapaul Hemraj helped the Warriors innings rebuild following a slow start, smashing Fawad Ahmed for six, followed by Fabian Allen being hit for a four and six more. Hemraj was dismissed soon after by Fawad, with Nicholas Pooran and Mohammad Hafeez remaining the Warriors’ last recognised batters. The former smashed three sixes against the Australian spinner in the 14th over, adding 23 runs from just 10 balls before falling to Allen. Hafeez helped the Warriors finish on a strong note in the last two overs. He smashed Drakes for successive sixes, before hitting Dwayne Bravo for consecutive fours to ensure a competitive total of 146.

“As long as you play the game smart, you’ll get the results”

“Very happy, a great team effort. Guyana is one of the better teams in the tournament, so I give credit to my bowling group to restrict a very experienced batting line-up. That’s all we ask as a team, just have that hunger. It is a wicket that offers something for both spin and pace. And if you bat properly and apply yourself you can make runs too, it’s a small ground. As long as you play the game smart, you’ll get the results. The way they batted in the first six, they literally batted Guyana out of the game,” said Bravo after the game.

Pooran admitted that he had failed to read the pitch properly, resulting in the wrong decision being taken at the toss.

“Definitely fell short with the bat, 15-20 runs. I think we got the toss wrong. I thought it would spin a little more in the back end. A lot of talented players, we’re trying lot of things, hopefully we can get the right combination at the right time. I just want to win games for my team. If you look at the balance of our team, we need a finisher,” he stated.