CPL: Record-breaking Amazon Warriors silence TKR at home
SUMMARY: Guyana Amazon Warriors 185-6 (Hemraj 66, Hetmyer 48, Shepherd 32*; Searles 3-39, Ali Khan 1-23) beat Trinbago Knight Riders 166-5 (Pollard 71, Bravo 58*; Green 2-18, Tahir 2-32) by 19 runs
Reporting by Akeem Greene in Trinidad
Guyana Amazon Warriors have made it eight from eight in a record-breaking run with a crushing 19-run over Trinbago Knight Riders at the Queen’s Park Oval Monday evening in Match 27 of the Hero Caribbean Premier League.
Warriors have maintained the perfect season and are assured of a spot in the first Playoff, with the winner of that game heading straight to the final.
After setting TKR 186 for victory, Warriors held their nerves and defended 29 off the final over bowled by Imran Tahir, to take round one in the battle of two archrivals.
Kieron Pollard had threatened to take it away with a blazing 71 (8x4s; 3x6s) from just 38 balls, but Warriors went the distance to silence the passionate home crowd.
Despite dew creating some trouble for the bowlers, Chris Green found good grip and bowled a miserly spell of 2-18 within the Powerplay, with TKR struggled to 38-2. The struggles continued even after and pressure mounted.
Darren Bravo, who made an unbeaten 58 (6x6s) from 46 balls, released it momentarily with some massive sixes, but Warriors found ways of tightening the shackles.
The wickets of Lendl Simmons with a soft edge and Denesh Ramdin hogging to long-on were a result of some tight bowling and good fielding.
At the halfway stage, TKR needed 128 with six wickets intact, one of those was danger man Pollard who had just strolled to the crease.
Himself and Bravo found ways to counter attack the ‘back of a length’ approach by the Warriors and plundered some humongous sixes in a partnership which reach 50 in just 37 deliveries.
A possible turning point was the 15th over delivered by Ben Laughlin which leaked 18 runs and took the equation to 77 off 30 balls.
Pollard reached his fifty from 27 balls with a blunt force heave off Keemo Paul in the 17th over and the momentum was shifting in the favour of the home side with 51 now needed off 18 balls.
Paul rebounded and delivered a stupendous penultimate over, which yielded just nine runs, leaving Tahir to defend 29 in the final six deliveries.
The usual steady opening stand by Brandon King and Chandrapaul Hemraj did not materialise as the former looked to launch Khary Pierre out the park, only to reach Pollard at mid-off.
An eruption of noise emanated from every stand, and if the Warriors did not know they were up against it, they were made well aware then. Shimron Hetmyer parked his usual flamboyance and produced a workman-like innings which solidified the Warriors in the middle overs.
From 35-1, and just five boundaries struck in the Powerplay, the talented duo took the score to 68-1 at the halfway stage, and it was from them Hemraj cut loose.
The 26 year-old got a life on 31 when he was dropped by Pollard in the 11th over. Two balls later, he smoked Pollard for six over long-on then flicked him fine for four.
Next over, substitute Tion Webster dropped Hemraj, a dolly running in from long-off. He made him pay dearly, crashing Chris Jordan for back-to-back fours to reach his second half-century of the season from 34 balls.
He eventually fell to Javon Searles who was expensive, but kept picking up key wickets. Hemraj smashed six fours and four sixes in an enterprising 66 from 42 balls. Searles’ wide-yorker strategy kept working when he got Nicholas Pooran cheaply.
Hetmyer, who reached the 15th over on 32 from 33 balls, added the much needed impetus with some powerful striking off Searles. He first smashed him through mid-wicket for four then carved him over point for six which was followed up by another four.
Off the last ball, Searles went wide and dislodged Hetmyer who ran off the field in great disgust. He had made an unconventional 48 (4x4s; 1×6) from 38 balls. A stutter then occurred as Shoaib Malik and Sherfane Rutherford departed in the space of one over and only added one between.
Man-of-the-Match Romario Shepherd then muscled the bowlers to all parts in a blazing 32 from just 13 balls, in which he aided heavily in taking Jordon for 25 in the final over. Paul chipped in with 12 from 8 balls which helped Warriors score 42 off the last three overs.
Knight Riders now host a qualified Barbados Tridents Wednesday, while Warriors return home to play their final preliminary matches against Jamaica Tallawahs (Thursday) and Knight Riders (Friday).
