Regal extended their dominance in softball by winning the Legends (Over-50) and Masters (Over-40) titles, while Ariel Knight Riders won the Open and 4R Lioness copped the female crown in the seventh Prime Minister’s Softball T20 Cup that concluded at the Demerara Cricket Club on Sunday evening.
It was a fourth consecutive title for the Legends as they defeated New York Softball Cricket League Legends by eight wickets.
Led by the consistent Uniss Yusuf and Ramesh Narine, Regal aced the chase of 180 in 17.4 overs as Yusuf struck 68 (5x4s;2x6s) from 48 balls while Narine was unbeaten on 66 (4x4s;5x6s), as the duo added 103 for the second wicket.
New York reached 179-5 thanks to a 33-ball 50 (1×4; 4x6s) from Jagdeo Persaud and Rickford Edwards (35).
Mahendra Hardyal led the way with the ball with 3-33 from four overs.
The Masters final proved to be most thrilling; it ended in a tie after both sides made 200, and Regal won via Super Over.
Ariel posted what seemed a winning 200-6 with solid middle-order contributions from Rawle Reid (44), Samuel Kingston (44), Sheldon Adams (35) and Patrick Khan (30).
Lakeram Roopnarine was economical in the runs feat, grabbing 2-22 from four overs, while Ehwaaz Baksh took 2-47 from four overs.
It went down to the wire, with Regal reaching 200-9 from 20 overs as Eyaaz Mohamed (35) was the top score, but several vital cameos and numerous extras brought them back in contention to defend their title.
Manoj Arjune (3-27) and Sherwin Hubberth (3-33) were the chief wicket takers for Ariel.
Ariel Knight Riders retained their Open title
Regal posted 173-9, led by Ricardo Poloram 82 (8x4s; 5x6s) and Seewchand Budhu 39* as Keyon Sinclair had 2-27.
Quentin Sampson struck a blazing 77 (8x6s; 5x4s) to seal a comfortable win for Ariel Knight Riders.
In the female category, 4R Lioness registered a 44-run victory over Highway Challengers to retain their title.
They were led by 63 from skipper Temica Wilson as they posted 163 from 15 overs.
Highway Challengers, who stumbled to 119 for seven in their allotted 15 overs.
Wilson struck seven fours in her knock and got support from Joann Vansertima, whose 36 was decorated with four-fours and a six.
For the Highway side, Shelini Hossein finished with two for 17.
Edwina Smith struck three fours and a six in a stubborn 30 for Highway.
Regal Legends went home with $1M while the Masters and Open battled for $600,000 while the ladies had a first prize of $300,000.
