The 14th match of the 2023 CPL featured a dramatic clash between Jamaica Tallawahs and Barbados Royals on September 1 at Bridgetown.
Barbados Royals made a robust recovery in yesterday’s game after being blown away by Trinbago Knight Riders by a mammoth 133 runs.
They batted with a lot more character this time around and completed a clinical chase against Jamaica Tallawahs in an effortless manner.
The Royals started off nicely with the ball as they left the Tallawahs batters gasping for breath inside the powerplay overs. Shamarh Brooks and Imad Wasim did the repair job and propelled Jamaica Tallawahs to a decent first innings score of 160.
In reply the Royals faced similar problem to the Tallawahs, losing key wickets in the PowerPlay, but Alick Athanaze’s statement knock of 76 was the foundation for a successful chase that saw the Royals home with an over to spare.
The Tallawahs attempts to set a competitive total were dealt a huge blow inside the PowerPlay. Losing King, Mckenzie and Hales in quick succession left the Tallawahs teetering at 25/3 at the end of six overs.
Shamarh Brooks and Raymon Reifer consolidated after the initial drama with a 54 run partnership but Qais Ahmad cleaned up Reifer to keep the Royals well on top.
Brooks was not to be denied however and his 78 from 40 balls proved crucial in keeping the Tallawahs in the game. This was supplemented by Imad Wasim’s late order hitting to get the Tallawahs up to 160/7 at the end of their 20 overs.
161 was a tricky chase for the Royals to navigate and when they lost both Rahkeem Cornwall and Kyle Mayers in the PowerPlay the game looked set for a tight finish.
However, Athanaze and Laurie Evans’ partnership of 89 ensured the Royals entered the final five overs with a gettable equation to navigate.
Chris Green removed Laurie Evans in the 16th over and Salman Irshad got Alick Athanaze to top edge one to the fine leg boundary for 76 with 12 balls to go but Rovman Powell and Jason Holder saw the Royals home to put them right back in the playoff race.
Brief Score: Barbados Royals 161/4 (Athanaze 76, Evans 30; Green 2/21, Wasim 1/36) beat Jamaica Tallawahs 160/7(Brooks 78, Wasim 33; Holder 2/19, Ahmad 2/42) by 6 wickets.
Following the end of today’s fixture, Saint Lucia Kings are still at the top unscathed with 2 wins out of 5 games. They are comfortably situated with a decent-looking NRR of +1.617.
Guyana Amazon Warriors are ranked second in the points table with 2 wins in 3 games. Their NRR stands at an impressive high of 2.475.
Trinbago Knight Riders retain their third spot following their massive victory against Barbados Royals the previous day. They now have 2 wins in 4 games and have a robust-looking NRR of 1.752.
Jamaica Tallawahs and Barbados Royals rank 4th and 5th respectively in the points table. The two teams also have an NRR of -0.010 and -2.058 respectively. St Kitts and Nevis Patriots are currently winless at the moment and are situated at the bottom of the points table with a shambolic-looking NRR of -1.833.
