In CPL there was a thrilling face off staged between the Barbados Royals and the Guyana Amazon Warriors ; the former triumphing. The match was played at the famous ground of Kensington Oval and it provided the best picture of how modern day T20 cricket can be explosive.
Match Summary
Guyana Amazon Warriors Batting Performance
With the Guyana Amazon Warriors winning the toss they decided to bowl thinking that the condition in the early part of the game would suit the bowlers and put pressure on the Barbados Royals. This was a planned decision given the fact that it is generally better to bowl under lights as well as an ability to make a chase with proper assessment of the pitch.
Barbados Royals’ Innings
The Royals were off to good start to their innings. They utilised the positives bolsters by the openers Quinton De Kock and Kadeem Alleyne through a fast start. Parnell was dominating for the South Africans as the lower order, especially de Kock who made a brisk 115 off 68 balls. But, still, the Warriors players were able to put a successful bowling performance, the chief architects being Dwaine Pretorious and Kevin Sinclair.
Pretorius spell was decent especially because of picking the wickets of Alleyne and other important batsmen. The medium Fast bowler Raymon Reifer was also very important especially with his ability to contain the run rate in the mid – innings. The decision by the Warriors to field first brought them dividends as they kept the pressure going through the innings.
However, the breakdown caused by aggressive power plays yielded some great results and despite the massive loss of wickets, the Royals were able to put up a commendable totals of 205/6. From the middle order, coming from No 8, 10 Jason Holder played a very important 28 runs which set the momentum after the transition of power. What can be said about Holder’s innings is that he developed the Royals’ total to a point that was feasible to defend.
Guyana Amazon Warriors’ Chase
Targeting 205 runs in total, the Amazon Warriors begun their innings pretty aggressively. The target created plight for Azam Khan and Tim Robinson to come out all guns blazing in the opening session of the match. These reasons go to show that early aggression from Shai Hope and solid hitting from Hetmyer put the Warriors in a good standing. Of them, Shai Hope, who batted well by getting 40 off 34 balls and stabilised the innings.
Nonetheless, some good bowling was displayed by the Royals especially Dwaine Pretorius bowling magnificent 2 wickets for 27 runs but Warriors’ chase was matured. Hetmyer had good supporting aspect from his middle order partners to make sure that the run rate was maintained.
The by now much anticipated climax of the match ensued when the Warriors required 50 runs off the last two overs. Some good finishing at the lower order mainly by Raymon Reifer who came out to be the most useful batsman scoring a critical 16 off his 16 balls which ensured that the Warriors got to the required total. However they were unable to accomplish their goal.
Key Performances
Quinton De Kock: The best performance of the match was observed from De Kock’s innings. He was aggressive throughout his batting and because of this, the Warriors achieved the target. The 115 which came of 68 balls was a matchwinning innings.
Jason Holder: All in all, the performance of Holder was very important. The bearded bowler did a fantastic job to bowl early on and then coming good to chase the target and also, to defend it, especially in the last over. That is right, his innings of 28 not out was valuable.
Tactical Insights
Guyana Amazon Warriors: It was, in fact, correct to bowl first because pitch showed signs of getting slower and toss also favoured it. Yet, due to their inability to stop the Royals’ lower order and because of their poor performance against spinners they lost the game.
Barbados Royals: The Royals should be able to post a competitive total because of the positive start that they’ll have plus when there is power hitting in the later part of the innings. Their bowling particularly the spells bowled by Keshav Maharaj proved useful in neutralizing and getting rid of the Warriors’ batsmen.
The timed Barbados Royals against the Guyana Amazon Warriors was been a fascinating event that gave the bright example of the T20 cricket level. Finally, the Royals won the match because of excellent bowling performance and indeed marvelous performances from best players like Keshav Maharaj and Jason Holder. The Warriors and the Royals competed intensely in what proved to be a high voltage battle; the Warriors could not, however, match the Royals in terms of bowling and in the process failed to attain the requisite score. This game also brought out the rivalry of the CPL and showcased, the Caribbean produce good crickets.