Trinbago Knight Riders’ wicketkeeper-batter Nicholas Pooran put an end to his fear of 90s with his second T20 ton. Knight Riders registered a comprehensive 74-run win over table-toppers Guyana Amazon Warriors in the last league stage match of Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2024. West Indies’ wicketkeeper-batter Nicholas Pooran broke the record for most runs in T20s in a calendar year. The record was previously held by Pakistan’s wicketkeeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan with 2,036 runs in 2021.
Nicholas Pooran, the latest record holder in T20 cricket with the most runs in a calendar year, was the architect of Knight Rider’s victory as he struck a belligerent 101 off 59 balls, which included 9 fours and 8 sixes. Jason Roy (34 off 26) was the next highest run-getter in the innings as the Knight Riders finished with an imposing 211/5.
Amazon Warriors didn’t come close as they were bowled out for 137, with Terrance Hinds, Waqar Salamkheil and Nathan Edwards bagging three-wicket hauls, but managed to keep their NRR above to seal a Qualifier 1 berth.
Pitch and Toss
Down the ground it is 74 meters. The same pitch that was used yesterday. The average score batting first has increased. Don’t expect much variable bounce. The batters should have it easy reckons Daren Ganga.
Trinbago Knight Riders skipper Kieron Pollard won the toss and chose to bat first with one change in his playing XI. Guyana Amazon Warriors skipper Imran Tahir bowling first also made one change in his playing XI with Kevlon Anderson in place of Azam Khan.
Nicholas Pooran’s scintillating ton carries TKR to 211 for 5.
Opting to bat, the Knight Riders lost Shaqkere Parris for a duck in the first over before a huge partnership between Nicholas Pooran and Roy ensued. They added 152 in less than 14 overs to put their side on course for a big total.
Nicholas Pooran was lethal against Dwaine Pretorius, scoring two sixes and three fours in his first two overs, while Romario Shepherd and Shamar Joseph also came under some attack, with Knight Riders racing to 75 in the powerplay – 51 of those runs scored by Nicholas Pooran alone, who had registered a 22-ball fifty. By the time the halfway stage was completed, they had moved to 109/1, with Nicholas Pooran having struck maximums of Imran Tahir and Moeen Ali.
Roy was happy playing the supporting role to Pooran before he struck two successive sixes off Moeen. The century stand and Nicholas Pooran’s century, off 57 balls, came a short while later as the Knight Riders had powered past 150 in only 14 overs. Joseph ended the partnership by dismissing Roy, and Andre Russell fell to Pretorius soon after hitting a six off Joseph.
The pacer picked up two more wickets in his next over, having Nicholas Pooran caught down the leg side and Tim David bowled, as the Knight Riders lost five wickets for 18 runs. Keacy Carty and Kieron Pollard ensured a positive finish for the Knight Riders, with three fours and two sixes between them in the last two overs.
Skipper Kieron Pollard won the toss and opted to bat first. Pooran had to walk out to bat early as Imran Tahir dismissed opener Shaqkere Parris for a three-ball duck. Nicholas Pooran got off the mark with a six off a no ball. While Jason Roy struggled to rotate strike, Nicholas Pooran dominated in powerplay overs.
He reached his half-century in the sixth over from just 22 deliveries. Knight Riders were 75/1 after six overs. They crossed the 100-run mark in the ninth over. Nicholas Pooran continued to hit big in the middle overs. In the 12th over, Roy hit his former teammate Moeen Ali for a couple of sixes.
Meanwhile, Nicholas Pooran reached his second T20 century from 57 balls in the 14th over. Shamar Joseph got the breakthrough with Roy’s wicket. The opener scored 34 runs from 26 balls. Andre Russell could not do much damage and was dismissed for a single-digit score by Dwaine Pretorius. Joseph in his third over struck off consecutive deliveries. He dismissed Nicholas Pooran and Tim David.
Nicholas Pooran’s 59-ball 101 was laced with nine fours and eight sixes. In the slog overs, Pollard and Keacy Carty went berserk. Carty hit Romario Shepherd for a six and two fours in the last over to take Knight Riders’ score to 211/5. Carty remained unbeaten for 13-ball 27 whereas Pollard scored 19 runs from 13 balls.
Nathan Edward and Waqar Salamkheil 3 wickets gives TKR an 74 runs victory over GAW
Rahmanullah Gurbaz helped Amazon Warriors begin the chase positively despite losing opening partner Kevlon Anderson early. Akeal Hossein began economically but was hit for two sixes by Gurbaz in his third over while 26 runs came off Russell’s over with Shai Hope striking three fours and two sixes as Amazon Warriors moved to 63/1 at the end of the powerplay. But regular wickets after that derailed the chase as they slipped to 76/6 in 10 overs.
Hossein began the slide by trapping Hope in front for 28. Salamkheil dismissed Gurbaz and Hetmyer in the same over followed by another double strike as Hinds accounted for Keemo Paul and Shepherd. Pretorius became Salamkheil third scalp and Moeen was Hinds’s third wicket, leaving Amazon Warriors reeling at 88/8 in the 12th over. Gudakesh Motie (26*) and Imran Tahir (20) put on a 49-run stand for the ninth wicket to keep the Knight Riders waiting.
The stand proved critical in where the Knight Riders finished in the standings, with substitute fielder Bryan Charles’s two dropped chances to reprieve Motie playing a major role. Nathan Edwards eventually wrapped it up in the 19th over with the wickets of Tahir and Joseph but not being able to finish in the top two would have hurt the Knight Riders a bit as they face Barbados Royals in the Eliminator.
Warriors lost Kevlon Anderson early to Nathan Edwards. But Warriors got off to a solid start with Shai Hope and Rahmanullah Gurbaz firing from both ends. In the sixth over, Hope smashed Russell for two sixes and three fours. Warriors were 63/1 after powerplay overs. In the seventh over, left-arm spinner Akeal Hossein dismissed Hope lbw. He scored 28 runs from 19 balls. Waqar Salamkheil struck twice in ninth over to dismiss Gurbaz and Shimron Hetmyer. Gurbaz scored 36 runs from 22 balls whereas Hetmyer scored nine runs.
In the next over, Terrance Hinds got the wickets of Keemo Paul and Shepherd as Warriors lost six wickets for 76 runs at halfway stage. The collapse continued. Salamkheil got the better of Pretorius whereas Hinds ended Ali’s short stay at the crease. Gudakesh Motie and Tahir tried to save their side from getting bowled out.
In the penultimate over, Edwards got wickets of Tahir and Joseph to wrap up the innings. Tahir contributed with a run-a-ball 20 whereas Motie remained unbeaten for 26. Warriors were bowled out for 137 as they lost the match by 74 runs.
Presentations and Road Ahead
Kieron Pollard the winning skipper said : It was a good game of cricket, the way Nicholas batted and Jason batted, that is the template we want to play. We set out to win a cricket match and that’s what happened.
[on Bryan Charles’ drops] These things happen in cricket and no-one means to drop catches, it’s not about Bryan Charles, overall we have dropped catches, last game we dropped David Miller although we got him out later, we have to look at this. In quality tournaments like this we have to be better than this.
We are the team who have not played here, but that’s not a complaint or an excuse, we understand the scheduling. We wanted to get into the top-two, but I believe in destiny, certain things are meant to be and certain things are not meant to be, maybe this is our destiny. [on if he has seen a better T20 knock than Pooran’s tonight] Yeah, I have seen a few, he played an innings in the last final, he has been getting a lot of starts.
We have spoken about capitalizing on starts and he has been doing it all year around, in all the leagues, well played to him, kudos to him and kudos to the team as well. This is the opportunity, if you make a mistake, you are out.
We will plan and we will come back, if we lose we are out, nothing is going to change, I would not be standing in front of you having played over 600 games if I did not play in a few finals. We have a lot of experience in that dressing room, it’s a game of cricket and may the best team win.
Imran Tahir the loosing skipper said : It’s belief and fight. We were a bit soft in the middle and we did not start well with the ball, but the positive we take is the bravery and we finished top which we wanted. I truly believe we deserved it, we are playing really well, if we lose today, I would have pulled my hair.
Looking forward to the playoffs. [on bowling five seam options in the powerplay] We are a team who look to do different things, we wanted to do this. Pooran played a special innings, we were a little soft, we have to be harder, look to improve and come back stronger.
We had a great start, they bowled well, there were so many soft dismissals, there are so many things to think about. The pitch to be honest was good. [on TKR] They are a good team, we wanted to win, they wanted to win and they played better than us and they deserved to win. [on the next game] We are gonna fight till the end and I’m guessing it should be a good game.
Nicholas Pooran for his century is Player of the Match said : It’s not about being responsibility or being fearless, I have worked on my execution, I wanted to dig deep and look for my matchup and execute my plans. I just love the environment here in Guyana, I have been playing here for a few years, I have played here for Guyana for 3 years, I don’t want to be in a negative mindset on the pitch here, if it spins or if it keeps low, just want to come out and enjoy myself.
It’s a good one, getting two 90s already in the competition this year, one of my best 100s in the CPL, any 100 is good, in crunch conditions it’s time for us to stand up.
TKR got so close to sealing a top-two spot. If only had the sub Bryan Charles held on to two Motie catches, things could have been so different. Earlier Gurbaz started well and along with Hope ensured a good powerplay for GAW. But an inexplicable collapse saw them slip from 64/1 to 88/8. GAW needed 104 to ensure a top-two spot and Motie gave two chances to Charles at that stage who dropped them both.
After that with Tahir, Motie kept his nerve and took GAW over that figure of 104. The inevitable happened with TKR winning but they don’t finish in the top-two. Their bowling though was excellent tonight with Nathan Edwards, Salamkheil and Hinds taking 3 apiece. The fielding though let them down at a crucial stage. TKR will now play Barbados Royals in the Eliminator while GAW will face SLK in Qualifier 1. Knight Riders will face Barbados Royals on October 1 in the Eliminator. On October 2, Warriors will take on Saint Lucia Kings.