In a rematch of the first qualifier which Barishal won by 10 runs, the Victorians won the toss and batted first.
Sunil Narine followed up his 13-ball 50 in the second qualifier with a 23-ball 57 to spur the Victorians to 151-9 off their 20 overs. The Trinidadian’s knock included five fours and five sixes.
Moeen Ali provided good support for Narine with 38 off 32 balls against 2-27 off four overs from Mujeeb Ur Rahman and 2-32 off four overs from Shafiqul Islam.
Scoreboard pressure in a final once again proved to be a major factor as Barishal made a meal of a fairly manageable total.
Shykat Ali (58) and Chris Gayle (33) were the only batsmen to get significant scores for Barishal against 2-15 from four overs from Narine and 2-25 from four overs from Tanvir Islam.
Comilla Victorians previously won BPL in 2015 and 2019.
Former West Indies cricketer turned commentator Samuel Badree asked Narine about his World Cup plans during a post-match interview, to which Narine responded, "I will be watching from home, Badree."
The 35-year-old Narine's absence from the West Indies setup has been notable since 2019, despite invitations to return to the team. Windies white-ball coach Darren Sammy recently indicated that the squad selection process for the World Cup was nearing completion, highlighting the exposure of over 22 players in preparation for the tournament.
“We’ve selected squads and exposed about 22 players over the last year in preparation for this main event that is coming," Sammy explained during a press briefing. "It’s based on the measures that we’ve taken and the strategic roles we have given players.”
While Narine has been a key player for the Kolkata Knight Riders in the IPL since 2012, contributing significantly to the franchise's two title victories in 2012 and 2014, his focus remains on franchise cricket rather than international duties. He has played 51 T20 Internationals for the West Indies, showcasing his talent with 52 wickets at an economy rate of 6.01.
Narine made his debut for the West Indies in March 2012 against Australia and played his last match for the Caribbean side in August 2019 against India. Known for his mystery spin and explosive batting, Narine continues to be a vital asset for the Kolkata Knight Riders, as demonstrated by his recent impactful innings of 85 from 39 balls while opening the batting against the Delhi Capitals.
Despite his absence from international duty, Narine's contributions in franchise cricket underscore his prowess in the T20 format. As the T20 World Cup approaches, West Indies will proceed with a squad that reflects the strategic planning and player exposure outlined by Coach Sammy, with Narine choosing to focus on his IPL commitments while supporting the regional team from the sidelines.
Narine's ferocious innings, peppered with seven fours and as many towering sixes, set the stage on fire as he found an able partner in the form of Angkrish Raghuvanshi. The young talent showcased his mettle with a scintillating 54 off 27 balls, matching Narine blow for blow. Together, they formed a formidable partnership that laid waste to the Capitals' bowling attack.
But the onslaught didn't stop there. Andre Russell, with his trademark power-hitting, unleashed havoc upon the Capitals' bowlers, plundering 41 runs in just 19 deliveries. However, a searing yorker from Ishant Sharma in the final over denied Kolkata Knight Riders the chance to etch their name in the history books by surpassing the highest IPL score.
Despite falling short of the record, Kolkata Knight Riders' colossal total proved insurmountable for the Delhi Capitals, as they succumbed to a crushing defeat by a mammoth margin of 106 runs. With this victory, Kolkata Knight Riders soared to the top of the table, joining Rajasthan Royals with three wins from three matches, solidifying their position as serious title contenders in the IPL.
The Capitals, despite a valiant effort from their batsmen, including notable half-centuries from Rishabh Pant and Tristan Stubbs, found themselves outclassed by the Knight Riders' clinical performance. Vaibhav Arora emerged as the hero for Kolkata Knight Riders with a stellar bowling display, claiming three crucial wickets for a mere 27 runs, further sealing the Capitals' fate.
As the dust settled on the electrifying encounter, Kolkata Knight Riders celebrated their third consecutive win in the tournament, marking the first time in their history that they had started a season with three victories in three matches. With their batsmen firing on all cylinders and their bowlers delivering under pressure, Kolkata Knight Riders sent a clear message to their competitors: they were a force to be reckoned with in the race for the IPL title.
Narine, who has struggled with the bat throughout this IPL, and fellow West Indian Russell were two of those who failed to deliver as Kolkata were bowled out in 20 overs for 167, a total that owed much to Rahul Tripathi's 81 as he repaid the decision to promote him to open.
Chennai were confident of chasing their modest target when Shane Watson (50) and Ambati Rayudu (30) made 69 for the second wicket.
However, some brilliant death bowling from Narine (1-31) and Russell (1-18) meant the Super Kings came up short with 157-5.
Kolkata were indebted to Tripathi's 51-ball knock, which included eight fours and three sixes, as their star-studded middle order for once failed to show up.
Narine, who had been opening, was dropped down to four but could only make 17, while Eoin Morgan (7) and Russell (2) had rare off-days as Dwayne Bravo (3-37) led the Super Kings' fine bowling display.
There was then a boundary in each of Chennai's first 10 overs and they were coasting when requiring 69 off the final 48 balls with nine wickets in hand.
Yet Narine - who bowled overs 12, 14, 16 and 19 - applied the handbrake, along with Russell, whose two-over figures would have look much better had Ravindra Jadeja not struck the final three balls of the innings for an ultimately frivolous 14.
BATTING SHAKE-UP PAYS OFF FOR KNIGHT RIDERS
Kolkata's problems in the early stages of the tournament were due to a lack of big scores, with top scorer Shubman Gill down in 13th in the IPL for runs.
However, Tripathi hit their highest individual score in their five games so far, and boy was it needed given the rest of the order's struggles.
BOUNDARY DROUGHT COSTS SUPER KINGS
At 90-1 at the halfway point, Chennai were cruising and required only 78 from 60.
However, they failed to find or clear the ropes across the next 33 deliveries and were then left needing 55 off 27. It was that barren patch in the middle of their reply that ultimately proved their undoing.
The Amazon Warriors won the toss and opted to field first and they produced a disciplined performance with the ball that kept the Knight Riders in check throughout.
Led by Tabraiz Shamsi’s 4-36, wickets were taken at regular intervals to ensure that no batter ever felt comfortable at the crease as the Knight Riders reached 150-8.
Needing 151 to win the Amazon Warriors got off to the worst possible start losing Paul Sterling for a duck and three wickets in total in the power play.
Shimron Hetmyer and Colin Ingram briefly threatened to take the game away from the Knight Riders but when Andre Russell removed Hetmyer the collapse began and the remaining Amazon Warriors batters fell for just 26 runs.
Earlier on the Knight Riders had constructed their best total of the Hero CPL campaign courtesy of a well-compiled 42 from Colin Munro. Overcoming the early loss of Tion Webster and Nicholas Pooran, Munro combined with Tim Siefert to compile a 51-run partnership that set a foundation for some late order risk taking.
Sunil Narine, Kieron Pollard and Ravi Rampaul hit a combined five sixes to help the Knight Riders set a total of 150 runs that always appeared as if it would be tricky to chase.
This proved to be the case in the Amazon Warrior reply. No batter was able to face more than 20 deliveries despite reaching 81-4 in the 10th over. The Amazon Warriors lost their remaining six wickets for 43 runs to succumb to a heavy defeat.
The returning Akeal Hosein proved to be crucial in the Knight Riders' bowling attack taking 3-36 and he was ably supported by the parsimonious Andre Russell (3-16) and Sunil Narine (2-9).
Scores: Trinbago Knight Riders 150-8 (Munro 42, Seifert 27; Shamsi 4-36, Shepherd 3-22) beat Guyana Amazon Warriors 124 all out (Hemraj 28, Hetmyer 20; Russell 3-16, Hosein 3-36) by 26 runs
They join the likes of Andre Fletcher, Sheldon Cottrell, Andre Russell, Sunil Narine, Shimron Hetmyer, Evin Lewis, Fabian Allen, Rovman Powell, Akeal Hosein, Raymon Reifer, Sherfane Rutherford, Ravi Rampaul, Kennar Lewis and Dominic Drakes as West Indians participating in the inaugural edition of the tournament.
Other big names participating include England's Moeen Ali and Alex Hales as well as Sri Lankan leg-spinner Wanindu Hasaranga.
The ILT20 is set to begin in January next year in the UAE and is competing with South Africa's T20 League for players. There will be six franchises consisting of 18 players each.
The 2023 edition of the ILT20 will have 34 matches. All the teams will play each other twice, before four playoffs, including the final, spread across Dubai, Abu Dhabi and Sharjah.
Chief among that group is Sunil Narine, who was once ranked as the world’s number one spinner and a regular feature in T20 leagues around the world. Narine has not appeared in a match for the team since 2019. Also missing are the likes of big-hitter Andre Russell and Evin Lewis who have not featured for the team since last year’s T20 World Cup. Russell has been unavailable while Lewis has not taken the required fitness tests to be included in the team selections.
All three players have, however, continued to take part in the lucrative T20 leagues around the world, despite not playing for the regional team since last year's World cup debacle. Simmons admits that not having all the players the team would love to have available is not the ideal scenario but expects the cricketers to be motivated to play for the West Indies.
“I’ve made it a point of duty, anywhere that I’ve gone, I don’t think you should be begging people to play for their country,” Simmons told members of the media on Tuesday.
“I think if you want to represent the West Indies, you make yourself available for West Indies cricket,” he added.
“Life has changed in that people have the opportunity to go to different places, if they pick that over the West Indies then that’s how it is, but it doesn’t make sense me going out there and begging you to play for the West Indies because I don’t know if you will come with as strong a heart as I want you to have.”
The West Indies are currently trailing New Zealand 1-0 in the ongoing T20 series.
The West Indies are currently ranked 10th in the ICC T20 rankings despite having some of the best players in the world in their talent pool. However, Pooran anticipates that the team could show its full potential at the next world cup.
“I just believe that most of the series West Indies play, they don't play with their strongest team. And by strongest I mean Chris Gayle, Pollard, Russell, Narine, Bravo in the team together,” the talented Trinidadian said in a recent interview with ESPNCricinfo.
“In the last couple of years, we haven't witnessed these players together. Either most of them weren't selected, some were unavailable... but definitely a case around that.
“We couldn't play as a team after the last T20 World Cup. This, I am saying from a player's and a fan's point of view. Not seeing some of my favourite players represent West Indies might be one of the reasons.”
Notwithstanding the disappointment that comes with that reality, Pooran said he is looking forward to the coming T20 World Cup where he expects to be a better player holding his own amongst the best players from the region.
“Personally, I am looking forward to the T20 World Cup. As a team, our strength is T20s. For the last couple of years, we've been doing good in World Cups, but as a team where we are ranked [10th], it doesn't show how good our team actually is,” he said, indicating that believes that situation could change in the near future.
“Most of the senior guys are coming back to the West Indies team... like Kieron Pollard, Dwayne Bravo, Andre Russell and Sunil Narine are all coming back eventually.
“As a player, I am especially excited because I want to do good for the West Indies people and put a smile on their faces. My record for West Indies in T20s isn't that good and I want to improve that for the next couple of months.”
