West Indies

The 42-year-old has typically opened for the Caribbean team but has featured at the number 3 position in the last couple of years.  Against South Africa, Gayle batted even further down the order after coming in at 4.  Overall, batting down the order has failed to really bear fruit for the batsman, in West Indies colours, to date.  Gayle had an impressive showing batting at number during the 2020 Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign for Punjab Kings XI but has not managed to replicate that kind of form this season or for the regional team.

In 17 matches batting at the number three position or below, for the West Indies, Gayle has managed a total of 239 runs, at an average of 15.93 and a strike rate of 113.80.  He has a high score of 67 runs.  At the World Cup, having played against England and South Africa so far, Gayle has scored 13 runs from 13 balls, against England, and 12 runs from 12 balls against South Africa.

“If Chris is going to bat below number three then he has no right to be in the team,” Roberts told the Mason and Guest radio show.

“What is he going to do when you need to rotate the strike more as the overs keep going.  Chris’s strong point is batting at the top of the order where he can set the pace by playing his natural game, which is hitting straight.

“If you watch the last few games that he played he tends to use up a lot of dot balls, and not just in the World Cup, that dates back a while.  He takes his time now to try and get in, instead of before from ball one, ball two, you would have to put the field back because he is timing the ball so well.  (Currently) He is struggling for timing.”

Teams will take points earned from the group stage into the super sixes if you beat the other qualified teams from your group.

As a result of their losses to Zimbabwe and the Netherlands, the West Indians will enter the super sixes stage with no points while the Netherlands will enter with two and Zimbabwe with four.

The West Indies made a seemingly insurmountable 374-6 from their 50 overs after being put in to bat by the Dutch.

The innings was set up excellently with a 101-run opening stand between Brandon King and Johnson Charles.

Charles was first to go for 54 to bring Shamarh Brooks to the crease to join King. The pair put on a further 59 before Brooks fell for 25.

Captain, Shai Hope, was next to make his way out to the middle and just three runs later, King fell for a well made 81-ball 76 to bring Pooran to the crease.

Hope and Pooran, then, added a further 108 before Hope eventually fell for 47 in the 41^st over.

Pooran, however, batted excellently, smashing the Dutch bowling all over the Takashinga Sports Club, eventually finishing 104 not out off 65 balls including nine fours and six sixes. Keemo Paul also played extremely well alongside Pooran, finishing unbeaten on 46 off 25 balls including four fours and two sixes.

Bas De Leede and Saqib Zulfiqar each took a pair of wickets for the Netherlands.

The Dutch, on the back of a magnificent 111 from Teja Nidamanuru, produced a spirited chase that saw them equal the West Indies score, and make their highest ODI score in the process, finishing 374-9 off their 50 overs.

It was a well-rounded batting effort as they got valuable contributions from Vikramjit Singh (37), Max O’Dowd (36), Wesley Barresi (27) and Bas De Leede (33) at the top of their innings.

It was then a crucial 143-run fifth-wicket partnership between Nidamanuru and Captain, Scott Edwards, that put the Netherlands on the cusp of victory.

Edwards eventually fell for a 47-ball 67 to leave the Netherlands 313-5 in the 45^th over. Saqib Zulfiqar (3) and Nidamanuru (111) then fell in quick succession to leave the Netherlands 327-7 after 46 overs.

Logan Van Beek and Aryan Dutt then batted brilliantly to put on the further 47 needed to prolong the enthralling contest.

Eventually, they found themselves needing 9 from 6 and then one from one before, off the very last ball, Van Beek was dismissed by Alzarri Joseph for 28 off just 14 balls.

The resulting super over gave Van Beek an opportunity to continue the momentum he built during the chase and that is exactly what he did.

He hit a mammoth 30 runs off Jason Holder’s over including three fours and three sixes.

Van Beek was then tasked with bowling the super over to the West Indies pair of Johnson Charles and Shai Hope.

Charles hit the first ball for six before dragging the next ball into the leg side for a single, meaning Hope would need to hit four sixes in a row for victory. The next ball could only produce a single, pretty much ending all hope for the West Indies.

Eventually, the West Indies managed just eight in the super over to give the Netherlands an improbable victory.

Brandon King's side secured an unassailable 2-0 lead in the three-match T20I series after West Indies managed a 16-run victory in Kingston.

Quinton de Kock smashed a 17-ball 41 as South Africa blasted 81 from their first five overs, yet ultimately fell short when chasing a target of 208.

With the upcoming World Cup in the Windies and United States, South Africa captain Van der Dussen acknowledged his frustrations.

"We let them get too much again," he said after the convincing defeat. "The spinners bowled really well; [Nqabayomzi] Peter, on debut, [was] brilliant.

"Looking at the way [Romario] Shepherd bowled today, he was disciplined... It was really disappointing.

"We have one more chance, and looking to bounce back [on Sunday]."

Roston Chase crashed a remarkable 67 not out off just 38 deliveries to guide the Windies to an imposing total of 207-7 in the first innings.

"Waited for the opportunity... Accustomed playing this role in the Caribbean Premier League," Chase said of his performance.

"[Daren] Sammy spoke to me. The plan was to take it to 14 overs. Then we realised that the wicket was better than yesterday."

Gudakesh Motie then did the damage with the ball, removing Van der Dussen on 30, as well as Andile Phehlukwayo (three) and Wiaan Mulder (nine) for his impressive 3-22.

"It's an amazing feeling [to win the series]," captain King added. "Chase is very valuable. Very happy with his performance.

"They had a good start. Finished well for us. Play really good cricket – that's what we are focusing [on]."

England were held to consecutive draws across Tests in Antigua and Barbados before faltering in the winner-takes-all decider in Grenada.

Root's tourists recovered from 90-8 to 204 in the first innings, but were never ahead in the game as Kraigg Braithwaite's side mustered 297 before again bowling England out for just 120.

That left Brathwaite and opening partner John Campbell to secure a 10-wicket victory as they required just 4.5 overs to chase down 28 on Sunday, condemning England to a fourth consecutive series defeat.

England have won just one of their last 17 Tests and are winless in their last nine red-ball outings, their longest such streak in the format since a run of 10 between August 2013 and July 2014.

Questions over Root's captaincy remain prominent with the ECB searching for a new managing director and coach, and Vaughan believes his fellow Yorkshireman needs to take some time to consider his future.

"Let Joe Root sleep on it for a week or so," Vaughan said to BT Sport of Root's future at the helm.

"I fear this red-ball team might go further backwards before it goes forward and you're going to have to have a lot of energy as a leader, a captain you're going to have to have a huge amount of energy to wake up every morning to captain this side.

"Generally in English conditions, the Test match team win lots of games, win lots of series – well last summer they lost to New Zealand and they were losing to India, so I don't see this Test match side suddenly becoming a team that consistently wins series after series and that's in English conditions. 

"So Joe is going to have to find a huge amount of energy and he's also going to have to improve, because tactically in this game he was a long way short. The England side fell a long way short.

"I don't see too many players, out of this England Test team, who can suddenly come in and spark England into getting 450 consistently against the better opposition, when the ball is moving about.

"That's why I do think there could be some darker days ahead and it's going to take a leader with a lot of energy to try and get this Test match team right."

Paul Collingwood took temporary charge for the series in the Caribbean after Chris Silverwood was dismissed following Ashes disappointment, but the identity of England's next permanent coach remains unclear.

Vaughan would like to see England appoint former Australian coach Justin Langer, who guided his country to T20 World Cup success at the end of last year before lifting the Ashes.

"I would personally go for Justin Langer – he's the sort of leader that England need at the moment," he added.

"Then it is a conversation with Joe Root to see if he's still got the energy to take England forward and even then I'd debate it.

"You could give it to Ben Stokes to the end of next year's Ashes and then hope that a younger player like Zak Crawley is ready."

England's dismal 10-wicket defeat to West Indies in the third Test in Grenada meant a 1-0 series reverse, coming off the back of a 4-0 Ashes thrashing at the turn of the year.

Those are two of five consecutive Test series defeats for England, who had won four in a row before then. They have not endured a worse such run since six without a win between 1987 and 1990.

England are also winless in nine Test matches, their worst sequence since a barren stretch of 10 between 2013 and 2014.

Alastair Cook survived that spell as skipper, but Root – the only man to captain England in more Tests (64 for Root, 59 for Cook) – is now under intense pressure.

And Vaughan, fourth on the list of matches as England captain (51), suggests the time has come for one of the world's best batsmen to focus solely on his own game.

"He's taken it as far as he possibly can," Vaughan told BBC Radio 5 Live.

"If he rings me in the next week and asks for some advice, I'll be dead honest: I'd tell him to step down.

"Will England be any worse off not having him as a captain? I don't think they would, because they are going to get his runs and a senior player.

"They'll get a great role model – I don't think there is a better role model in English cricket."

Root has averaged 46.4 with the bat as captain, down from 52.8 up to that point, with all 53 prior matches coming under Cook.

Only in 2013 (34.5) has his batting average been lower across a calendar year than his 35.8 so far in 2022.

Former West Indies Test and ODI captain Jason Holder was the hero of the day with four wickets in four balls in the final over as the West Indies defended their score of 179-4.

Not surprisingly, Holder was chuffed.

“What a real night last night. I just want to thank each and every fan that came to the stadium yesterday. It was a wonderful feeling seeing everyone back in the stands cheering," he while speaking with the media Monday morning. "Special thank you also to the supporters who travelled all the way from England to support their team. I think both teams played a really good series and it’s good to see the way it ended.”

Holder, who was voted Man-of-the-Series after an excellent return of 15 wickets in five matches, was pleased with the attitude of the team that saw them bounce back from a disappointing 2-1 ODI series defeat to Ireland earlier in January.

“I think it’s been great. After the start we had against Ireland in Jamaica and everybody was really down and deflated, to see the way we bounced back against England, it just shows the character in the dressing room. I think we really pulled together and it’s the first time in a long time it’s felt that close in the dressing room. It’s a great feeling,” he said.

“Hopefully we can continue this and build something special. I think this group has to be the group now, with such young and talented players, to become even closer and get better. I think if we do that, the future of West Indies cricket would be in good hands.”

The West Indies next assignment will be a white-ball tour of India where they will play three ODIs and three T20Is beginning on February 6.

“I think this series is a big series. India, for me, is the best all-round cricket team in the world and they’ve proven that over the last couple of years so to go in their backyard and beat them is not going to be an easy feat but it’s not impossible,” Holder said.

Richards represented Somerset and Glamorgan during his English domestic game and was named as the best overseas player at both counties.

The 17 county winners then went through to the overall vote.

Richards won 90 per cent of the Somerset votes and 38 per cent of the votes at Glamorgan where he spent four seasons.

 According to the BBC, Richards hit 58 centuries in his 14,698 first-class and 7,349 one-day runs for Somerset until 1986, when he and Garner were ousted as overseas signings, and Botham resigned in protest, but not before the county had won five one-day trophies from 1979 to 1983.

Meanwhile, Lloyd won the Lancashire vote with 66 per cent of the vote. The ‘Big Cat’ represented Lancashire from 1968 to 1986.

The left-handed batsman played 219 first-class games for Lancashire, hitting 30 centuries while scoring 12,764 runs. With Lancashire, he won the first two one-day league titles (1969 and 1970) as well as four Gillette Cups between 1970 and 1975.

Curtly Ambrose the top man at Northamptonshire with 47 per cent of the vote.

Between 1989 and 1996, Ambrose took 318 wickets in 78 first-class matches and 115 wickets in 95 one-day appearances for Northants while helping Northants' to the NatWest Trophy at Lord's in 1992.

West Indies opener Desmond Haynes won 52 per cent of the Middlesex vote. During his five seasons there between 1989 and 1994, the Barbadian batsman made 7,071 runs in 95 matches, at an average of 49.10 scoring 21 centuries along the way.

He also made six more hundreds in one-day cricket, scoring 4,105 runs for Middlesex in 96 matches, and helped Middlesex win three trophies; the County Championship in 1990 and 1993, plus the Sunday League in 1992.

Fast-bowling legend Malcolm Marshall took 826 first-class and 239 List A wickets in his 11 years with Hampshire spread between 1979 and 1993. He also scored 5,847 first-class runs, including five centuries and 26 fifties, and a further 2,073 in one-day cricket.

These significant contributions saw him win 47 per cent of the Hampshire vote.

Another West Indies fast bowling great Michael Holding won 51 per cent of the vote at Derbyshire where between 1983 and 1989; he took 224 first-class wickets in 66 games and claimed 154 one-day scalps.

The 29-year-old was named as part of a preliminary 18-man squad that recently began preparations to face South Africa, Australia, and Pakistan in a flurry of upcoming T20 internationals. 

The group was named with preparations for the T20 World Cup in mind, which is slated for India later this year.  Despite not featuring in a number of matches for the regional team this year, he was one of 18 players offered an international retainer contract.  Chief of selectors Roger Harper went on to explain that the player’s status as the only quality leg-spinner, in the region, prompted the selectors to include him in the team’s retainer plans.

The player suffered from misfortune last year after being forced to pull out of the tour to Bangladesh, after testing positive for Covid-19.

 “I’ve been having a tough year so far, so the fact that I am still in the plans and I still have a lot to work for, it’s still a good feeling,” Walsh said in an interview with the Antigua Observer.

“I started out the year testing positive for Covid, which ruled me out of the Bangladesh series, which I was really looking forward to. I came back to the Super 50 and I didn’t really do as well, mainly because I’ve been in isolation and I didn’t have any preparation,” he added.

 “If that did not happen, then I probably most likely would have been around the T20 and One Day squads against Sri Lanka, so I feel like I’ve missed out a lot.”

The 28-year-old had a good look at just what it takes to get there, recently, having been teammates with top Afghan T20 spinner Rashid Khan for the Barbados Tridentsd uring this season’s Caribbean Premier League (CPL).  Khan, considered by some to be the best in the game, is currently the top-ranked T20 bowler in the world.  It is a position Walsh aspires to one day attain.

“I definitely see myself as being number one in the world.  I want to be number one as a spinner or a bowler,” Walsh told members of the media from the team’s training camp in New Zealand.

Walsh revealed that encountering Khan in this season’s CPL was fruitful, as he was offered plenty of valuable technical advice and also experienced the player’s fiercely competitive mentality first hand.

“I was really in awe of Rashid Khan and having him around.  He taught me a few grips and a few of his googlies that he has in his armoury,” Walsh recalled.

“The one thing I took away, however, is that I am a different bowler from Rashid Khan and I probably just need to be myself sometimes.  I love his mentality.  He is always up for the fight and he never backs down,” he added.

Walsh is part of a 14-man T20 squad that will play against New Zealand in three T20 internationals later this month.

The charity event teams will be led by legendary Australian players Ricky Ponting and Shane Warne, with proceeds going towards rebuilding efforts in wake of Australia's recent devastating bushfires.

The match itself will be a bigger part of Cricket Australia’s charity efforts and will serve as a curtain-raiser to this year’s Big Bash League final day on February 8. 

Other former players confirmed for the match, called the Bushfire Cricket Bash, including Justin Langer, Adam Gilchrist, Brett Lee, Shane Watson, Alex Blackwell, and Michael Clarke. Steve Waugh and Mel Jones will be involved in a non-playing capacity.

"I'm delighted to confirm the Bushfire Cricket Bash will be Cricket Australia's major fundraising initiative to support Australians impacted by the recent unprecedented bushfire emergency," the CA chief executive Kevin Roberts said.

"People the world over have seen the overwhelming images of hundreds of thousands of hectares burnt, precious lives lost, hundreds of properties destroyed and the devastating loss of wildlife as a result of the fires. These images have reinforced the need to get behind organisations like the Australian Red Cross which is responding to the immediate requirements of people who have lost loved ones, their homes, and their livelihoods."

Holders Australia continued their preparations for the T20 World Cup on home soil with another victory in Brisbane on Friday, Warner making 75 off 41 balls and Tim David 42 from just 20 deliveries in their total of 178-7.

The Windies could only muster 147-8 in reply, Starc the pick of the bowlers with 4-20 and Pat Cummins (2-32) taking his 50th Twenty20 International wicket.

Australia will now travel to Perth for the start of a three-match T20I series against England on Sunday, while West Indies will have to come through their first-round group to qualify for a World Cup Super 12 spot.

The excellent Alzarri Joseph (3-21) dismissed Cameron Green in the second over, but Warner and Aaron Finch got Australia up to 45-1 at the end of the powerplay.

Warner raced to his half-century in 30 balls, but was caught and bowled by Odean Smith in the 12th over after captain Finch fell for a scratchy 15.

Glenn Maxwell was run out for only one and Steve Smith (17) was bowled by Joseph, but David cleared the rope three times in a swashbuckling knock to give Australia some impetus before he was trapped lbw by Obed McCoy (2-33).

Kyle Mayers was brilliantly caught and bowled by Starc in the first over of the Windies' run chase, but Johnson Charles and Brandon King steadied the ship with a stand of 50.

Adam Zampa redeemed himself for dropping Charles on two by getting King (23) stumped and Starc returned to see the back of Nicholas Pooran.

An unconvincing knock from Charles (29) was ended by Green as the wickets continued to tumble, Starc doing the bulk of the damage as Akeal Hosein's knock of 25 came with the Windies never really looking like squaring the series.

Warner sets the tone

Opener Warner was outstanding at the top of the order, laying the foundations for a total that proved to be too big for the Windies to chase down.

He demonstrated his great power and sweet timing, striking three sixes and hitting another 10 boundaries as he registered a brilliant 23rd half-century for his country in the shortest format.

Starc fires, Cummins brings up half-century

Australia will be relying on Starc to be firing on all cylinders when they attempt to retain the World Cup and he bowled beautifully in Brisbane, with a mixture of control and variety.

Cummins was more expensive, but the Test captain reached the 50 T20I wickets landmark in his 44th match.

Warner has retired from Test and ODI cricket for Australia but is committed to playing in the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean and US during June.

Warner is planning to play in the ILT20 which begins on January 19, just after the home and away portion of the BBL has concluded with his side Sydney Thunder set to miss finals which avoids a schedule clash.

The tournament runs until February 17 but the three T20Is against West Indies start on February 9 and finish on February 13.

It was thought that Warner would miss those matches in order to play in the entire ILT20 despite still holding a Cricket Australia contract and that he would return for the following series against New Zealand in New Zealand that starts on February 21.

But Bailey said Warner is set to be selected for the West Indies series and will be expected to play.

"He'll be part of those T20 matches at the back end of the summer and in New Zealand as well," he said.

Bailey confirmed that CA contracted players, which Warner will be until the end of June, are expected to play for Australia when selected and won't be granted NOCs to play in other leagues at the same time.

"I think that's the same with all our Australian contracted players. If they're going to be selected in a squad then they're available," Bailey said.

"If they're not then it depends on what sort of domestic cricket responsibilities they have. So, I think [Warner] had flagged that as potentially one of the reasons why he has made the decision to retire from one-day cricket but we're still really excited about what he can provide for that T20 team and hoping he can add one more major trophy to his cabinet."

The pair were both named as part of a 23- preliminary squad for the July series, which will consist of five T20Is and three ODIs, but recent reports are suggesting that Cricket Australia is contemplating resting the players, in order to give them more time with their families as fissions within the squad have appeared.

The issue came back into the public spotlight after recent comments were made by bowler Collin Bancroft who hinted that the team’s bowlers were aware of the plan to use sandpaper on the ball during the Test against South Africa.

The 2018 incident had led to bans for then Australia captain Steve Smith and vice-captain Warner and Bancroft.  The team’s bowlers Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, Mitchell Starc, and Nathan Lyon all issued a statement denying any involvement in the issue but another investigation from Cricket Australia now seems likely.

Several players were left discontented after Warner’s manager, James Erskine recently came out openly to say that the Sandpaper Gate was handled badly and eventually the truth will come out.

West Indies left-arm spinner Jomel Warrican has made a significant leap in the ICC Men’s Test Bowling Rankings, as he leads a group of Caribbean players who have inched up the charts after their performances in the recent Test series against Pakistan.

At the end of play, the Pride were 87 for 2, just 46 runs short of the Red Force first innings total of 133.  Barbados’ success was due in large part to Warrican’s haul of 3 for 21.  Batting first, the Red Force found themselves in early trouble after losing opener Keagan Simmons, for a duck, after just three deliveries.

It did not take long for his opening partner Jeremy Solozano to follow, leaving the Red Force struggling on 11 for 2.  Jason Mohammed added just 12 before driving a half volley into the hands of Floyd Reifer off a delivery from Ramon Simmonds.  The trend of losing wickets at regular intervals continued when Darren Bravo was bowled for 8 after attempting to flick away Justin Greaves.

Warrican claimed the first of his three wickets when he removed Terrence Hinds, who was stopped in his tracks on 25.  Prior to that, Imran Khan (29) also got a start alongside Joshua Da Silva but was dismissed by Simmonds just as the pair had put together a useful 41-run partnership.  Da Silva attempted to hold the innings together but continuously ran out of partners before he himself was trapped lbw by Warrican, on 23, with the Red Force limping along at 132 for 9.

Greaves, Simmonds, and Akeem Jordan also got in on the act for the Pride, each claiming two wickets.  At the close of play, Raymon Reifer (32) and Jonathan Carter (19) were the not-out batsmen for Barbados Pride.

West Indies spinners Jomel Warrican and Karishma Ramharack have been shortlisted for the ICC Men’s and Women’s Player of the Month awards for January, following standout performances in recently concluded series.

The Tridents shuffled their batting order, Justin Greaves coming into the XI to open, but he lasted only one ball as he fell LBW trying to sweep Amazon Warriors captain Chris Green. Johnson Charles fell to a magnificent catch by Shimron Hetmyer who sprinted 25 yards and dived full length, sending the bowler Kevin Sinclair into another athletic celebration.

Jason Holder had only himself to blame for being run out by T20 debutant Kissoondath Magram, meaning the openers and captain had all fallen for 0. Shai Hope was shifted down to five but fell for another low score, chipping a catch back to Sinclair.

The Tridents, who had won the toss and chosen to bat, were 9 for 4 in the fourth over, and added just five more runs before the end of the Powerplay - the second lowest-scoring in Hero CPL history. Green bowled out with another maiden, Sinclair’s last over went for just three, and the Tridents were 17 for 4 after eight overs.

More poor calling saw the fifth wicket fall, as Jonathan Carter set off, was sent back by Kyle Mayers and was caught short of his ground by yards. Mayers followed Carter back to the dugout two balls later top-edging a pull, keeper Nicholas Pooran taking a brilliant catch running towards the boundary, and at halfway the Tridents were a staggering 22 for 6.

Tahir’s second over was survived, but in the next over Naveen and the Amazon Warriors picked up two more. First Ashley Nurse pulled straight to Romario Shepherd at deep square leg, then Raymon Reifer looped the ball up to Pooran off his glove while playing forward, leaving the Tridents 27 for 8 after 12.

Mitchell Santner finally hit the Tridents’ first boundaries, swinging Tahir for a Hero Maximum then straight driving for four. Santner then lofted Magram for a Hero Maximum to take the Tridents past the lowest score in Hero CPL history - 53 all out back in 2013 by the Trinidad franchise. Rashid Khan slapped two sixes off Keemo Paul, but Rashid fell trying to slice Naveen over the off-side, Sinclair taking a good catch at deep cover.

Naveen finished with venue-record T20 figures, and the Tridents were 79 for 9 off 18. Hayden Walsh Jr slapped a four off Paul, and while Santner was run out off the last ball, they and Rashid had at least ensured the Tridents had batted the whole innings and got a recognisable T20 total - the same total they failed to chase against the St Lucia Zouks at Queen’s Park Oval on Sunday.

Holder had two slips in place for his first over, a maiden to Brandon King.  Santner got some drift, almost swing, with his arm-ball, but dropped short enough for King to crash a cut for four. Holder finally conceded his first run off his 11th ball via a Sinclair edge and Santner’s second went for just one.

Holder attacked with Rashid in the Powerplay, and while the Afghan fired five wides, he beat Sinclair all ends up and knocked back his off-stump.  Hetmyer was lucky to inside-edge for four past the stumps first ball, and to see a pull-off Holder fall just short of Santner at mid-on, but King lofted the last ball of Holder’s over over long leg for a Hero Maximum to take the Amazon Warriors to 31 for 1 off the Powerplay.

Hetmyer fell to Walsh to continue his run of low scores, beaten through the gate, and with Pooran in early off the back of his brilliant century against the Patriots, Holder attacked with his wrist-spinners in tandem. King was lucky to survive a wild swipe off Walsh, but the wrist-spin attack was just about seen off and King cashed in by cutting Nurse for four. At halfway, the Amazon Warriors were 52 for 2.

First ball after the break, King hammered a flat Hero Maximum off Holder and the over went for 10. Nurse was nudged around, but King had started to find his feet and whipped Rashid hard for four to take the Amazon Warriors to 72 for 2 off 13. King took his score to 40 and his strike rate over 100 with an inventive flick off the stumps over short fine leg for four, and Santner was milked for six to take the required runs under double figures.

Walsh dropped a tough diving catch to deny Rashid a second wicket, but King was able to bring up his first 50 of the season with the score-levelling stroke. Pooran nudged the run that confirmed a win that hadn’t looked in doubt for the majority of the 36.4 overs bowled tonight and ensured that Hero CPL 2020 lightning would not strike twice.

Hetmyer blasted an enterprising 56 from 35 balls in a low-scoring encounter as the Warriors eased past the St Lucia Zouks book their place in the competition’s semi-finals.  The win was the fifth but third in a row for the Guyana based franchise.

The team won two of its first three matches but then struggled to keep momentum after losing the next three games in a row.  Hetmyer, however, believes the team’s latest win shows full confidence is growing within the squad following its latest win.

“The guys are starting to work much harder than before and starting to believe in ourselves a little more each and every day.  From here on out its just us taking it one game at a time,” Hetmyer said.

Personally, his individual performance would also have been pleasing for Hetmyer who failed to get into double digits in the last three games with scores of 9 and 1.

“It’s coming back I thought I lost it a few years ago, but I’m working on it and trying to stay a little bit more focused on my game and how to start, build and finish and innings.”

The day-night match in East London was in doubt once the toss was delayed, and conditions showed little sign of significant improvement.

Although rain briefly abated, showers soon returned and the contest was called off.

The second leg of the three-match series is due to be played at the same ground on Saturday.

Despite Gayle's team not making the playoffs, few would argue with Lara’s choice.  The 41-year-old began the season looking on from the bench for Kings XI as the team struggled to a 1 and 7 start.  The results meant they were rooted to the bottom of the table with little hope of advancing to the play-offs.

Gayle’s introduction saw the team embark on a five-game winning streak and finding themselves just outside the top four.  Perhaps the highlight of the tournament individually for Gayle came with a whirlwind 99 against Rajasthan Royals.  The batsman was dismissed on 99 by England bowler Jofra Archer but prior to that made history as the first player to club 1000 T20 sixes.  Despite just missing out on the play-offs, Lara believes Gayle deserved special commendation for rallying Kings XI and in the process entertaining the fans.

“I think the Universe Boss – Chris Gayle. The reason being that if there were 50-60 thousand people watching, it was more when he arrived in the tournament at the second half,” Lara told Star Sports’ Cricket Live

“His performances and how he got Kings XI Punjab going and almost getting there. I think it’s just been amazing watching him and the turnaround of Kings XI Punjab.”