St Lucia Zouks

In Tuesday’s semi-final, the Zouks annihilated last season’s finalist Guyana Amazon Warriors in a crushing 10-wickets win.  The Warriors were shockingly bowled out for 55, the second-lowest total in CPL history, before the St Lucia-based franchise easily eclipsed the total.

The win was, however, even more, significant for the franchise who prior to this season had never made it to the playoffs let alone put themselves in a position to claim the title.  Facing the rampaging Trinbago Knight Riders, who are yet to lose a match this season, the St Lucia Zouks will find themselves in a similar position, that is playing the role of underdogs.   

“I told the guys. We didn’t come here to celebrate a semi-final.  Nobody gave us a chance.  From the start, I’ve said we have some effective guys.  We don’t have guys in the top five in the runs but we play as a team, especially when we are out there in the field,” Sammy said.

“We want to win.  Obviously TKR they are the team to beat.  We have said in our dressing room if you want to win the final you have to go through TKR.  It was a similar situation with the West Indies.  We said if you want to win, you have to beat India and we have our silent confidence in the dressing room.”

On Saturday, the Patriots fell by 10 wickets to an ever-improving St Lucia Zouks to add to losses against the Barbados Tridents and the Guyana Amazon Warriors earlier in the week.

According to Emrit, the team is yet to get any one facet of its game going the way it should.

On Saturday, he pointed to more than one instance when the team got it wrong.

“There’s a couple of things that you can look at. A couple of chances that went down,” Emrit began.

Adding that; “When you look at the last two overs of the game, after we were pulling them back so well after 18 overs the last two overs went for about 30-odd. We thought we had them. You know, 150-160 might have been ideal on that wicket but we just let it go in those last two overs,” he said after the Zouks scored 172 despite a middle-overs slip.

“We are trying to get everything in place. We are trying to get all aspects to perform. We just can’t get it right at the moment. We have to go back to drawing board,” he said.

With three losses from three starts, Emrit says there is now pressure on the team headed into their fourth game against the defending champions, Barbados Tridents.

“Now it is three out of three so the pressure is on us but we’ve been in this position before and it’s just for us to get a win under our belt and get the momentum.”

Speaking after the Zouks produced an all-round performance to earn a 10-run win over the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots, Sammy said he was proud of every aspect of the team’s play.

“With Jimbo having to come off because he was having some problems with his vision and to see Mark Deyal, the way he is playing. I’ve told him I played 12 years of international cricket and I don’t have half the talent he has so what’s stopping him,” said Sammy.

“But today Fletcher took the innings deep and this morning I spoke about the impact of my Afghan players and you see Mohammad Nabi again, after losing some quick wickets he was back and the way he controlled that last few overs,” he said.

But that was with the bat, with the ball, Sammy could not ask much more than he was given.

“[Nabi] with the ball, Roston Chase, asking him to bowl in the powerplay, my spinners have responded really really well,” said Sammy.

“When you look at our squad from early I said, we don’t have the superstar guys but from the camp, from the two days that we had at practice, what I saw, with the skill level with the bowlers, we have guys that can turn the ball away from the bat, guys that can bring it in to the bat for both left and right, so we have a good mix,” said Sammy.

According to the former West Indies captain, the superstars may not matter if everybody does their job in the way his Zouks have been.

“At the end of the day, it boils down to execution and I thought today, we executed really really well against them.”

Patriots captain Rayad Emrit chose to bowl, but while Sheldon Cottrell and Sohail Tanvir started tightly to Rakheem Cornwall, Andre Fletcher was able to pick up boundaries off both. Cornwall retired ill in the third over, and while Mark Deyal started with a Hero Maximum first ball, he should have fallen off his third when Ben Dunk missed a slip catch off Jon-Russ Jaggesar. Jaggesar’s frustration grew when Kieran Powell stepped on the rope while trying to complete a juggling catch.

The Zouks were quick to take advantage, Fletcher taking a liking to Tanvir and Deyal, peppering the leg-side off Jaggesar to power the Zouks to 64/0 off the Powerplay. The onslaught continued as the field went back, with Deyal launching his third Hero Maximum to bring up the 50 stand off just 27 balls.

Ish Sodhi took a good juggling catch at mid-off to dismiss Deyal off Emrit’s first ball. The Patriots captain foxed Najibullah Zadran with an array of slower balls, but the Afghan powered a pair of reverse sweeps off Sodhi and the legspinner was frustrated when Fletcher was dropped again on 38. Another Najibullah four saw the Zouks motor to 91/1 at halfway.

Jaggesar finally got his man when Fletcher picked out deep midwicket. With the Zouks so well set, it was a surprise to see the anchorman Roston Chase come into bat, and he fell to a spitting Jaggesar carrom ball before he could make much of an impression. Tanvir picked up Najibullah and Sammy caught behind in the same over, and at 123/5 in the 15th the Zouks were in danger of wasting a good platform.

Cornwall was well enough to return but hit only one boundary before he was freakishly run out. A Nabi leading edge spun back onto the bowlers’ stumps with Cornwall backing up looking for a run, and Emrit had ample time to complete the run-out.

Nabi showed his class with two huge Hero Maximums off Tanvir, one of which went literally out of the ground. Another flurry off the 20th took the Zouks to an imposing 172-6 despite their mid-innings stutter.

Nabi was back in the action immediately, bowling an excellent first over to Chris Lynn and Evin Lewis. Saad bin Zafar was not so accurate - when he dropped short Lynn pulled, and when he overpitched Lewis drove and paddle-swept - but a stunned Lynn had to depart when Najibullah sprung magnificently to take the catch of the tournament so far.

Lewis toyed with Scott Kuggeleijn, dispatching a Hero Maximum over square leg and paddling the follow-up slower ball very fine for four. But it was the New Zealander who was waiting at long-on when the recalled Joshua Da Silva toe-ended a straight hit off Chase. Kesrick Williams, bowling a rare Powerplay over, mixed up good and bad and the Patriots ended the Powerplay at 52/2.

Chase continued to impress, the ominous Lewis edging a cut to the keeper off a quicker ball. With Obed McCoy also accurate, Sammy was able to ramp up the pressure on Denesh Ramdin and Ben Dunk, and despite Ramdin’s Hero Maximum last ball before the drinks break, the Patriots needed 9.5 an over off the last 10. Dunk succumbed to the pressure, missing a sweep and giving Chase a third wicket of a fantastic spell. Tight overs from Williams and Nabi pushed the required run rate up above 11, and Powell, Ramdin, Tanvir and Emrit all fell trying to slog Kuggeleijn.

The Patriots’ keeper deserves credit for a good lone hand, and Cottrell launched a few lusty blows to narrow the margin of defeat, but other than their mid-innings batting wobble the Zouks were in control throughout, and with their well-stocked spin attack could be a force later in the tournament if the pitches tire as expected. The Patriots meanwhile have work to do if they’re not to be cut adrift.

Rakheem Cornwall battered Oshane Thomas for two fours in the game’s first over, and Andre Russell dropped Andre Fletcher on just 4, but captain Rovman Powell made no mistake when Cornwall it to him at cover when the batsman was on 9. 

Mark Deyal cut Mujeeb-ur-Rahman for four and lofted Permaul for consecutive Hero Maximums, but Permaul had his revenge, keeper Chadwick Walton taking a neat catch. Fletcher struggled against Mujeeb but sent Permaul into the stands over long-on, and the Zouks closed the GuardianLife Powerplay at 52/2.

Thomas sent down four wides and was pulled for four by Chase, and while Russell’s bouncer was too hot for Fletcher to handle, Chase was quickly onto a hook for his first six. Najibullah Zadran launched Sandeep Lamichhane onto the grass bank, and another boundary from Chase off Russell took the Zouks to 86/3 at halfway.

Lamichhane kept Najibullah quiet with a series of googlies, and while Chase relieved the pressure with a pull off Carlos Brathwaite and a cover drive off Lamichhane, the Nepalese spinner came back beautifully to almost have Chase out twice in two balls.

Big hitters Daren Sammy and Mohammad Nabi were kept waiting as Chase and Najibullah were forced to run hard to keep the scoreboard ticking. Four twos in a row might have taken it out of Najibullah as a flat-bat found only Powell at long-off, the catch held despite a collision with Permaul.

Nabi took Mujeeb for a huge Hero Maximum and a deft four, but his countryman took revenge with a simple return catch. Chase brought up his first-ever T20 fifty off 39 balls, but Mujeeb beat him in the flight to give Thomas a simple catch at point. 

With Russell accurate at the death, Sammy was forced to risk a tight second run and Powell’s hard throw found him short. Despite the slow finish, the Zouks’ 158/7 was the highest total of Hero CPL 2020 so far.

The Tallawahs struggled early, and a frustrated Walton skied Obed McCoy to Sammy at mid-off. The Zouks used a different bowler for each of the first four overs, and none of them went for even a single boundary.

Nicholas Kirton tried to break free, but Deyal pulled off the Republic Bank Classic Catch of the tournament so far, leaping almost behind him to pluck a pull shot from the sky and reduce the Tallawahs to 13/2 in the 5th over.

Powell began the rescue mission off his first two balls, hitting Scott Kuggeleijn for four and then a powerful flat Hero Maximum. Phillips lofted Zahir Khan or a four-and-six pair of his own, but at 36/2 the Tallawahs were behind the game after the Powerplay.

But it was a different story in the middle overs. Phillips meted out brutal treatment to Kesrick Williams, and Powell clubbed a pull followed by a straight six off Zahir. All of a sudden, the Tallawahs were ahead of the required run rate.

Sammy sensed the danger and brought back McCoy, and Phillips had to wait till the last ball of the over for a boundary. Powell tried to take on Cornwall but found only deep midwicket, and at the Angostura LLB drinks break, the Tallawahs were 78/3 needing a further 83, and the game was finely balanced.

But Asif Ali blasted his third ball over the ropes and was unfazed by the loss of Phillips. A four off Nabi kept things ticking, and a free hit and a brutal Russell cut shot meant the 13th over went for double figures. Russell pulled the last ball of the fourth for four and the Tallwahs entered the last six overs needing 50.

The 15th over went boundary-less and Russell and Asif had to take a chance off Zahir’s last. They responded in style, with Asif dancing down the track for a Hero Maximum and Russell easing a short ball for four.

The Zouks had a chance when a Williams slower ball drew a thin edge from Russell, and thus Brathwaite joined Asif with the required run rate above 9. But an Asif dink and two Brathwaite bludgeons, plus a dropped catch by Sammy, meant Kuggeleijn’s last over went for 16 and the game was as good as won.

The Zouks will feel they left a few runs out there, and Sammy underused himself and Nabi, but today belonged to the Tallawahs’ power-hitters.  A good measure of how comfortable they were, in the end, was, despite Andre Russell scoring at under a run a ball, the game was won with an over to spare. 

Summary: Jamaica Tallawahs 160/5 (Asif Ali 47*, Phillips 44, Powell 26, Brathwaite 18*; Williams 2/32, Cornwall 1/9, McCoy 1/28, Nabi 0/13) beat St Lucia Zouks 158/7 (Chase 52, Najibullah 25, Fletcher 22, Deyal 17; Mujeeb 2/25, Permaul 2/34, Lamichhane 1/23, Russell 1/32) by 5 wickets

 Coming up later today: Guyana Amazon Warriors v St Kitts & Nevis Patriots (5:30 pm), Brian Lara Cricket Academy

The Knight Riders bowled first against the Zouks, who had gotten a good start despite losing Andre Fletcher early. It was just the third over, but already the Zouks had raced to 32 when Bravo was asked to bowl in the Powerplay.

His first three deliveries were dot balls, a yorker on middle stump, and two low full tosses at different paces. Then with his fourth delivery, he bowled back of a length. Cornwall took the bait, driving through cover only to be well caught by Colin Munro.

But before Bravo really celebrated his achievement, he had to refocus and get back to it, taking his 501^st wicket in a series of three overs that accounted for just seven.

Rain would interrupt the game in the 18^th over with the Zouks 111-6. Duckworth/Lewis’ intervention meant the Knight Riders would have to chase 72 from nine overs. The former champions would end on 74-2 in eight overs.

“It’s a great result for us, we really wanted to win this game. It is very important for us to keep winning cricket games,” said Bravo.

“Every time we and St Lucia play it is a rain-affected game but I am very very happy for the result,” he said.

With the win out of the way, Bravo could celebrate the personal milestone in a more real way.

“I guess I gotta say congratulations to myself are in order. It’s a great feeling. I’ve already gotten a lot of messages from a lot of people. It’s been a great journey so far,” said Bravo.

Bravo also thanked his teammates all around the world, saying achieving 500 wickets would not have been possible without them.

The Queen’s Park Oval, where the match was played, is the home of Bravo’s boyhood cricket club, Queen’s Park Cricket Club. Taking his 500^th wicket at the venue was not lost on the all-rounder.

“This is where I started playing cricket. At age eight is where it all started for me and I couldn’t be a more happy person to have gotten this here at the Queen’s Park Oval,” he said.

But Bravo isn’t dwelling on the achievement, he wants to keep going for as long as possible.

“I want to stay as fit as possible for as long as possible. Continue to build and keep taking wickets for whatever team I play for and enjoy the game. That is the most important thing for me,” he said.

 With all three previous games on this track won by the team batting first, Daren Sammy chose to set a target. Kimani Melius announced himself on Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) debut with a glorious Hero Maximum off Chandrapaul Hemraj but was caught at mid-off trying to repeat the trick off Imran Tahir.

 Tahir didn’t stop there, as he had Mark Deyal dropped first ball and caught second, both by Ashmead Nedd. Nedd started solidly with the ball, but Chase clubbed Keemo Paul for six to add some gloss to the Zouks’ Powerplay score of 37/2.

 Amazon Warriors captain Chris Green used fve bowlers in the first seven overs including two overs from himself, culminating in him yorking Andre Fletcher. Nedd got the deserved wicket of Najibullah Zadran, whose mishit saw him caught on the boundary for a duck.

 A lot now rested on Chase and Mohammad Nabi, and the Bajan took three boundaries off Odean Smith’s first over. The two were cautious initially against the spinners, and the Zouks were a middling 67/4 at halfway.

 Paul and Smith conceded just one boundary each, and Nedd finished his spell beautifully. Nabi briefly broke free with an enormous Hero Maximum and a powerful four off Green, but he was beaten in the flight by Tahir and gave the skipper a straightforward catch.

 Chase brought up his second T20 fifty off 40 balls, and in his first game for the Zouks, Javelle Glenn got off the mark with a lovely cover-drive. But Paul was dismissed for just two, and with four overs to go, the Zouks needed an acceleration. Chase provided it, launching Tahir straight and swinging Paul through square leg, and Glenn settled himself with a boundary of his own.

 Green gave Smith the last over, and his pace proved effective as Glenn and Chase fell in consecutive balls. There was to be no hat-trick, but the over was reward for the bowler and captain’s persistence, and the Zouks’ total seemed below-par.

 Their bowling however was anything but. Nabi bowled a superb first over, and two Scott Kuggeleijn short balls saw King caught behind for 1 and Shimron Hetmyer top-edging to square leg for 4 to leave the Amazon Warriors two down in the second over.

 The Amazon Warriors predicament got even worse when Ross Taylor top-edged a reverse paddle-sweep off the back of the bat into his own helmet and was caught, giving Nabi a first wicket. Even a Hemraj six off Chase couldn’t put much gloss on a Powerplay of 19/3.

 Pooran was lucky to pick up four off a Kesrick Williams short ball, but there was nothing lucky about the authoritative pull for six that followed. Holder was wayward, with wides, a no-ball, and a deft steer through third man, and a 15 run overtook the Amazon Warriors to 59/3 at halfway.

 Hemraj struggled for timing throughout, and eventually spooned a leading-edge off Williams, which was well caught by Chase. Sammy showed faith in Holder, who recovered after being crashed for four by the promoted Paul, but two boundaries in a 12 run over from Pooran put a slight dent in Nabi’s still excellent figures.

 The Zouks got sloppy in the next over, as an overthrow brought up Pooran’s 50 off 32 balls  and Sammy dropped a very simple catch. Pooran then top-edged over the keeper’s head for four to bring the required rate under nine.

 Chase ensured Pooran couldn’t find a boundary, but the Amazon Warriors’ number five made up for that off Williams to take his team into the last four overs needing 39. Paul clobbered a Hero Maximum off Chase’s last ball and brought up the 50 partnership, but he picked out Nabi at deep midwicket in the next over.

 Sherfane Rutherford blasted his second ball for six to dent Kuggeleijn’s figures. The equation seemed to have swung dramatically in the Zouks favour when Pooran bottom-edged a Williams slower ball onto his stumps, but the Warriors burgled 8 off the last four balls of the 19th including a botched run-out to leave Rutherford on strike and 13 to win off the last over, to be bowled by Holder.

 Holder responded magnificently. He flattened Rutherford’s off-stump with a pinpoint yorker, then he had captain Green caught behind, and a bowler who’d gone for 30 off his first 3 overs sealed the win with 2/2, showing the world why West Indian cricket is so excited about him and giving the Zouks a third straight win ahead of the move to Port-of-Spain.

According to reports in Gayle, in an email to the St Lucia Zouks indicated that because of the pandemic lockdown, he was not able to see his family and his young child who are in St Kitts while he has been in Jamaica. He said he needed a break and wanted to spend time with his young family.

Sue Monplaisir of the Zouks explained that the franchise holders would be working hard to ensure that they get the right replacement for the Universe Boss considered the best T20 batsman on the planet. She said the franchise would issue a full statement on the matter soon.

Gayle had signed with the St Lucia Zouks in April after being released by the Jamaica Tallawahs.

On Wednesday, the Knight Riders added the St Lucia Zouks to their growing list of victims, following a 6 wicket D/L win in the top of the table clash.  On a historic day for one of the team’s top bowlers, Dwayne Bravo, the Tridents successfully chased down the Zouks’ rain-hampered 111 for 6.

With wins over the Barbados Tridents, Jamaica Tallawahs, and Guyana Amazon Warriors the Knights Riders have shown tremendous ability with both bat and ball.

“When you look at our squad, the core of the team.  A couple of guys missed out and we got a couple to come in.  But we have guys that want to perform and want that opportunity, the guys that are playing are very hungry,” Pollard said, following the game.

“Each and every person has an idea of what their role is.  There is a lot clarity that is going on in the dressing room, so when guys get their opportunity, they know exactly what they need to do,” he added.

 “Once we put those pieces of the puzzle together and everyone knows their strengths, more often than not if we play a proper game we are going to come out on top. Our strength is our teamwork and communication."

Cornwall is no different, with the big off-spinner hoping for a season like the one he had in 2019.

Known more as a bowling allrounder, last season Cornwall was immense with the bat for the St Lucia Zouks, scoring 254 runs in 10 matches, with a highest of 75.

“Obviously, it’s going to be different from the previous CPL where you have the crowd and so on, but at the end of the day cricket still remains the same. I would like to continue where I left off last year because I think I had a pretty good year in the CPL last year where I scored the most runs for the St. Lucia Zouks, and there is no doubt that I want to repeat that this year,” said Cornwall in an interview with the Antigua Observer.

According to Cornwall, players doing well is usually the result of hard work and he has no issue with putting in the effort that it takes to repeat that performance.

“I just have to put in the work and I think we have a couple of days or just over a week to get ready before the tournament, so I am sure I will be fine by then, and I will just keep putting the numbers on the board,” he said.

“As a professional, you have to know what you need to do to get yourself ready for a match. I think you just have to keep practising, and once all of the protocols [quarantine and testing] are over and you are out of isolation, then your mind would automatically switch back to cricket and you just have to know what you need to do in terms of your role for the team, and by then, hitting the 18th [August], you should be ready,” he said.'

Cornwall will again turn out for the St Lucia Zouks who will play their opening game against the Jamaica Tallawahs on August 19 at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy.

The decision not to bowl Cornwall, who recently came back from representing the West Indies in England, raised a few eyebrows.  But, the spinner has not been among the tournaments leading wicket-takers for several seasons.  In addition, Zouks captain Darren Sammy had a battery of spin bowlers at his disposal, which included Roston Chase, who took more wickets than Cornwall in England.

In the end, after making it to their first CPL final, as heavy underdogs, the Zouks fell short to the Trinbago Knight Riders.  Cornwall has insisted he was fit and ready to perform but his omission from the line-up was the captain’s choice.

“It was basically the captain’s decision; maybe it was his gut feeling to go for the other bowlers.  He thought he didn’t need me at that time so he went for especially his depth bowlers,” Cornwall recently told the Antigua Observer.

"The pitch was a spin bowlers pitch and I am always ready for whenever he calls on me and if he doesn’t then it is the case but I’m always set and ready if I am called upon,” he added.

The St Lucia Zouks squad and the members of the Trinbago Knight Riders squad, who travelled into Trinidad have tested negative for COVID-19 and they will begin training today, with other teams doing so in the coming days.

Results from further testing of all other members of the travelling cohort are expected today after a second round of testing on Monday.

“We have been extremely careful in how we have gone about introducing those who are resident in Trinidad & Tobago into the tournament bubble and these tests coming back negative is very good news for the tournament. We will continue to be vigilant to ensure the health and well-being of everyone, both inside the tournament bubble and the wider public,” said  Michael Hall, Tournament Operations Director.

The tournament gets underway on August 18 and will see 33 games played at two venues in Trinidad. The first match will be played on September 10.

The grievance appears to have been caused because local players from the TKR did not join the bio-secure bubble at the Hylton Hotel, continuing to train.

The first teams allowed to train were announced on Tuesday with the St Lucia Zouks and the Knight Riders getting the go ahead. According to a release from the CPL, local players had gone through the mandatory testing process and would this week enter the bubble.

“Everyone should have been part of the bubble from the first day to “guarantee” that the health and safety of all stakeholders is not “compromised”, read a social media post from Zouks skipper Daren Sammy.

"How can everybody else be in a bubble no access to training or practice games while others on the outside in a COVID infected area be training and playing practice games. Then allowed to join the bubble without self-isolation," read another from the Zouks skipper.

According to reports, defending champions, Barbados Tridents have also not taken kindly to the difference being shown to the local TKR players and asked why it was that all players from the franchise were not asked to enter the bubble and undergo the mandatory weeklong quarantine everybody else did.

But according to Michael Hall, operations director of the CPL, it was necessary to take precautions to ensure local players entering the bubble were not a threat to the environment’s bio-security.

 Fidel Edwards’s first over was fiery, and while Rakheem Cornwall drove for four he should have fallen trying to pull, but a stiff-looking Andre Russell parried the catch for another four. Mark Deyal started with a straight four off Veerasammy Permaul, but Edwards’s second over went for just four, and while Deyal pulled Mujeeb Ur Rahman for four the Afghan dismissed him with a googly.

 Permaul’s second went for just one, and while Cornwall dispatched Mujeeb over long-off for the game’s first Hero Maximum, the rest of the over went for only three, and at the end of the Powerplay, the Zouks were 35/1 with both Cornwall and Andre Fletcher under a run a ball.

Fletcher tried to attack Carlos Brathwaite but was superbly caught by Jermaine Blackwood. Cornwall hooked a second Hero Maximum and launched Sandeep Lamichhane for a third, but the Nepalese bowled him next ball with a googly. Brathwaite went for just five, and Permaul dismissed Mohammad Nabi who swept straight to his countryman Mujeeb. At halfway, the Zouks were 66/4.

Lamichhane bemused Najibullah Zadran to go for just one. Roston Chase thus had to attack Permaul’s final over and hit a straight Hero Maximum followed by a paddle-swept four. Lamichhane bowled a maiden, beating Chase on both edges, and Mujeeb’s third over went boundary-less to leave the Zouks 88/4 after 14.

 Lamichhane had bowled 11 dot balls in a row, but Najibullah broke the shackles with his reverse sweeps - if the first, a four, was fortunate, the second, a Hero Maximum, was majestic. Najibullah then dispatched Brathwaite over long-on then midwicket for consecutive Hero Maximums, bringing up a 50 partnership.

 Edwards targeted Najibullah with the short ball, going for just four, and while sub fielder Nkrumah Bonner reprieved Najibullah by dropping a simple chance off Mujeeb, the Tallawahs spinner got his countryman soon after as Najibullah sliced to Brathwaite at point. The Zouks reached 125/5 off 18.

 Javelle Glenn fell to a searing Edwards yorker, but Daren Sammy was able to use the pace to slice for four. Chase had become subdued and ended not out at under a run a ball.

Neither Blackwood nor Glenn Phillips started fluently - extras took up most of the first over, Nabi went for just two, and the first boundary of the innings was an under-edge. The Tallawahs were a scratchy 17/0 after three overs.

Blackwood flicked Nabi through square leg for four, and Phillips steered the Afghan for a four of his own. Kesrick Williams’ first over went for only three, but Deyal started with a full toss, swatted by Phillips for four, and followed it with five wides. Thus the Tallawahs reached 46/0 off the Powerplay.

Phillips picked the gap at midwicket to pull Zahir Khan’s first ball for four, but Blackwood was eating up deliveries, and while the Tallawahs reached 55/0 after eight overs, he was going at under four an over.

A misfield at third man gifted Phillips a four to end a good over from Williams. Blackwood continued to lack timing, but he and Phillips at least did not allow a dot ball off Zahir’s 10th. At drinks, the Tallawahs were 72/0.

Phillips thumped Zahir for the innings’ first Hero Maximum, but the Afghan ripped one through the gate to bowl the Kiwi. Sammy went to his other wrist-spinner Glenn, and the move proved fruitful as Blackwood under-edged to Fletcher. The Tallawahs suddenly found themselves needing 60 at over eight an over.

Tallawahs captain Rovman Powell fell the third ball to Zahir thanks to a brilliant slip catch by Sammy, and panic set in when Russell fell first ball, also caught by the captain at slip. Nicholas Kirton survived the hat-trick ball, but Zahir had changed the complexion of the game, and after 14 overs the Tallawahs were 93/4 and needed close to nine an over without Russell.

Walton’s difficult season continued as a good throw from Najibullah ran him out, and the Tallawahs now needing 43 off the last four overs. While Glenn dropped Brathwaite off his own bowling, he trapped him LBW next ball and then bowled Permaul to give himself a second chance at a hat-trick. Mujeeb survived, but the Tallawahs had dug themselves into a huge hole and now needed 13 an over.

Kirton launched Nabi over long-on for six then drove for four, but the Tallawahs still needed 24 off the last two overs. While Kirton smashed a full toss for a Hero Maximum, Williams calmed any nerves with a slower ball that bowled Kirton and closed his spell with a second wicket as Lamichhane picked out Nabi at long-on.

Chase had 17 to defend off the last over to Mujeeb and Edwards, who were never likely to get close. The Tallawahs go into a semi-final against the Trinbago Knight Riders on a losing streak and with questions to answer, but even with the Guyana Amazon Warriors’ pedigree, the well-led Zouks are not to be taken lightly.

Summary (St Lucia Zouks 145/6 (Najibullah 35, Chase 32*, Cornwall 32; Mujeeb 2/28, Lamichhane 1/20, Edwards 1/24, Permaul 1/27) beat Jamaica Tallawahs 134/9 (Phillips 49, Kirton 25, Blackwood 25; Glenn 3/16, Zahir 3/25, Williams 2/27) by 11 runs).

Upcoming Fixtures:

Tuesday 8 September - Semi-Final 1: Trinbago Knight Riders v Jamaica Tallawahs (10 am), 9:00 am Jamaica at Brian Lara Cricket Academy

Tuesday 8 September - Semi-Final 2: Guyana Amazon Warriors v St Lucia Zouks (5:30 pm), 4:30 am Jamaica Brian Lara Cricket Academy

An angry Chris Gayle has described Jamaica Tallawahs Assistant Coach Ramnaresh Sarwan as a snake and a backstabber in a series of videos in which he explains the reasons behind his move from the Jamaica Tallawahs to the St Lucia Zouks for the 2020 CPL season.

The 40-year-old batsman had a rough campaign in a forgettable season for the franchise of his birth country.  Gayle managed 243 runs in 10 matches, second behind Tallawahs scoring leader Glenn Phillips' 374, but one of those matches featured his tournament-high score of 116, registered early on against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots. 

The player, who averaged 24.30, failed to get any 50s for the tournament.  Gayle, who led the franchise to title at the 2013 and 2016 editions, had only returned to the Jamaica franchise last season, having left to join the Patriots in 2017.  His return was not a happy one, however, as the team slumped to 8 losses and only managed two wins in a last-place finish.

In February, KPH Dream Cricket Private Limited, Kings XI Punjab's parent company, purchased the St Lucia Zouks franchise and appointed Andy Flower as head coach. Gayle currently plays for Kings XI in the IPL.  The team will be captained by former West Indies T20 captain Darren Sammy, who was pleased to have Gayle on board.

"This is great news for St Lucia Zouks and for me as a captain to have the 'Universe Boss' on my side," Sammy said.

“Chris is one of the most successful T20 batsmen in the world and with his experience with our young openers, a lot can be learned from Chris.”

Included in the squads are a number of overseas signings that include Shakib al Hasan, Chris Morris, Faf du Plessis, Matthew Wade, Sandeep Lamichhane and Shoaib Malik. There are also spots for talented Pakistani players Haider Ali, Azam Khan and Usman Qadir and Englishman Samit Patel, who will be playing at his first Hero CPL.

The full squads are listed below:

The Jamaica Tallawahs – Andre Russell, Shakib al Hasan, Carlos Brathwaite, Rovman Powell, Haider Ali, Chadwick Walton, Fidel Edwards, Qais Ahmad, Jason Mohammed, Migael Pretorius, Kennar Lewis, Veerasammy Permaul, Abhijai Mansingh, Joshua James, Kirk McKenzie, Ryan Persaud.

St Lucia Zouks – Faf Du Plessis, Keemo Paul, Wahab Riaz, Matthew Wade, Andre Fletcher, Kesrick Williams, Usman Qadir, Samit Patel, Obed McCoy, Rahkeem Cornwall, Mark Deyal, Roston Chase, Javelle Glenn, Keron Cottoy, Jeavor Royal, Kadeem Alleyne, Alzarri Joseph.

Trinbago Knight Riders – Kieron Pollard, Ravi Rampaul, Sunil Narine, Colin Munro, Sandeep Lamichhane, Darren Bravo, Lendl Simmons, Khary Pierre, Isuru Udana, Sikandar Raza, Anderson Phillip, Denesh Ramdin, Tion Webster, Akeal Hosein, Jayden Seales, Leonardo Julian, Ali Khan.

St Kitts and Nevis Patriots – Dwayne Bravo, Chris Gayle, Evin Lewis, Fabian Allen, Rassie van der Dussen, Anrich Nortje, Sherfane Rutherford, Sheldon Cottrell, Winindu Hasaranga, Devon Thomas, Rayad Emrit, Rahmanullah Gurbaz, Colin Archibald, Jon-Russ Jagesar, Dominic Drakes, Joshua Da Silva, Mikyle Louis.

Barbados Tridents – Chris Morris, Jason Holder, Thisara Perera, Mohammad Amir, Johnson Charles, Shai Hope, Oshane Thomas, Kyle Mayers, Hayden Walsh Jr, Azam Khan, Raymon Reifer, Justin Greaves, Ashley Nurse, Shafiqullah Ghafari, Nyeem Young, Joshua Bishop, Samit Patel.

Guyana Amazon Warriors – Nicholas Pooran, Shoaib Malik, Imran Tahir, Shimron Hetmyer, Mohammad Hafeez, Brandon King, Naveen Ul Haq, Romario Shepherd, Waqar Salamkheil, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Odean Smith, Niall Smith, Gudakesh Motie, Anthony Bramble, Kevin Sinclair, Ashmead Nedd.

The 2021 Hero CPL bowls off at Warner Park on August 28 with the final set for September 19.

Cornwall smashed sixes off both Chris Green and Kevin Sinclair, but Andre Fletcher fell early, leading-edging Sinclair to short third man. Naveen-ul-Haq started with a wicket-maiden, Leniko Boucher pulling straight to captain Green at mid-on. Imran Tahir also started with a maiden, leaving the Zouks 15 for 2 after four overs.

Cornwall hit two fours off Naveen, driving him over his head then pulling him, but when the opener mistimed a Romario Shepherd cutter Naveen pulled off an excellent catch diving forward. Cornwall had hit 20 in four shots, but the Zouks only scored off six other deliveries to end the Powerplay at 27 for 3.

Green raced through an over for just two, and Tahir was unlucky not to get a wicket in an over that yielded only four. Najibullah Zadran attempted to reverse sweep Green to little effect, and Sinclair was unlucky a Najibullah top-edge fell safely. Najibullah at last middled one, pulling Sinclair hard for a Hero Maximum, and at halfway the Zouks were 47 for 3.

Najibullah and Kavem Hodge managed to hustle eight off Green’s last over, but Hodge soon got stuck which put pressure on Najibullah, who tried to attack Tahir but under-edged a googly to keeper Nicholas Pooran.

Keemo Paul bookended his first over with wickets, starting with Hodge under-edging through to Pooran and ending with Zouks captain Daren Sammy falling LBW for another low score. At 59 for 6 off 13, the Zouks were in need of a rescue mission.

Mohammad Nabi and Javelle Glen survived Tahir’s last over, Paul’s second over like his first went for just two, and while Nabi clubbed Shepherd for four through cover that was the first boundary in 34 balls. Entering the last four overs, the Zouks were 72 for 6.

Nabi steered Naveen past point for four, but Naveen foxed him with a pair of slower balls to put the onus on Nabi to attack. Nabi mistimed his drive and holed out to Sinclair at deep cover. Glenn got his first boundaries, both edged past short third man off Paul, as the Zouks finally managed a double-figure over to reach 89 for 7 off 18.

Naveen dropped short and was pulled for four to go for 11 off the last over of an otherwise excellent spell, and Glenn smoked a cover drive in the last over. But Paul recovered well to ensure that was the only boundary off the 20th, and the Zouks total felt some way under par.

Scott Kuggeleijn sprayed wides both sides of the wicket in a nine-ball first over that somehow only went for five. The Amazon Warriors’ intention to attack the Powerplay was clear, as Chandrapaul Hemraj started Nabi’s first over by smashing a Hero Maximum and King closed it by square driving for four.

Brandon King was bowled attempting a ramp over fine leg, but the aggression continued with Hetmyer slashing for four. Hemraj ruined a potential Nabi maiden with a Hero Maximum over long-off, and Hetmyer dismissed a Kuggeleijn long-hop through point for four. Cornwall closed the Powerplay tidily, but after six overs the Warriors were comfortable at 38 for 1.

Hemraj clipped Kesrick Williams fine for four to take the required run rate below five an over. Hetmyer seized on Cornwall’s first poor ball, hammering a Hero Maximum over midwicket, and the Amazon Warriors ticked along to 55 for 1 off eight overs but soon after Hemraj was bowled by Nabi off both pads.

Hetmyer attacked Chemar Holder mercilessly, pulling his first two balls for Hero Maximums and following up with three fours in a row - a majestic cover drive on the up, a rasping square cut and a punch over mid-off - to rocket the Warriors to 82 for 2 and himself to 46 after 10 overs. A 24 run over had reduced an already simple chase to a stroll.

Nabi finished his spell tidily, but while Sammy showed faith in Holder, Pooran continued where Hetmyer had left off with a glorious check-driven four. Hetmyer followed suit to bring up a third fifty of Hero CPL 2020 off just 33 balls, and after 12 overs the Amazon Warriors were 94 for 2 and needed just 16 to win.

Pooran walloped Glen through midwicket for four but fell next ball reverse-slapping to cover where Boucher took a good low catch. The winning moment was a bye, but the job had been done by the bowlers and Hetymer, and with three straight wins the Amazon Warriors look to be gathering steam.

The Zouks had already qualified for the semis, but the top order will need to step up if they are to win Hero CPL for the first time. Such was the margin of victory that the Amazon Warriors jumped into second place, and who knows how important that could be come the semi-finals.

The competition has so far been plagued by a number of low scoring total’s, and batsmen seemingly unable to come to grips what has so far proven to be a surface that favours bowlers.  There has so far been very little issue for Williams and the Zouks, though, as they have racked up five wins and currently occupying the third spot.

“I don’t have a problem with the pitches, to be honest.  These wickets, I love these wickets, for me, they show how skillful you are as a bowler.  If you are just running in and bowling fast and trying to hit the deck, then you are going to go for runs,” Williams told the Mason and Guest radio program.

“If you look at the guys that are getting wickets, they have skill.  T20 is a batter’s game, everyone wants to see balls hit wickets.  At the end of the day, these wickets are not suitable for T20 cricket but we are professionals and we have to learn to adjust.  If we can’t adjust as professionals it makes no sense to play cricket because you will have times like this,” he added.

Williams and the Zouks have certainly adjusted.  The team’s five wins and three losses have put them in a place-off spot for the first time in the franchise’s history.

After Zouks’ captain Daren Sammy put them in, the Patriots had yet to score when Nabi dismissed both Chris Lynn and Nick Kelly. Lynn continued his run of being dismissed by spinners, pushing a simple catch back to the bowler, and Kelly edged to the safe hands of Rakheem Cornwall at slip.

Nabi soon made it four. Denesh Ramdin sought to follow a Hero Maximum over long-on with one over square leg but top-edged to Najibullah Zadran, and next ball Patriots leading scorer of Hero CPL 2020, Evin Lewis, spooned a sweep to Roston Chase at square leg to leave the Patriots 11/4 off just 3 overs and Nabi on a hat-trick.

Chase’s introduction with the ball was not a surprise, and he went for just three off his first over. Jahmar Hamilton just about survived the hat-trick ball, but he and Ben Dunk managed no further boundaries as the Patriots reached the Powerplay at 22/4.

Another tight over came and went, this time from Zahir Khan. Dunk finally broke the drought as Chase overpitched, sending the off-spinner high over the sightscreen. Oddly, after eight overs the Patriots had hit two Hero Maximums but no fours.

That block-block-slog approach brought Hamilton’s downfall, as he prodded at a Zahir googly and edged behind. Cornwall closed out the first half of the innings well, and at drinks, the Patriots were 43/5 with a lot resting on Dunk once more.

Dunk hit Zahir straight for a third Hero Maximum but should have been stumped in the same over. After 13 overs, Dunk had 32 of the Patriots’ 59/5, and the pressure on him finally told as Cornwall’s extra bounce saw the Australian splice a pull to deep midwicket.

 Even a Mark Deyal full toss didn’t result in the match’s first four. After 15 overs the Patriots were 66/6, and it got worse as Nabi returned to complete his five-for - remarkably, the first of his 10-year and 264-game T20 career - as Tanvir scooped a sweep to Zahir at short fine-leg.

Kesrick Williams came on for the 18th, off which captain Rayad Emrit took for 14 including, at long last, a four. Emrit fell next over, Deyal taking a running catch at long-on, but Kuggeleijn dropped short off his last ball and Alzarri Joseph sent him into the stands. Imran Khan sacrificed himself to get Joseph on strike, and the Antiguan responded with a second Hero Maximum. 37 off the last 3 overs, all bowled by seam, only delayed the inevitable.

The Patriots surprisingly started with seamer Tanvir, who Cornwall hammered for two fours and two towering Hero Maximums. Emrit gave Jon-Russ Jaggesar an aggressive field, but Jaggesar’s first ball was poor and Fletcher cut it easily for four. Cornwall smashed Imran clean over the roof, and while he was bowled two balls later, the fact that he alone hit more fours and almost as many boundaries than the entire Patriots team told the story.

After a brief shower, the Zouks resumed needing just 81 at well under 5 an over, which made Deyal’s hoick the first ball all the stranger. Emrit took a good catch to leave Imran on a hat-trick, which the ever-calm Chase denied him comfortably.

With Cornwall having taken the pressure off, the Zouks found strike rotation easy, and that relaxed feel gave Fletcher confidence to smash Jaggesar into the top of the Carib stand to end the Powerplay at 47/2. The opener’s dismissal was a surprise when it came with a pull straight to midwicket, giving Imran a third wicket.

Najibullah reverse-swept two fours and good running meant Imran’s last over went for seven. Emrit brought himself on, but Chase and Najibullah took him four a boundary apiece, and the Zouks cruised to 79/3 at halfway.

A desperate Emrit turned to Dunk’s part-time off-spin - so part-time Dunk bowled in his sunhat - which Najibullah smashed for four as the over went for eight. Najibullah dished out further punishment in Dunk’s next over, lifting him for a Hero Maximum over long-off, but Dunk got a small measure of joy as the Afghan top-edged to deep midwicket.

It was Dunk’s first Hero CPL wicket, just the third of his T20 career, but it was scant consolation as the Zouks sealed the victory with 32 balls to spare without even needing Nabi to bat.

Summary: (St Lucia Zouks 111/4 (Najibullah 33, Chase 27*, Cornwall 26; Imran 3/23, Dunk 1/29) beat St Kitts & Nevis Patriots 110/9 (Dunk 33, Joseph 21*, Emrit 16; Nabi 5/15, Cornwall 1/14, Zahir 1/18) by 6 wickets)

 Upcoming Fixture: Thursday 27 August - Match 16: Guyana Amazon Warriors v Trinbago Knight Riders (5:30 pm), 4:30 pm Jamaica time  at the Queen’s Park Oval