In a masterclass of explosive hitting, Kieron Pollard powered the Trinbago Knight Riders to an exciting four-wicket win over the St Lucia Kings within the Caribbean Premier League (CPL).
Pollard’s blistering 52 not out off simply 19 balls, together with 5 towering sixes, sealed a dramatic chase of 188, with 5 balls to spare, within the twelfth match on the Darren Sammy Stadium in Gros Islet on Tuesday.
St Lucia Kings, after selecting to bat, posted a difficult complete of 187-6, because of an important 80-run partnership between Roston Chase and Bhanuka Rajapaksa. The Kings began their innings aggressively, with Johnson Charles (29 off 14 balls) and captain Faf du Plessis (34 off 26) main the cost throughout the powerplay. Charles, particularly, tore into Jayden Seales and Akeal Hosein, smashing boundaries at will earlier than falling to the veteran spinner Sunil Narine within the fourth over.
Narine, as dependable as ever, utilized strain by dismissing Sadrack Descarte for a golden duck and conserving the run charge in examine. Regardless of a dropped catch off du Plessis, Narine’s affect was felt when Waqar Salamkheil bowled the South African captain with a pointy turner.
Regular batting
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Chase and Rajapaksa then rebuilt the innings with regular batting, however their fireworks got here later. Rajapaksa shifted gears with two large sixes off Salamkheil, whereas Chase joined the assault, taking up the bowlers within the seventeenth over. Pollard lastly broke their stand by dismissing Rajapaksa with a intelligent slower ball, however Chase’s highly effective hitting continued as he carried the Kings to a aggressive complete.
In reply, TKR began the chase aggressively. Narine, making his mark with the bat, blasted two early sixes in his eight-ball cameo of 14 runs. Shaqkere Parris adopted with fireworks of his personal, smashing a six off his first ball and persevering with his onslaught with three extra maximums off Khari Campbell, reaching 70-1 in simply 5 overs.
Parris’ blistering knock of 57 got here off simply 20 balls, and whereas Noor Ahmad slowed TKR down by dismissing Jason Roy and Parris, the Kings’ bowlers couldn’t comprise Pollard. With the chase teetering at one stage, Pollard shifted into excessive gear, launching 4 sixes within the nineteenth over to achieve his fifty in simply 19 balls. His heroics secured TKR’s second win of the season, comfortably chasing down the goal with 5 deliveries to spare.
Narine was additionally instrumental with the ball, returning figures of two for 13 in his 4 overs, stifling the Kings’ batting at essential phases. But it surely was Pollard’s power-hitting that in the end outlined the competition, proving as soon as once more why he stays one in every of T20 cricket’s most feared finishers.
