By Ravendra Madholall in Trinidad
In their very own yard, Trinidad and Tobago Legions fired on all cylinders to emerge victorious by 17 runs within the ultimate of the inaugural Cricket West Indies Breakout T20 League which occurred on Saturday under-lights on the Brian Lara Cricket Academy.
Despatched in to bat, Legions reached a decent 181-5 on the expiration of the 20-overs earlier than proscribing their opponents Leeward Islands Thunder to 165-9.
Kamil Pooran headlined motion with an exhilarating 73, the top-individual rating for the Trinis. The opener cracked seven fours and 4 sixes throughout his 44-ball show on a well-recognized floor.
The best-hander Pooran additionally shared an eventful, 52-run first-wicket stand with Amir Jangoo who contributed a well-timed 23.
When Legions final their opening pair in fast succession, it sparked a dramatic collapse as they struggled for that preliminary momentum.
Left-arm seamer and skipper Karima Gore made the breakthrough, nevertheless it was left-arm bowler Micah McKenzie who utilized the strain by choosing up two fast wickets.
Gore accomplished his 4 overs and grabbed two wickets for 22 runs whereas McKenzie claimed two wickets as nicely however conceded 29 runs from his most 4 overs.
Legions ultimately benefitted from a late flourish by skipper and Worldwide wicketkeeper-batter Joshua DaSilva who hit an enterprising, unbeaten 40.
He and Joshua James stitched collectively a useful, 59-run unbroken, Sixth-wicket stand. James with a flurry of boundaries on the backend of the innings ended with 26.
In reply, Leeward Islands Thunder additionally had a high quality begin between Kofi James and Jamie Cornelius. James was extra aggressive and flayed the assault with 4 easy sixes and 6 fours after going through 36 deliveries to make a top-score of 63.
At 57-1 in off 4.2 overs, the chase appeared promising, however the breakthrough noticed Legions discovering good rhythm as they collected a bunch of wickets to convey the sport again of their favour.
Off-spinner and versatile all-rounder Jyd Goolie was excellent. Whereas he didn’t make an impression with the bat, he confirmed glorious management by snatching 3-13 from 4 economical overs on a responsive pitch.
He received the prized-wicket of James through a catch, and likewise accounted for big-batsman Gore who was caught on the boundary as nicely.
McKenny Clarke was supportive of the nearly unplayable Goolie with three wickets, however the quickie yielded 34 runs throughout his 4-over stint.
Navin Bidaise, who eliminated Leeward Islands Thunder’s most in-form batter Jewel Andrew for 14, took 2-27 (4) to offer good help to Goolie and Clarke.
Pooran was named player-of-the-match for his batting efficiency.
