Could Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) rebound from their humiliating defeat to the Jamaica Tallawahs when the two teams meet in tonight’s game? That answer will be provided when the final ball is bowled at the end of the 19th match of this season Hero Caribbean
Kumar Sangakkara
Premier League (CPL) Tournament at Sabina Park.
It is TKR’s return match against the Tallawahs after suffering a seven wicket loss at home. In that high scoring encounter, TKR batted first to set a mammoth total of 191-4 from 20 overs. However, Chris Gayle, who scored an unbeaten century in that match along with his teammates, proved that there is no mountain too high for them to climb, winning with 10 balls to spare. TKR’s Sunil Narine was the only outstanding bowler for either side with figures of 1-9 from four economical overs while Rovman Powell for the Tallawahs impressed with 0-27 from four overs.
However, that match was the last in TKR’s disappointed home run where they had only managed one win from four matches. They have since gained momentum with two wins on the road against leaders Guyana Amazon Warriors and Barbados Tridents and will be looking to continue on a winning path when they reach second place Jamaica in tonight’s game.
With the way the previous matches have gone at Sabina Park, tonight’s game is expected to be an energy filled battle between two of the league’s top teams.
For the host, Gayle remains the man to be feared by the opposition, but Kumar Sangakkara and Shakib Al Hasan, who finished unbeaten on scores of 54 and 34 in his last two matches, have also been instrumental in Jamaica’s batting line up. Andre Russell and Rovman Powell can also be very destructive once needed.
Dale Steyn and Kesrick Williams have bowled excellent seam bowling to date and Russell as he did in their last match against the St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots can be an effective fast bowling cover to compliment a trio of spinners, namely Imam Wasim, Al Hasan and Gary Mathurin.
Meanwhile TKR’s batting has found balance and has been executing effectively in their most recent games. On a spinner’s paradise in Guyana they scored 151 and in Barbados they chased 172, recording wins in both encounters.
Colin Munro
Hashim Amla and Colin Munro have been the principal batsmen in most of their matches to date while Dwayne Bravo and others have recovered form in recent games. Once fit, Brendon Mc Cullum will take his place at the top of the order but William Perkins came in for his first game against the Tridents and showed he is capable of getting the job done too. Sunil Narine is the spearhead of the TKR attack and he has done extraordinary job so far. Apart from Narine, there are several other bowlers who have contributed to the team cause.
Clashes between the two teams are mostly mouthwatering with lots of spectacular individual and collective performances. In eight meetings between them Tallawahs holds the advantage with five wins while the Knight Riders has managed three. The visitors will be looking to continue along a winning path while the home team will be hunting a third straight win at home this season.
Trinbago Knight Riders-Dwayne Bravo (captain), Brendon McCullum, Sunil Narine, Hashim Amla, Umar Akmal, Kavon Copper, Sulieman Benn, Colin Munro, Anton Devcich, Ronsford Beaton, Nikita Miller, Javon Searles, William Perkins, Yannic Cariah, Denesh Ramdin, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Hamza Tariq.
Jamaica Tallawahs-Chris Gayle (captain), Shakib Al Hasan, Andre Russell, Kumar Sangakkara, Imad Wasim, Dale Steyn, Rovman Powell, Chadwick Walton, Jon-Russ Jaggesar, Andre McCarthy, Jonathan Foo, Alex Ross, Keswick Williams, Nkrumah Bonner, Garey Mathurin, Timroy Allen and Oshane Thomas.
