CPL 2020 | Zouks off the mark after triumphant win in the rain-curtailed match
St Lucia Zouks got themselves off the mark in the 2020 edition of the Caribbean Premier League in dramatic fashion with a seven-wicket victory in a rain-curtailed thriller against the defending champions, Barbados Tridents. Roston Chase and Andre Fletcher did the damage for the Zouks.
Brief Scores: Barbados Tridents 131/7 in 18.1 overs (Jason Holder 27, Roston Chase 2/8) lost to St. Lucia Zouks 50/3 in 4.1 overs (Andre Fletcher 16, Rashid Khan 2/24) by DLS Method
St. Lucia Zouks are off the mark in the 2020 Hero Caribbean Premier League after a thumping win over champions Barbados Tridents in a rain curtailed match. Part-time spinners Mohammad Nabi, Roston Chase and Mark Deyal starred for the Zouks with the ball, keeping the Tridents in check to help the batsmen get a comfortable seven wicket victory in a truncated five-over chase.
Opting to bat first, the Tridents got off to a flyer as they got to 23 after just two overs. Left arm pacer Obed McCoy missed his length a few times early on, and Johnson Charles made the most of it getting two fours and a six. Charles continued the aggression with a four and a six off Scott Kuggeleijn’s first over but was sent packing by the Kiwi bowler the very next ball.
Kuggeleijn struck again in his second over, a slightly fortuitous dismissal coming off a full toss which his countryman Corey Anderson hit straight at short cover. Two quick wickets helped arrest the scoring rate, as the Zouks conceded just 15 runs in the three subsequent overs. Shai Hope tried to take on Mohammad Nabi to accelerate the scoring, but only managed to find Mark Deyal in the deep.
Captain Jason Holder walked into bat at number five, and signalled his intent almost immediately, targeting the short boundary on the leg side to pummel two sixes and a four. The Tridents skipper however couldn’t inflict further damage as a slowish delivery from Kesrick Williams managed to get the toe end of his bat and found the fielder in the deep.
Holder’s wicket triggered a mini collapse as Jonathan Carter and Kyle Mayers were dismissed off successive deliveries from Roston Chase. Seeing the track favouring turn, Zouks captain Daren Sammy brought on another part-time spinner Mark Deyal into the attack, and that proved to be an inspired bowling change as Raymon Reifer was out caught behind.
The part-timers provided a good stranglehold on the Tridents’ scoring rate, as only 27 runs were added to the scoreboard in the five overs post Holder’s wicket. The champions were 131/7 after 18.1 overs when rain disrupted play for the better part of two hours, resulting in the game being reduced to a five over chase for the Zouks.
Needing 47 to win, openers Rahkeem Cornwall had full license to go ballistic from the get-go, and the big man duly obliged, getting 13 off the first over. Seasoned Afghani spinner Rashid Khan delivered the perfect follow-up over for his team, conceding just seven and also sent Cornwall back to the hut.
New man Najibullah Zadran’s also fell quickly, out caught at square leg after scoring a solitary boundary. Nabi walked in to bat next, and shrewdly shifted the strike with quick doubles and singles to leave the Zouks needing 18 runs off the last two overs. The 35-year-old then got a massive six and followed that up with a boundary to put Daren Sammy’s side within touching distance of their first win of CPL 2020.
Nabi tried to finish things off in a hurry, trying another pull on the leg side, but ended up being caught in the deep by Carter. The damage was already done though, as veteran opener Andre Fletcher finished off things for the Zouks in the next over, to get them off and running in the 2020 Hero Caribbean Premier League.