GUY VS SLK MATCH 26

Right then that is it from game number 26 as Saint Lucia Kings defeat Guyana Amazon Warriors by 7 wickets and have qualified for the playoffs. Games come thick and fast from the Caribbean Premier League 2023 as the Jamaica Tallawahs will be facing St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots in match 27 on Saturday 16th September at 7.30 pm IST (2 pm GMT) in a must-win game for the Tallawahs.

The skipper of Saint Lucia Kings, Sikandar Raza is up for a quick chat and he says that he is relieved that they have qualified. They wanted to control the extras to have a good chance and did so relatively well. Mentions that Alzarri Joseph brings in raw pace and did well with the wet ball. Adds that Matthew Forde has been good upfront while Bhanuka Rajapaksa did a brilliant job with the bat. Closes by saying it was difficult to grip the ball with dew in the second half and it will play a huge factor going ahead but he feels happy with the win and is really proud of his side.

The skipper of Guyana Amazon Warriors, Imran Tahir says that they planned to be in a situation like this when they chose to bat first as they could well face such a situation going ahead in the tournament and they have got a lot of answers they were looking for. Adds that he feels that the side did not bowl well but a lot more positives and learnings from this game. Also adds that the pitch was a bit up and down in the first half but settled well in the second half of the game and he just feels glad that they tried out such a thing and that they have learned a lot from this game. Informs that Saim felt discomfort in his groin but he just needs rest and he will be fine.

Bhanuka Rajapaksa is the player of the match for his sensational knock of 85. He says that he played after two weeks and was fresh going into the game. Adds that the team has been united and that has worked well for them. Shares that he is happy that the team has qualified for the playoffs and getting the two points was crucial today.

Stay tuned for the presentation...

Earlier in the game, after electing to bat first Guyana Amazon Warriors managed to score 167 credit to a blistering hitting from the middle order batters in the last 5 overs of their innings. Azam Khan was the top scorer for them with 40 runs while Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope, Keemo Paul, and Romario Shepherd all played good cameos helping the side to post a challenging total. The bowling was good for the majority of the innings from the Saint Lucia Kings bowler with Alzarri Joseph picking up a couple while Matthew Forde and Sikandar Raza took a wicket each as well.

Bowling was a bit waivered for the Warriors as they leaked runs on both sides of the ground. Romario Shepherd, Imran Tahir, and Keemo Paul took a wicket each while the others went wicketless. Guyana Amazon Warriors taste their first defeat of the campaign as the get defeated by 7 wickets from Saint Lucia Kings.

Chasing down a decent enough total the Saint Lucia Kings innings started off in a flying manner as the Kings managed to score 47 for the loss of 1 wicket in the powerplay. A standout second-wicket partnership of 132 runs between Colin Munro and Bhanuka Rajapaksa made an easy task out of a challenging run chase. Bhanuka Rajapaksa was simply sensational as he was smoking the opponent bowlers all around the park for fun as he ended up scoring 86. Colin Munro complimented the Lankan well as he managed to score 55 before departing as well. Sikandar Raza and Sean Williams did the rest by scoring 12 and 8 respectively.

Happy faces in the blue camp of Saint Lucia Kings as they have qualified for the playoffs with this victory over the Guyana Amazon Warriors.

FOUR! Williams gets the job done and hits the winning runs. Slower and fuller, around off. Williams drills it past Tahir at mid-off and the ball trickles away into the fence for four runs. The Saint Lucia Kings have beaten the Guyana Amazon Warriors by 7 wickets and with more than 2 overs to spare.

Shorter and slower outside off. Raza swings hard and edges this to third man for one more.

Good length delivery angling across. Williams runs it down to third-man for one.

Full, at the stumps. Williams sweeps it to deep backward square leg for one.

Full, on middle and leg. Raza works it through mid-wicket for one.

FOUR MORE! Slightly short, around off. Raza punches it past the bowler and down the ground for another boundary.

FOUR! Thumped! Half tracker outside off. Raza smacks it to the deep extra cover fence for a powerful boundary.

Flat, on off. Raza prods and defends.