Jemimah Rodrigues maiden half-century triumphs Chamari Athapaththu’s all-round show as Trinbago Knight Riders march on to their 2nd WCPL final
The Barbados Royals led by skipper Hayley Matthews clinched a convincing 17-run victory against the Guyana Amazon Warriors led by skipper Lauren Winfield-Hill in the 5th match of the season at the Brain Lara Cricket Stadium, Tarouba, Trinidad.
Trinbago Knight Riders led by skipper Deandra Dottin were all set to face Barbados Royals led by skipper Hayley Matthews in the 6th and the final league match of the season at the Brain Lara Cricket Stadium, Tarouba, Trinidad. Trinbago Knight Riders skipper Deandra Dottin won the toss and opted to field first. After being inserted to bat first, the Barbados Royals got off to a poor start as they lost the wicket of their skipper Hayley Matthews in the first over of the innings. Shikha Pandey provided the first breakthrough for Trinbago Knight Riders.
Qiana Joseph joined Chamari Athapaththu at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 23-run partnership for the 2nd wicket to lead some sort of a recovery for their side. Shamilia Connell struck twice in the 5th over of the innings. Wicket-keeper batter Rashada Williams joined Chamari Athapaththu at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 32-run partnership for the 4th wicket to take their side past the 50-run mark.
Samara Ramnath struck twice in the 12th over of the innings to bring Trinbago Knight Riders firmly back into the contest. Djenaba Joseph joined opening batter Chamari Athapaththu at the crease and the duo stitched another much-needed 41-run partnership for the 6th wicket to take their side to the 100-run mark. Shikha Pandey returned and cleaned up Djenaba Joseph to provide the 6th breakthrough for her side.
Barbados Royals eventually ended up with a total of 130/7 in their quota of overs. Chamari Athapathuthu (70 off 63 balls), Wicket-keeper batter Rashada Williams (12 off 17 balls), Qiana Joseph (11 off 12 balls), and Amanda-Jade Wellington (9 off 7 balls) were the top performers with the bat for Barbados Royals. Samara Ramnath (4-0-20-2), Shamilia Connell (4-0-25-2), Shikha Pandey (4-0-26-2), and Jess Jonassen (4-0-28-0) were the top performers with the ball for Trinbago Knight Riders.
Chasing a target of 131, the Trinbago Knight Riders openers Harshitha Samarawickrama and skipper Deandra Dottin got their side off to a flying start with an 18-run opening partnership. The pair scored at 9 runs an over. Skipper Hayley Matthews picked up the wicket of Harshitha Samarawickrama to provide the first breakthrough for the Barbados Royals.
Skipper Deandra Dottin soon followed her back to the pavilion to provide the 2nd breakthrough for Barbados Royals. Jess Jonassen joined Jemimah Rodrigues at the crease and the duo stitched a much-needed 25-run partnership for the 3rd wicket to take their side close to the 50-run mark. Jess Jonassen was found short of her crease to provide the 3rd breakthrough for her side.
Chedean Nation joined Jemimah Rodrigues at the crease and the duo stitched a crucial 28-run partnership for the 4th wicket to take their side close to the 100-run mark. Chamari Athapaththu cleaned up Chedean Nation to provide the 4th breakthrough for Barbados Royals. Wicket-keeper batter Kycia Knight joined Jemimah Rodrigues at the crease and the duo stitched another crucial 40-run partnership for the 5th wicket to take their side past the 100-run mark.
Aaliyah Alleyne picked up the wicket of the wicket-keeper batter Kycia Knight to provide the 5th breakthrough for her side. The Trinbago Knight Riders eventually managed to hold their nerve to get over the line with four wickets in hand and two balls to spare. Jemimah Rodrigues (59* off 50 balls), wicket-keeper batter Kycia Knight (17 off 22 balls), Chedean Nation (14 off 16 balls), and skipper Deandra Dottin (12 off 10 balls) were the top performers with the bat for Trinbago Knight Riders.
Chamari Athapaththu (4-0-24-2), skipper Hayley Matthews (3.4-0-19-1), Aaliyah Alleyne (4-0-28-1), and Amanda-Jade Wellington (4-0-28-0), were the top performers with the ball for Barbados Royals. Jemimah Rodrigues was awarded the Player of the Match for her match-winning innings (59* off 50 balls) with the bat. It was also her maiden half-century in the Caribbean Women’s Premier League. She played a crucial role in helping her side get over the line and guide Trinbago Knight Riders to their 2nd appearance in the final.
Barbados Royals led by skipper Hayley Matthews will be playing their 3rd straight final in as many editions of the tournament.