Tridents survive Russell scare to begin CPL 2026 with narrow win
Brandon King, Quinton de Kock and Sharfane Rutherford starred for Barbados Tridents with the bat before Daniel Sams returned 4 for 20 to stifle Jamaica Kingsmen
Brandon King, Quinton de Kock and Sharfane Rutherford starred for Barbados Tridents with the bat before Daniel Sams returned 4 for 20 to stifle Jamaica Kingsmen
Scorer: Chetan Kumar | Commentator: Rashad Mahbub
That's a wrap on the CPL action for today, good people. Thank you for tuning in and staying with us. Do join us again tomorrow. Until then, this is Rashad Mahbubg logging out on behalf of Chetan Kumar. Goodnight!
Chris Green: "It was a roller coaster. What a game of cricket! You know, Rovman Powell and Andre Russell are two of the most powerful hitters in the world. They're some of the best in the business for a reason, and even when you think you're ahead of the game or sneaking close to home, they just hit their way out of it. Lawes was hitting as well, taking on two of the best spinners. Sometimes you just have to tip the cap and say we entertained the crowd tonight. I'm so happy we snuck away with that one in the end. [Raining sixes] Well, that's the Caribbean for you. That is serious power. It's not so much about singles and dots, particularly when the wickets here are good like that. That wicket sort of slid on. I got excited a couple of times at the spin, but it seemed to slide on and get nicer and nicer. So, like I said, there's some serious power, and reading the boundaries, it sounded like we entertained a lot of people here tonight as well. [Off to a winning start] It's important. Coming in late last year to a group that had lost a few tight ones, winning a tight one, even though we were ahead of the game for most of it, is important for confidence. They say you learn a lot when you lose games, but when games go down to the wire and you manage to find a way over the line, you learn a lot from that as well. We'll take a lot of confidence from this. I thought we were outstanding with the bat, and the first 10 overs with the ball were really good. Then it's just about limiting the damage because a lot of teams have power like these guys. We'll learn a lot from that second half of the bowling innings. [How good was Daniel Sams tonight?] Outstanding. His skill set and his clarity at the top of the mark were exceptional. He had a great tournament last year, and for someone coming back for their second year, it's always a big thing to watch because opponents have seen a lot of him. The way he stood up tonight on a counter was outstanding. He was a lovely weapon for me to use at crucial stages, coming away with figures of 4 for 20 when the ball was traveling while bowling some of the hardest overs to dangerous players. I was very lucky to have him. [Keep losing the toss but winning the matches?] I'll take it! I'll take it. Thanks!"
Rovman Powell: "[Deconstruct this game for us] I think we wanted to start a little bit better as a bowling group. We've been struggling a bit and not stringing consistently good overs together. Also, if you're three or four down in the powerplay, you generally go on to lose the game. But having said that, I think Russell played extremely well, young Vital Lawes and young Keacy Carty did as well. [Russell in the middle] We thought it was our game, especially after it swung so much. When it came down to the last two overs or so, we thought we were going to win. Having said that, credit has to be given to Barbados. I think tonight they were the better team overall. [Two narrow losses in a row] I think there's work needed to be done in all three departments; from a batting standpoint, a bowling standpoint, and a fielding standpoint. Tonight, we lost wickets in clusters. Every time somebody gets out, another wicket follows. In T20 cricket, no matter who you have in your lineup, once you keep losing wickets in clusters, you're generally going to find yourself in trouble. Having said that, I think it's encouraging for the fans as well. We've played two nail-biting games, and it's just for us to get on the right side of one of them. [What have you learned so far from your team?] That it's not done until the last ball. We have a lot of match-winners. At some point in the game, I'm sure a lot of people thought we were down and out, but the guys showed courage, they showed fight, and that's all I ask of them."
Player of the Match, Daniel Sams: "[What worked for you on this surface tonight?] Well, it was one of those nights. First ball took a wicket - wasn't really what I was trying to bowl, to be honest. In the end, we spoke about it at the halfway mark. Ruthers [Rutherford] talked about the slower balls hard into the wicket that were quite hard to hit, and then top of the stumps for the seamers. So that's kind of my blueprint generally, and I just tried to go with that. Obviously, when you're bowling to guys like Dre Russ when he's going, things change and the ball's flying around, so you just try to adapt. [Range of emotions] The whole game was just up and down, an absolute roller coaster. It's what I've come to expect from the CPL. I think one of the things that we did really well; even though we started really good with the ball and then they got some momentum, Rovman batted really well, and then Dre came in and did what he's known for, was that we stayed really calm. Even though the ball was flying around, we knew that Dre was going to smack it at times, and hopefully we could get it right and hit one straight up eventually, credit to Rivaldo for taking the catch. Two dropped catches off Dre nearly cost us tonight, so that's something we can probably clean up. But the way that Simo [Simmons] stepped up - even though he had a tough night tonight, he stepped up in the last over and got the job done for us. [First win of the season] First game, getting a win, it just starts your tournament off the way that you talk about when you have a preseason camp. It gets the ball rolling and builds some momentum for us, so we're excited to go to Saint Lucia for our next game."
10:49 pm Phew! What a game of cricket, packed with action with both bat and ball! Both openers were dismissed cheaply inside the first two overs to give the Tridents a dream start. Sams then struck in quick succession in the second over, bowling out both Hendricks and McKenzie to put the Kingsmen in serious trouble. Carty was dropped by Anderson at long on; a tough chance, though. The Kingsmen reached 36 for 3 after the powerplay, with Powell and Carty trying to rebuild the innings through a steady partnership. Two more difficult chances were put down along the way; the catching has been sloppy throughout the match for both teams. Powell brought Sabina Park to life with three sixes in Motie's over but eventually got caught at long off for 38. Russell was dropped on 17 by Rutherford at deep midwicket, after which he and Carty continued a six-hitting competition to keep the Kingsmen alive in the chase. Their 72-run stand ended when Carty was caught at cover for a 27-ball 45. Sams struck back to back on consecutive balls to drag his side right back into the contest. However, Russell kept up his power-hitting masterclass. Joined by Lawes, the pair turned the game on its head once more, with Lawes launching three sixes in Mujeeb's final over. Russell was dropped again on 54 by Descarte at long on before finally departing for a blistering 68 off 38 balls, striking 9 sixes, while Lawes chipped in with 32 off 20. In the end, Simmonds and the Tridents' fielders held their nerves of steel to defend the total. The Kingsmen were reeling at 60 for 5, but Carty, Powell, Russell, and Lawes gave them a fighting chance with a barrage of massive sixes - only for it to end in heartbreak for the home crowd. Sams was the standout bowler in this six-fest night, picking up four wickets and nailing the slower deliveries. Green was economical too and bagged two wickets.
Asad Gondal: "Congratulations Andre Russell for 800 sixes in T20s"
NKR Jr.: "20 sixes to only 1 four and from 132/7 within 1 hit of chasing down 207. Truly have never seen an innings unfold like this marvelous match. "
Barbados Tridents won by 5 runs
Jediah Blades is the last batter in. All down to Hunain Shah now. 6 runs needed off 1 ball.
VO Lawes run out 32 (34m 20b 0x4 4x6) SR: 160
Hunain Shah is the next batter in. 6 runs needed off 2 balls.
AD Russell c Clarke b Simmonds 68 (59m 38b 0x4 9x6) SR: 178.94
Sams and Green discuss with Simmonds. The dew is causing some serious problem for the bowlers out there.
Brandon King, Quinton de Kock and Sharfane Rutherford starred for Barbados Tridents with the bat before Daniel Sams returned 4 for 20 to stifle Jamaica Kingsmen