3RD day CPL t20 cricket in Florida…

Jul 31, 2016 Sports

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Mohammed’s last over six take Warriors home
Zouks beat Tallawahs to advance for first time

By Sean Devers
On a day when the stands in Jamaica were virtually empty for the Test between India and West Indies, an almost capacity crowd of dancing, flag waving fans braved scorching Florida heat to create a Carnival-like atmosphere and watch St Lucia Zouks and Guyana Warriors register victories yesterday at the Central Broward Park in the Hero CPL t20 tournament.
The largest West Indian population in the USA comprise of Guyanese and Jamaicans and they turned out in their numbers as St Lucia Zouks, led by 50s from Andre Fletcher and Johnson Charles, beat Jamaica Tallawahs by 63 runs in sweltering heat of 100 degrees to advance to the play-off for the first time in the four-year history of CPL.
In the 16:00hrs game, Kieron Pollard (47), Steven Taylor (37) and Shoaib Malik (35) led the Tridents to 158-6.
Sohail Tanvir took the (2-24) for the Warriors who reached 161-4 in 19. 3 overs with Chris Lynn leading the way with 57 from 44 balls before an important unfinished 43-run stand between Jason Mohamed (57) who finished the contest with a last over six with four needed, and Chris Barnwell (19). Raymon Reifer had 2-22 in a losing cause.
Top team Guyana will face the Tallawahs in St Kitts on August 3 in the first play-off game.
The Bajans elected to bat on a good track and Taylor, the USA player born to Jamaica parents, hammered Steven Jacobs for consecutive boundaries in the third over.
Ahmed Shehzad (6) got one that got ‘big’ on him and pulled Dwayne Smith to Jacobs at mid-on to leave the score on 18-1. Taylor continued to play shots and three successive boundaries off Smith were delightful to watch. The 22-year-old Taylor danced into Veerasammy Permaul and stuck him for two glorious fours.
But when Taylor attempted go over the top to Adam Zampa and was taken by Lynn at 50-2 and the close to 4,000 Guyanese in the stands erupted in unadulterated joy and waved their Guyana flags merrily. Taylor’s 37 lasted 21 balls and included seven fours.
Zampa’s second over cost just two as he kept Skipper Kieron Pollard on a tight leash and after 10 overs the tridents were 60-2 and in desperate need to put their foot on the gas as Malik and the powerful Pollard struggled to find the boundary in the must win game for the Tridents.
Pollard was dropped by Lynn despite a brilliant effort and the ball went for four before the Tridents Skipper hammered Zampa for consecutive boundaries, while Malik stroked Barnwell for four and Pollard pull him for six and a four in the 16th over which cost 17 runs to release the pressure on the Bajans.
Malik blasted Permaul like a bullet back past him for four and dumped Rayed Emrit for six but succumbed when he hit the ball to Lynn on the boundary at 131-3.
Things got worse when Pollard tried to pull a short ball from way outside off stump and ‘skied’ it high to square-leg as Tanvir made an important breakthrough without addition to the score.
Nick Pooran hit his first ball for six off Tanvir, while David Weise clobbered a full toss from Emrit but was dropped by Mohamed at long-off to the disgust of Emrit and the large contingent of Guyanese supporters.
Raymond Reifer was dropped on the boundary by Barnwell in the final over before he was run out off the last ball attempting a bye.
The Warriors stared in horrendous fashion when Reifer scattered the stumps of Smith first ball but Lynn, the tournament’s leading run scorer, dumped Reifer for six to get his innings started before stroking three majestic boundaries off Ravi Rampaul.
The Australian set Florida on fire and had the Warriors fans jumping in the stands as pulsating music emanated from the sound system in the Party Stand.
Maddison’s (16) boundaries off Imran Khan and Hosein were timed to perfection but he soon lofted Khan to Shehzad on the boundary at 42-2 in 5.2 overs.
The introduction of Khan put the brake on the free scoring as Mohammed and Lynn and after 10 overs the score was 62-2 while at the same point the Tridents were 60-2 and the game was wide open.
But Lynn dumped Wiese for a couple of sixes and Lynn reached his 50 from 37 balls when he stroked Marchant De Lange for four. Lynn took two sixes from the 13th over as De Lange’s only over cost 20 runs and the pendulum had swung Guyana’s way.
But the wickets of Lynn (57) and Anthony Bramble (1) in the space of seven runs had the Guyana fans worried as Barnwell joined Mohammed and hit Rampaul for six before tucking Pollard for four in the next over.
Mohamed clobbered Rampaul for six to leave the Warriors needing four to win from Pollard’s last over. Pollard started with two dot balls and the tension was sky high but the 29-year-old Trini finished the contest with a six.
Scores: TRIDENTS 158 for six off 20 overs (Kieron Pollard 47, Steven Taylor 37, Shoaib Malik 35; Sohail Tanvir 2-24) beat AMAZON WARRIORS 161 for four off 19.3 overs (Jason Mohammed 57 not out, Chris Lynn 57; Raymond Reifer 2-22) by six wickets.
Meanwhile, in the first game, Fletcher’s 74 lasted 49 balls and was decorated with four fours and four sixes and added 89 in 9.3 overs with his West Indies opening partner Johnson Charles who slammed seven fours and two sixes in his 37-ball 59 while Shane Watson made a 20-ball 43 with a four and five sixes as the Zouks galloped to 206-3 from 20 overs.
Kesrick Williams, who got rid of Watson and David Miller, snatched 2-28 for the Jamaicans who were restricted to 143-8 when their 20 overs expired as only Chadwick Walton who played some audacious shots in his entertaining 54 from 51 balls with seven boundaries and Alex Ross (23) offered fight.
Charles and Fletcher provided a solid foundation before Charles departed while Watson and Fletcher put together 59 for the second wicket before Watson was dismissed by Williams at 148-2 in the 16thover.
Miller then departed at 187-3 in the penultimate over before Skipper Darren Sammy (11*) and Fletcher who hit a six in the last over off Andre Russell, whose four overs leaked 64 runs days after got married here in Florida.
When the Tallawahs began their reply needing to score at over 10 runs per over Gayle (13) began with consecutive sixes off Delorn Johnson before he got one that left him and with no movement of his feet edged the next ball to Sammy at slip to leave his team on 22-1 and when Kumar Sangakkara was run out for 18 at 57-3 the result was inevitable, despite the efforts of Walton and Alex Ross.

TEAMS MAT WON LOST TIED N/R PTS NET RR FOR AGAINST
Guyana Amazon Warriors 10 7 3 0 0 14 +0.120 1415/188.4 1417/192.0
Jamaica Tallawahs 9 6 2 0 1 13 +0.902 1256/152.1 1147/156.0
St Lucia Zouks 9 5 4 0 0 10 +0.275 1435/171.5 1416/175.2
Trinbago Knight Riders 9 4 5 0 0 8 -0.218 1462/176.4 1502/176.5
Barbados Tridents 10 3 6 0 1 7 -0.267 1439/175.4 1438/170.0
St Kitts and Nevis Patriots 9 2 7 0 0 4 -0.717 1334/180.0 1421/174.5

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