Hero CPL 2021 bowls off: TKR open title defence against Amazon Warriors

DEFENDING champions Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) will play the opening match of the 2021 Hero Caribbean Premier League T20 tournament against five-time finalist Guyana Amazon Warriors at Warner Park in St Kitts, from 10 am, on Thursday.

The entire tournament will be played at Warner Park. This is the second consecutive year the tournament will be played in one country. In 2020, Trinidad hosted the tournament with matches being played at Brian Lara Cricket Academy and Queen’s Park Oval.

Fans were not allowed to attend matches last year but fully vaccinated fans will be permitted this year up to 50 per cent capacity for 25 of the 33 matches.

Speaking to the media on Monday via Zoom, TKR head coach Imran Jan spoke about what it will be like playing at Warner Park.

“We all know the venue has two relatively short straight boundaries and there is a wind factor going across the field, so that is two things that we have to pay attention to. The wickets here are normally really good cricket wickets and our preparation would have taken those things into consideration. Specifically speaking we will have bowlers bowling on certain ends.”

Jan expects the runs to flow at Warner Park. “We all know it's high scoring mostly here in St Kitts so we are conscious of that.”

For the first time since the CPL began in 2013 TKR will be without Dwayne Bravo, who is the leading wicket-taker in the history of the tournament with 106 scalps.

Despite losing Bravo, TKR have added quality to their line-up including Pakistani leg spinner Yasir Shah, Sri Lankan left-arm pacer Isuru Udana, fast bowler Ravi Rampaul and wicket-keeper batsman Denesh Ramdin.

West Indies T20 and 50-Over captain Kieron Pollard will captain the side again.

TKR had a memorable run in 2020 ending the tournament unbeaten which included ten straight wins in the preliminary phase.

Lendl Simmons, the leading run-scorer in the 2020 edition with 356 runs, will aim for another fruitful tournament. Simmons is the top run-scorer in the history of the CPL with 2,436 runs.

Amazon Warriors have kept a core of young West Indian players with the likes of captain Nicholas Pooran, Shimron Hetmyer, Brandon King, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Kevin Sinclair and Romario Shepherd.

The experienced Pakistani pair of Shoaib Malik and Mohammad Hafeez, who both represented the franchise in the past, will play significant roles in the team.

Leg spinner Imran Tahir will try to replicate the form he showed in 2020. Tahir was the third-highest wicket-taker with 15 wickets.

In the second match on Thursday, home team St Kitts and Nevis Patriots will play Barbados Royals at 7 pm.

SQUADS

TKR

Kieron Pollard (captain), Ravi Rampaul, Sunil Narine, Colin Munro, Yasir Shah, Darren Bravo, Lendl Simmons, Khary Pierre, Isuru Udana, Tim Seifert, Anderson Phillip, Denesh Ramdin, Tion Webster, Akeal Hosein, Jayden Seales, Leonardo Julien, Ali Khan.

AMAZON WARRIORS

Nicholas Pooran (captain), Shoaib Malik, Imran Tahir, Shimron Hetmyer, Mohammad Hafeez, Brandon King, Naveen Ul Haq, Romario Shepherd, Waqar Salamkhiel, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Odean Smith, Nial Smith, Gudakesh Motie, Anthony Bramble, Kevin Sinclair, Ashmead Nedd

THURSDAY’S MATCHES

TKR vs Guyana Amazon Warriors, 10 am

St Kitts and Nevis Patriots vs Barbados Royals, 7 pm