Royals, Tallawahs battle for 3rd CPL title

THE Jamaica Tallawahs are trying to “come down from the high” ahead of Friday’s Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) final against Barbados Royals. The final bowls off at 7pm at Providence Stadium, Guyana with both teams hunting their third CPL title.

Tallawahs are coming off of Wednesday’s stunning 37-run victory over the Guyana Amazon Warriors while Barbados have not played since Tuesday’s dominant 85-run win over the same opponents.

At a pre-match press conference on Thursday, Tallawahs captain Rovman Powell said his players are “upbeat” to face “possibly the best team in CPL so far.”

On their preparation for the final, he said, “The guys are looking forward to the challenge. Today is a day we take it easy, come back down from the high of the game last night, put in ah little preparation, get ah little rest and hopefully everything goes okay tomorrow.”

Powell said there was no update on left-arm pacer Mohammad Amir’s groin injury, which was sustained on Wednesday.

Amir has been a go-to bowler for Jamaica in the powerplay and death overs.

“It’s very early in the day. Backroom staff, our masseuse, our physio therapy are working behind the scenes to try and get him fit for the final. We know how important he is. It will be a big loss if he cannot play.”

Barbados Royals skipper Kyle Mayers said his teammates have been relaxing and bonding ahead of the final.

He praised the performances of bowlers Jason Holder and Obed McCoy as instrumental to Barbados’ title run.

“I think these are two senior bowlers for us. Jason has been around for a long time and Obed is now coming into his own, being known around the world for his skill. These guys have been doing well. Every time we ask them to do something, they put up their hand and do it. So the team is moving really nicely and everybody knows their roles.”

Mayers urged the batsmen to assess the conditions quickly on Friday and adjust accordingly.

“I think batting-wise, I think we can do much better – although we made a great score last time,” he said.

“Conditions-wise, once we assess the conditions as fast as we should, I think this is a good team. We are really resilient, even if we lose a few wickets early or get some runs scored on us in the powerplay, the guys are always willing to come back (and fight) – having that never-die attitude.”

On Wednesday’s victory, Powell rated Shamarh Brooks’ 109 not out off 52 balls as one of the best in franchise history, even rivalling centuries from franchise legend Chris Gayle, Andre Russell and Brandon King. However, he said the wicket was not as batting-friendly as their score – 226/4 – would suggest.

Asked about not playing any home games this CPL, Powell said the Tallawahs missed the home support, even if it did not hinder them from reaching the final. He pointed to Guyana Amazon Warriors ending the preliminary phase with four home wins as the merits of home support.

“You draw strength and courage from different areas. Yuh see how the Guyanese behave in the stand, they are good people so they respect good cricket.”

Mayers said the Royals, who also had no home games, had a slogan throughout the tournament – silence the crowd!

“The guys have been eager to play in front other teams’ crowds. Our aim was to silence the opposition crowd, and we did that.”