Red Force's Kjorn Ottley: Narine will be difficult to replace

Top-order batsman Kjorn Ottley has described Sunil Narine as the best spin bowler he has played with and a difficult talent for the TT Red Force and West Indies to replace.

Narine announced his decision to retire from List A cricket on November 5, before leading the Red Force to a seven-wicket win over Leeward Islands in the Super50 Cup final on Saturday, after which he was named player of the match.

The Red Force captured their 14th Super50 title, keeping them well ahead of Jamaica and Guyana, who have eight and seven wins, respectively.

“It’s a really special feeling,” Ottley replied, when asked his views on Narine’s decision to end his List A career, particularly after his outstanding performances throughout the tournament and in the final.

“He’s been there doing this for us over the years. He’s the best spinner I’ve ever played, so it’s a really good feeling to win this tournament for him.

“It will be very hard to fill his shoes but hopefully we have players stepping up next year.”

Ottley and Narine were among the top Red Force players of the tournament, with Ottley finishing as the third highest run-scorer (307), a tally bulked up by his brilliant performance against the Windward Islands October 19, scoring an unbeaten 134 runs.

Fellow top-order batsman Darren Bravo later went on to post the highest individual run tally of the tournament, scoring 139 runs (not out) versus Barbados.

Bravo also finished as the highest individual run-scorer, hitting a total of 417, followed by Justin Greaves of the Leeward Islands (403 runs) and Ottley’s 317 runs, for third.

And, while two players, Narine and Hayden Walsh of the Leeward Islands both took 20 wickets each to take joint spot on the leaderboard, Narine ended the tournament as the most economical bowler by a considerable margin, even after bowling the highest number of deliveries.

Narine ended with an economy of 2.52 runs per over, after bowling 432 balls, conceding an average of 9.1 runs per match.

Last week, the 35-year-old mystery spinner wrote on Instagram, "I appreciate it has been over four years since I last played for West Indies but today I am announcing my retirement from international cricket.

“Publicly I am a man of few words but privately there are a few people who have given me unwavering support throughout my career and helped me realize my dream of representing West Indies and to you I express my deepest gratitude."

Narine, who has 122 international matches under his belt, predicted a fitting farewell, writing, “I love representing Trinidad & Tobago, the country of my birth, and to add another title by winning the Super50 Cup will be the perfect send-off.”

Narine indeed delivered in the final, being named player of the match after taking three wickets, with an economy of 1.88 runs per over.

The mystery spinner will remain active in franchise cricket for the foreseeable future, with commitments in the Indian Premier League, Caribbean Premier League and Major League Cricket, and other tournaments.