TKR says thanks to DJ Bravo – 'icon,' 'trendsetter' for allrounders

With the October 6 final of the Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL) being played the day before his 41st birthday, the Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) have the chance to send former West Indies skipper Dwayne Bravo off into the sunset doing his famous "champion" dance.

Bravo has announced this CPL season will be his last.

With five CPL titles to his name, to go with a CPL record 129 wickets, the allrounder is one of the most decorated players in the tournament's history.

On September 18 at the Queen's Park Oval in St Clair, as TKR hosted Guyana Amazon Warriors, in this year's first meeting between the 2023 finalists, TKR got a five-wicket victory with only four balls to spare as Tim David and Man of the Match Andre Russell ended the game with an unbeaten 60-run stand.

With Russell hinting that it was Bravo's final game in a storied CPL career, the occasion seemed even more significant than the already highly anticipated clash between two rivals.

Bravo was given a guard of honour before the game, with his teammates and the TKR staff also donning Bravo's number 47 on their jerseys, alongwith the words "Thank You DJ."

Bravo had figures of one for 41 from his four overs, but his highlight moment in the match arguably came in the ninth over of the Guyana innings, when he took an agile catch at slip to see the back of New Zealand batsman Tim Robinson for 34. Beaten in the flight and turn of a Waqar Salamkheil delivery, Robinson may have thought his edge was way out of Bravo's reach, but the latter stretched every sinew to claim the catch – giving TKR and Windies fans flashbacks of his more youthful days as an all-action allrounder.

TKR captain Kieron Pollard said the manner of the TKR victory was fitting for the occasion.

"This is special. One of our local icons and heroes got the opportunity with all of us to play with the number 47 and thank him for what he has done for Trinidad and Tobago, West Indies cricket and world cricket," Pollard said at the post-match presentation.

"Obviously, words can't describe the infectious nature Bravo has among the group and the way he would have done it throughout his career...getting the win for him was fantastic by the entire team."

In an international career which spanned 2004-2021, Bravo played 295 matches for the Windies, scoring over 6,000 runs and taking a total of 363 wickets across all formats.

Pollard thanked Bravo for setting the benchmark for allrounders in the region.

"And again, him being the trendsetter from an allrounder's perspective for the last decade-and-a-half to show us what you can do as allrounders in the Caribbean."

As Pollard spoke during the post-match presentation, he and Bravo shared a moment as the latter came and gave his thoughts on what he described as an "emotional" night.

"The guys were giving me a hard time and said I'm going to cry. I said, 'No, I'm going to be a big boy,'" Bravo said.

"I appreciate the love and respect the guys showed and for the fans for coming out. I'm glad I was able to play this game.

"It shows the respect both ways the guys have for me, the management staff, owners and the head coach as well. It's a great sendoff and I have two of my kids here enjoying the moment with me."

A world-class allrounder in his own right, the 36-year-old Russell thanked Bravo for paving the way for players like him.

"Me being who I am today, I think Bravo has a lot to do with it," said Russell, explaining that the quality Bravo showed in three facets of the game encouraged him to work on his own skills.

"He has helped me a lot with my cricket in terms of how to out-think the batsman and how to be a smarter bowler. You're not going to get it right all the time, but once you have the right mindset to get that execution, I think you're on the right path."

TKR's first game of their 2024 first leg had the perfect ending, and they will hope the season ends with another crown to add to their and Bravo's tally, which started with a title under the TT Red Steel banner in 2015.