Caribbean Premier League T20, Guyana Amazon Warriors vs St Kitts and Nevis Patriots: Match Preview, Pitch Report, Playing XI and Key Players
The Guyana Amazon Warriors will clash swords with the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots on the 7th of September at the Providence Stadium in Guyana.
Both sides come into the encounter having experienced contrasting results in their opening fixtures. While the hosts managed to edge out the St. Lucia Zouks, the away side lost out to last season’s champions, the Trinbago Knight Riders.
However, the Patriots have the requisite quality among their ranks to offset the early loss and catapult themselves into the upper trenches of the table.
Against the Knight Riders, Evin Lewis and Sheldon Cottrell strengthened their T20 credentials with commendable performances. Yet, a lack of support meant that the Patriots squandered a wonderful opportunity to open their campaign with a win.
As for the Warriors, they managed to make their way to 155 in their allotted 20 overs despite a scrappy start. And, akin to many a time before, the Guyana-based outfit turned the screw in the bowling department to script a positive result.
Shadab Khan shone with a three-wicket haul, enabling the Warriors to post a narrow 13-run victory over the Zouks.
Thus, the game is tantalisingly set up for Saturday, especially considering the different objectives both sides might have for the game. While the hosts would be looking to solidify their good start, the visitors would be hoping for a quick reversal of fortunes, in light of the frenetic nature of the competition and the format.
And, usually, those facets serve as the perfect ingredients for a mouth-watering contest.
Match Details
Date: 7th September
Time: 08:00 pm Local Time; 05:30 am IST on the 8th of September
Venue: Providence Stadium, Guyana
Weather Report
The weather is not expected to play spoilsport and there is only a slight chance of rain in the evening. Though a shower is not an uncommon occurrence in Guyana, it should stay away enough to allow a full game.
Pitch Report
Despite being re-laid in recent times; the pitch has stuck to its traditions of favouring the bowlers. Those characteristics have come to the fore this cricketing season too with the Warriors’ first match of the CPL a testament to that.
Predicted XIs
The Guyana Amazon Warriors don’t have too many reasons to change a winning combination. However, having said that, they could fiddle with the idea of playing Brandon King in place of Keegan Simmons at the top of the order.
Guyana Amazon Warriors XI (Probable): Keegan Simmons, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Shimron Hetmyer, Nicholas Pooran, Shoaib Malik, Sherfane Rutherford, Chris Green, Ben Laughlin, Keemo Paul, Romario Shepherd and Shadab Khan.
The Patriots, meanwhile, could be pondering a few changes after a defeat in the opening game. But, dropping a player after just one bad game might be a precedent they wouldn’t want to set, especially at the start of the competition.
St Kitts and Nevis Patriots XI (Probable): Kjorn Ottley, Evin Lewis, Mohammad Hafeez, Jason Mohammed, Devon Thomas, Carlos Brathwaite, Fabian Allen, Usama Mir, Rayad Emrit, Alzarri Joseph and Sheldon Cottrell.
Players to watch out for
Shadab Khan
The leg-spinner spun a web in the opening match against the Zouks and ensured his side defended a total of 155. With the pitch in Guyana expected to aid spin again, Shadab Khan could be a potent weapon as the Warriors look to squeeze the opposition in the middle overs.
Evin Lewis
The West Indian opener looked woefully out of sorts at the World Cup and that form continued into the early part of the series against India. However, mid-way through that assignment, the left-hander got into his groove, striking the ball cleanly and clearing the fence with ease.
Luckily for the Patriots, Evin Lewis seems intent on proceeding in the same vein. And, though he couldn’t notch up a substantial score against the Knight Riders, there were more than just glimmers of hope of him conjuring a match-winning knock, soon.
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