GUY vs TKR Prediction: Who will win today’s CPL 2021 match?
Guyana Amazon Warriors and Trinbago Knight Riders are set to lock horns in the opening game of the CPL 2021 schedule, on Thursday, August 26 at Warner Park in St Kitts.
The Knight Riders, led by West Indies limited-overs skipper Kieron Pollard, are the defending champions. In fact, they have won the title three times in the last four seasons.
In 2019, TKR made the playoffs but lost to Jason Holder’s Barbados Tridents in a closely fought Qualifier 2.
For the upcoming season, they have Lendl Simmons, the all-time highest run-scorer in the history of the CPL.
Last season, Pollard played at a strike rate of 200 and won quite a few games single-handedly. The skipper can also bowl handy medium pace if needed.
Sunil Narine, Colin Munro and Darren Bravo have played plenty of cricket for the TKR franchise. Ravi Rampaul needs to bring all his experience to the fore.
Jayden Seales had a memorable outing in the Pakistan Tests and he’ll be looking to make an impact in the 20-over format.
The Warriors have qualified beyond the first round every other time since the inception of the CPL back in 2013.
However, they are yet to win the tournament, having finished as the runners-up four times. This year, the Warriors will be captained by Nicholas Pooran.
Pooran has been with the Warriors since 2019 and has played under Shoaib Malik and Chris Green. This time, the southpaw has a massive task at hand.
Brandon King and Chandrapaul Hemraj have opened for them in the last two seasons and they should remain at the top.
Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik lend solidity to the middle order. Among the bowlers, Naveen-ul-Haq and Imran Tahir have been amongst the wickets in recent times.
Kevin Sinclair made his national debut earlier this year and should be high on confidence.
See the latest list of CPL 2021 teams here.
Can the Warriors end TKR’s winning streak?
In 21 games thus far between the two teams, TKR have won 12 games, while the Warriors have won nine matches. Last season, the Knight Riders came out trumps both times.
The Knight Riders have depth in batting and hence, the Warriors can’t drop their guard even if they pick up early wickets.
The TKR bowling contingent has delivered on a consistent basis and seem to have a slight edge going into the next game.
Prediction: Trinbago Knight Riders to win the match.