Warriors kick off home leg with win over Kingsmen

Guyana Amazon Warriors brushed aside Jamaica Kingsmen by eight wickets at Providence Stadium in their match in the Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL) , chasing down 160 with 16 balls to spare as Rahmanullah Gurbaz and Mavendra Dindyal put the game away inside the PowerPlay.

Put in to bat, Kingsmen never quite found fluency against a disciplined Warriors attack. Dwaine Pretorius struck twice in his three overs, removing Kirk McKenzie for 1 and Keacy Carty for 18, both lbw, while Khary Pierre also picked up two, bowling Usman Khan and later having Maaz Sadaqat caught for 35 off 34. Wickets fell steadily through the middle overs, with Keemo Paul (15) and Rovman Powell, out for a golden duck to Mohammad Nabi, both departing inside the space of two balls as Kingsmen slipped to 83 for 5 in the 13th over.

Hassan Khan rescued the innings almost single-handedly, striking an unbeaten 62 off just 29 balls with six sixes to drag Kingsmen to 159 for 7. Odean Smith’s 13 supported the surge before he was run out in the penaltimate over, and Vitel Lawes saw out the innings at the non-striker’s end.

The target never looked in danger once Gurbaz got going. He and Dindyal added 46 in under five overs before Dindyal fell to Hunain Shah for 33 off just 17 balls, an innings built around four sixes. Gurbaz continued on, reaching 54 off 35 balls with five fours and three sixes before holing out to Powell off Sadaqat with the score on 114 in the 13th over.

That left the finish to captain Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer, and neither needed long to close it out. Hope anchored with an unbeaten 39 off 35, while Hetmyer accelerated to 30 not out off just 17 deliveries, the pair sealing victory in the 18th over with the required rate never troubling them.

Only Hunain Shah and Sadaqat managed a wicket apiece for Kingsmen, whose bowlers leaked at nearly nine an over as the Warriors chase raced along at a rate of 9.23.

The result extends Guyana Amazon Warriors’ unbeaten run at home this season, while Jamaica Kingsmen will need to regroup quickly to keep their playoff push on track.