Guyana Amazon Warriors 157 (McDermott 34, Hope 32, Shamsi 3-33, Wiese 2-14, Joseph 2-34, Mills 2-38) beat St Lucia Kings 143 (Pierre 50, Mills 30, Motie 4-30, Tahir 2-22, Pretorius 2-24) by 14 runs
Gudakesh Motie’s four-wicket haul thwarted the St Lucia Kings and propelled the Guyana Amazon Warriors into the final of CPL 2025. It will be their third successive title clash, having won the competition in 2023 and finished runners-up to the Kings last year.
The Amazon Warriors were lifted to 157 thanks to a late assault from Dwaine Pretorius (17 off eight balls) and Romario Shepherd (21 off eight), who plundered 41 runs in the final four overs. Even so, it looked no more than a par score under lights. But a disciplined bowling display, with just two extras conceded, coupled with Motie’s strikes, reduced the Kings to 48 for 7 – a position from which recovery was near impossible.
Chasing 158, the Kings were rocked three times in the opening three overs. Pretorius removed Tim Seifert and Ackeem Auguste, while Shepherd accounted for Johnson Charles. Roston Chase and Aaron Jones steadied the innings, taking the Kings to 37 for 3 after the powerplay – not far behind the Amazon Warriors’ 45 for 1 at the same stage.
Then Motie was introduced, and he sliced through the middle order. Chase’s ungainly heave across the line saw him bowled, and next ball Tim David played down the wrong line to depart for a golden duck. Imran Tahir then got into the act in the following over, bowling Jones to deepen the collapse.
When Kings captain David Wiese holed out to long-off in Motie’s second over, the innings was in freefall. That they came close to their target was thanks largely to Khary Pierre’s maiden T20 half-century. With the Kings reduced to 85 for 8 at the start of the 14th over, Pierre and Tymal Mills found at least one boundary in four successive overs, giving the Warriors a brief scare.
Pierre reached his fifty from 28 balls, raising hopes in the Kings’ dugout and bringing coach Daren Sammy to his feet. But those hopes were dashed when Pierre fell the very next delivery. Mills, however, kept the faint chance alive by taking 13 off Shepherd’s final over, the 19th of the innings.
Earlier, Pierre’s miserly spell had stalled the Warriors’ innings. The left-arm spinner conceded just 15 runs in the powerplay, while Ben McDermott and Quentin Sampson managed 29 off the three overs bowled at the other end. The scoring slowed further when Wiese had McDermott chopping on.
Shai Hope anchored the middle with 32 off 29, but the remainder of the middle order fell cheaply. When Moeen Ali departed, leaving the Warriors 107 for 6, the night seemed destined to belong to the defending champions. Instead, a late flourish from the lower order, followed by a batting collapse from the Kings, left the Warriors celebrating – and the Kings now facing the daunting task of defeating the Trinbago Knight Riders in Qualifier 2 on Friday to keep their title defence alive. (ESPNcricinfo)
