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ON their fourth attempt, Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) finally registered a win against the Antigua and Barbuda Falcons franchise as they got an eight-wicket victory when the teams met in their 2025 Caribbean Premier League (CPL) match at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy (BLCA), Tarouba on September 27.
Chasing 147 for victory, the four-time champs TKR had an early stutter when New Zealand opener Colin Munro fell to Shakib Al Hasan for just nine. However, the pair of Keacy Carty (60 off 45 balls) and Alex Hales (55 not out off 46) set up the innings beautifully with a second-wicket stand of 87. Both batsmen struck solid fifties as they steered TKR to their third win in four matches this season and pushed them up to second on the six-team table. The Falcons, who have now played seven matches, remain in top spot on seven points.
Without the services of their captain Imad Wasim for the second half of the innings because of an injury he sustained while batting, the Falcons bowlers didn't have enough to contain a TKR batting line-up which eased home with eight balls to spare. Carty treated the BLCA crowd to a series of classical shots and hit four fours and two sixes, with Hales hitting six fours as he largely played a supporting role in what turned out to be a facile chase.
TKR progressed to 114 before Carty was bowled by Jayden Seales (one for 35) in the 16th over. Seales' wicket was one of just two cheerful moments for the Falcons in the field on the night, and TKR captain Nicholas Pooran (20 not out off 11) put the icing on the cake in the chase with a pair of sixes, including a heave over long-on off his countryman Seales to bring up the winning runs as his team sauntered to 152 for two.
Batting first, the Falcons made a modest score of 146 for seven, with Jewel Andrew (40 off 31) and the Pakistani pair of Usama Mir (34 off 26) and captain Imad Wasim (37 not out off 25) making meaningful contributions. In what was a disciplined bowling display from the hosts, the Falcons had to dig themselves out of trouble on numerous occasions with Wasim and Mir getting their team to a total of respectability with their 65-run stand for the seventh wicket.
The innings started in the worst possible way for the Falcons as opener Rahkeem Cornwall and in-form batsman Karima Gore were both trapped lbw by left-arm pacer Mohammad Amir (three for 22) for duck in the very first over of the match. With a relatively watchful Andrew launching a counter-attack off mystery spinner Sunil Narine to end the power play, the Falcons pushed their score to 46 before US batsman Andries Gous (14) was bowled by Akeal Hosein (two for 25) in the seventh over.
With the Falcons trying to consolidate in the middle overs, they lost three wickets in quick succession as Shakib (13), Andrew and danger man Fabian Allen (duck) were dismissed in the space of four balls as their team slipped to 71 for six. Veteran allrounder Andre Russell (two for 23), who bowled with good pace and bounce, got the scalps of Andrew and Allen in the 12th over, with the former falling to a spectacular one-handed catch from McKenny Clarke on the cover boundary.
At that stage, it seemed as though the Falcons would have been steamrolled by the TKR bowling. However, the right-handed Mir brought the innings to life with sixes in successive overs off Russell, Narine and Amir, while Wasim struck five fours in his knock to help his team score 55 runs in the last five overs. Amir then returned at the death to get the scalp of his countryman Mir en route to copping the eventual Man of the Match award.
In the end, Mir and Wasim's efforts weren't quite enough and the Falcons certainly missed the latter's presence with his left-arm spin in the second half of the match as TKR cruised to the win to avenge the eight-run loss to their Antiguan counterparts on August 20.
TKR will play their next home match at the BLCA against the cellar-placed Barbados Royals from 8 pm on August 29.

Summarised Scores:

ANTIGUA & BARBUDA FALCONS - 146/7 from 20 overs (Jewel Andrew 40, Imad Wasim 37 not out, Usama Mir 34; Mohammad Amir 3/22, Andre Russell 2/23) vs TKR - 152/2 from 18.4 overs (Keacy Carty 60, Alex Hales 55 not out, Nicholas Pooran 23 not out; Shakib Al Hasan 1/25). TKR won by eight wickets.

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