Johnson Charles gets Kings back on trach with five-wicket win over Patriots
By Sports Desk
September 13, 2024
CPL via Getty Images
A confident five-wicket victory with 21 balls remaining by Saint Lucia Kings saw them get their 2024 Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL) campaign back on track and consign the St Kitts & Nevis Patriots to a sixth straight defeat.
After starting with a win, the Patriots have struggled and this evening’s defeat at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground, Gros Islet leaves them relying on other results to go their way if they are to have a chance of progressionust
Kings captain Faf du Plessis won the toss and inserted the opposition hoping that the ball would skid on and be easier to hit in the second half of the match. The short square boundaries in Gros Islet saw 30 sixes hit in the last match at the ground but the Patriots struggled to clear the ropes in their innings - not until Rilee Rossouw plundered fives sixes did their batting card catch light and gain any real momentum. Captain Andre Fletcher top scoring with 62 off 50 balls to anchor the Patriots to 173-5.
It wasn’t enough. Du Plessis was brutal in the PowerPlay for the Kings, hitting five fours and the same number of sixes to get the chase off to a breezy start from which his side never looked back. Fellow opener Johnson Charles played a fluent and match winning hand with 74 off 42 balls, falling to Hasaranga only when the target was in single digits.
“It was a very good innings. I would have loved to finish off for the team. Opening with Faf has been good. We feed off each other's energy,” Player of the Match Charles reflected after the match whilst praising the vociferous support of the Kings fans.
“It feels lovely, with the crowd supporting us, even when we lost two. A huge thank you to our supporters.”
It was a difficult night for the Patriots. Captain Andre Fletcher rued his own strike rate after the game had gone. “We started well in the powerplay and I thought we slowed down a bit in the middle. Our strike rate could have been better, especially me. But Rilee played a good knock. We have three more games left. We don't have a choice but to go out there and play cricket. We have to find a way to win. We have been on the losing side for six games and we have to try our best.”
Related items
-
Windies women eye vital win against Bangladesh to keep semi-final hopes alive at T20 World Cup
After an impressive six-wicket win over Scotland, West Indies women will seek to build on that momentum when they take on Bangladesh in a crucial encounter that could define their campaign at the ICC Women’s T20 World Cup in the United Arab Emirates.
The Caribbean side will enter Thursday’s contest knowing that another win would keep their semi-final hopes alive, as they currently sit in third position on two points, two behind leaders South Africa and England on four points each.
The first ball is 9:00am Jamaica time.
West Indies’ victory over Scotland was a much-needed confidence boost for the team, especially after a crushing 10-wicket loss to South Africa in their opening match. The win not only lifted their spirits but also boosted their net run rate, a key factor in determining the semi-final spots should multiple teams finish level on points.
Assistant coach Ryan Austin emphasized the Hayley Matthews-led team’s readiness to handle what promises to be a tricky challenge, as Bangladesh bowlers, particularly their spinners, have proven to be formidable opponents.
“The team is pretty prepared. We obviously know that Bangladesh is basically a spin-based unit, but with our philosophies, we are more focused on what we can control. Having said that, we still have that element of power within our batting that could counter the spin as well,” Austin said in a pre-game press conference.
“If you look at the wicket, they are playing pretty slow at the moment. South Africa today (Wednesday) actually had a good total on the wicket, and if you watch how they batted, they actually used their feet a lot to the spin. So we are looking to obviously go into the game with that sort of temperament mindset with respect to their spin bowling attack as well. Sharjah has almost kind of a two-paced kind of wicket because during the day it's very low and slow, but in the evenings it kind of changes and comes alive,” he added.
Austin exuded confidence in his team’s batting prowess, with the likes of Matthews, Stafanie Taylor, Deandra Dottin, and Shemaine Campbelle expected to play pivotal roles, especially with the group being poised for a tight finish.
Though those proverbial big guns are yet to really fire, Austin believes their true potential should come to the fore in Thursday’s game, as well as the decisive fixture against England. West Indies currently have a positive net run rate of 1.154, only bettered by leaders South Africa, who have 1.527.
“If you look at how our group is set up, net run-rate is really going to be a big factor later down, especially, if we win both games against Bangladesh and England. So one of the things that we really have to look at is how we go about executing, especially in this game against Bangladesh. So our game plan is to at least probably both first and then try to get to our target as fast as possible,” Austin reasoned.