Jamaica Tallawahs became 2022 Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) champions on Friday with an eight-wicket win over the Barbados Royals at Providence Stadium, Guyana Friday night.

 Barbados Royals had won the toss and chose to bat, with Rahkeem Cornwall and Kyle Mayers getting them off to a blistering start, combining to score 63 runs in the powerplay. However, Fabian Allen would remove both openers to bring the Tallawahs back into the game, before Azam Khan would continue his fine form with the bat to take the Royals to 161-7. 

In response, Brandon King and Shamarh Brooks would produce an 86-run partnership that frustrated the Royals' bowling attack. Despite Jason Holder taking the wicket of Brooks, King would lead the rest of the chase as he scored a magnificent 83 runs from 50 balls to see the franchise win their third Hero CPL title. 

Barbados Royals had chosen to bat with the aim of setting an imposing total, Cornwall and Mayers combining well to build an excellent foundation. Once Allen had removed them both with his spin bowling, the run rate slowed down as the Tallawahs wrestled back control of the game. However, Khan, who came in at number three, would bat until the 19th over, scoring his second successive half-century to help the Royals reach 161-7 after 20 overs. 

 Jamaica Tallawahs suffered an early setback in their chase as opener Kennar Lewis lost his wicket for a duck, but King and Brooks would rebuild at a steady run rate.

Once Brooks lost his wicket in the 11th over, King would shoulder the responsibility of finishing the chase, hitting 15 boundaries in total. In the end, King would take his side to victory with a six, sparking celebrations from Jamaica Tallawahs players, staff and fans. 

Scores: Jamaica Tallawahs 162-2 (King 83*, Brooks 47; Mayers 1-14, Holder 1-14) beat Barbados Royals 161-7 (Khan 51, Cornwall 36; Allen 3-24, Gordon 3-33) by 8 wickets.

The Jamaica Tallawahs pulled off an emphatic eight-wicket victory over the Barbados Royals in the final of the 2022 Hero CPL final at Providence Stadium in Guyana on Friday night.

Chasing 161-7 set by the Barbados Royals, the Tallawahs achieved the target with 23 balls to spare, ending on 162-2.

Brandon King was unbeaten on 83 after hitting the winning six off Obed McCoy to seal the third CPL title for the Jamaica-based franchise.

Captain Rovman Powell was unbeaten on 14 at the other end.

Scores: Barbados Royals 161-7; Jamaica Tallawahs 162-2.

More to come…

Phil Salt is "grateful for the backing" he has received after starring for England in their eight-wicket victory over Pakistan.

Having struggled in his previous five innings in England's seven-match T20I series, when managing just 59 runs, Salt hit a blistering 88 not out from 41 deliveries on Friday.

Salt reached a half-century in 19 balls – the third-fastest by an England player in the format – as the tourists levelled up the series at 3-3 in Lahore.

That set up a decider on Sunday, when Salt will have another chance to underline his credentials to retain his spot at the top of the order at the upcoming T20 World Cup.

"I'm very grateful for the backing I've got from my team-mates and the management. It's very clear the way they want me to play," the 26-year-old said.

"The way I play is aggressive and I want to win as many games as possible while I'm in an England shirt. 

"The first few games haven't gone to plan – I've been finding ways to get out, hitting fielders or whatever – but it's nice to come up with a performance like that in a big game.

“It's always a challenge at the top of the order when you feel like you're playing well but you're picking out fielders and finding ways to get out.

"It was definitely [my best T20 innings] and it was nice to do it with the series in the balance."

With Jos Buttler due to return from injury in time for the World Cup, Salt is realistically in competition with Alex Hales over partnering the white-ball skipper.

"You need competition. The best sides in the world have competition and you can't get away from that – it's the same in any sport," Salt added.

"Everyone is trying to put their best foot forwards and show the coaching team and the team-mates how good they are.

"I'm not looking too far into the future; I'm just focused on the next game in a couple of days' time."

Salt's destruction of the Pakistan attack came after home captain Babar Azam had hit an unbeaten 87 to set England a target of 170 for victory.

Babar became the first Pakistan batter to reach 3,000 T20I runs during his half-century, doing so in the absence of the rested Mohammad Rizwan.

He is the fifth men's player to reach that milestone in the format and the joint-quickest to do so alongside India great Virat Kohli.

Reflecting on what was ultimately a disappointing day for his side, however, Babar said: "After losing a couple of early wickets, we thought 170 was a good score. 

"Maybe we were 10 runs or so short, but the way Salt batted in the first four or five overs, they took the game away from us. 

"The way they used the powerplay was the turnaround today. I think the middle-order needs to step up, they need to take responsibility."

Phil Salt hit a blistering 88 as England beat Pakistan by eight wickets on Friday to level up their seven-match T20I series at 3-3 in Lahore.

Pakistan recovered from a slow start that saw them 15-2 at one point to post 169-6 at the Gaddafi Stadium, thanks in large to the brilliant Babar Azam (87 not out).

But England made easy work of the chase as they reached 100 from seven overs to set up a decider on Sunday.

Without in-form Mohammad Rizwan, Pakistan initially struggled as Mohammad Haris (7) and Shan Masood (0) fell early on, leaving Babar to do much of the leg work.

Haider Ali (18), Iftikhar Ahmed (31) and Asif Ali took their side to 136-4, but the latter upper cut to Reece Topley for nine runs and Mohammad Nawaz (12) followed soon after.

Babar's 87 did at least give England something to think about, but Salt and Alex Hales put on an opening partnership of 55 off 23 balls, before the latter was removed for 27.

Salt reached his half-century off just 19 balls en route to an unbeaten 88, including the decisive shot as England posted 170-2 to level things up.

Babar brilliance not enough

Pakistan were without run machine Rizwan but Babar stepped up with 87 runs off 59 balls, which included three sixes and seven fours.

Babar surpassed a milestone 3,000 T20I runs in the process, yet it was not enough to steer the hosts to an unassailable series lead.

England ease to victory

The tourists were set 170 to avoid a third successive T20I defeat to Pakistan for the first time ever and had no trouble in reaching that target.

Only once before – against New Zealand in November 2019 (6.4 overs in a game reduced by rain to 11 overs) – have England previously reached 100 from seven overs.

Salt played a key part in that as he underlined his credentials to partner Jos Buttler at the upcoming T20 World Cup.

Johnson Charles of the St Lucia Kings and Kyle Mayers of the Barbados Royals were among the 12-man 2022 Hero CPL Team of the Tournament released on Friday. Noticeably absent, however, is Brandon King of the Jamaica Tallawahs, who is the second highest run-scorer in the tournament and one of only three men who have scored hundreds in this year’s tournament.

The team that was picked by the Hero CPL commentary team – Ian Bishop, Samuel Badree, Daren Ganga, Simon Doull and Danny Morrison, also includes South Africa’s Faf Du Plessis, who captained the Kings and Tallawahs’ captain Rovman Powell.

 In fact, players from the Kings and Tallawahs dominated the selection with only Sunil  Narine of four-time champions Trinbago Knight Riders among the selectees while other than Mayers, only Jason Holder was selected among the 11 from the Barbados Royals.

 However, the selection panel picked the Royals’ Ramon Simmonds as the 12^th man as a result of his impressive performances throughout the tournament.

 Simmonds is one of the 12 emerging players in the Hero CPL squads and has been an important part of the Barbados Royals team in 2022. 

 The 2022 Hero CPL Team of the Tournament: Johnson Charles (Saint Lucia Kings), Kyle Mayers (Barbados Royals), Faf Du Plessis (Saint Lucia Kings), Rovman Powell (Jamaica Tallawahs), Raymon Reifer (Jamaica Tallawahs), Imad Wasim (Jamaica Tallawahs), Jason Holder (Barbados Royals), David Wiese (Saint Lucia Kings), Alzarri Joseph (Saint Lucia Kings), Mohammad Amir (Jamaica Tallawahs) Sunil Narine (Trinbago Knight Riders) and 12^th man – Ramon Simmonds (Barbados Royals).

Kyle Myers intends to come good with the bat to spur the Barbados Royals to their third title when the 2022 Hero CPL final gets underway at the Providence Stadium in Guyana on Friday night.

Rovman Powell said it would mean the world to him should he lead the Jamaica Tallawahs to the 2022 Hero CPL title when they take on the Barbados Royals in the finals at Providence, Guyana on Friday night.

The Jamaica Tallawahs will contest the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) final following a 37-run victory over the Guyana Amazon Warriors in Qualifier 2 on Wednesday night.

The Amazon Warriors won the toss and opted to field first and that seemed to be an excellent decision after they reduced the Tallawahs to 37-2 in the PowerPlay. 

 However, Shamarh Brooks produced one of the all-time great Hero CPL innings to guide the Tallawahs to a season-high 226-4. His unbeaten 109 came off 52 balls and along with Imad Wasim, the pair plundered 103 runs from the final five overs to take the game away from the Amazon Warriors.

 The chase was always going to be hard for the Amazon Warriors, so it proved. Despite losing Mohammad Amir to injury the Tallawahs bowling unit produced a controlled performance that kept the Amazon Warriors in check throughout.

Although Keemo Paul produced a good innings of 54 from 37 balls, no one else was able to stay with him to pull off an unlikely heist.

 Earlier, the Amazon Warriors had seemed to be in control of the game when Raymon Reifer was dismissed for 22 to leave the Tallawahs 123-4 with five overs to go. However, Brooks and Wasim launched an unbelievable assault at the back end.

 Brooks hit a maiden T20 century whilst Wasim made an unbeaten 41 off 15 balls to secure the Tallawahs a place in the Hero CPL final.

 If the Amazon Warriors were to chase the 227 to win, they needed a lightning start in the PowerPlay and they got that by putting up 62 runs. However, they lost three wickets in the process thereby handing the Tallawahs an advantage going forward.

 Wickets continued to fall at regular intervals as the Tallawahs bowlers put the squeeze on the Amazon Warriors. Imad Wasim was the star turn leading the bowling unit with 2-25 in the absence of Amir.

 The Tallawahs victory means they will now contest their third Hero CPL final and both themselves and the Barbados Royals will be looking to secure their third Hero CPL title.

Scores: Jamaica Tallawahs 226-4 (Brooks 109*, Wasim 41*; Shepherd 2-43, Tahir 1-34) beat Guyana Amazon Warriors 189-8 (Paul 56, Hope 31; Wasim 2-25, Green 2-40) by 37 runs

England stand-in captain Moeen Ali described his team's batting performance as "disappointing" after their six-run defeat to Pakistan, who now lead the seven-match T20I series 3-2.

Mark Wood (3-20) removed half of Pakistan's top six as England bowled out the hosts for 145 runs in 19 overs in Lahore, a reasonably low score considering Mohammad Rizwan top-scored with 63 off 46 balls.

However, England were unable to chase Pakistan's total down despite Moeen making a half-century off just 35 balls, not aided by finding themselves 31-3 after five overs.

And Moeen was frustrated with his team's display, telling reporters: "Of all the games so far, this was the most disappointing, the way we batted in particular.

"Obviously I'm disappointed we didn't chase those runs. I feel we're a better team than that. You have to see the situation of the game, and the conditions.

"All we needed was one partnership, a 60-70 run partnership would have won the game. We want to play this brand that is attacking but you also have to see the situation of the game and the conditions, things like that."

Moeen also spoke of his admiration of Rizwan while also reserving praise for Pakistan's debutant seamer Aamir Jamal, who bowled superbly in the last over to restrict England to seven runs when 15 would have won them the match.

"He's [Rizwan] a brilliant player, so hard to stop and so busy. He's somebody we can learn a lot off," Moeen added.

"He saw the situation and adapted today. He took the risks when he needed to and played properly when he needed to.

"[Jamal] was on debut, nervous, but he bowled really well.

"Two big hits and you’re done. I got one but unfortunately couldn't manage to get the other one. Sometimes you've just got to give it to him, it was a good last over."

Debutant Aamir Jamal helped Pakistan to a six-run victory over England in an absorbing contest as the hosts opened up a 3-2 lead in the seven-match T20I series.

The hosts were all out for 145 in 19 overs in Lahore, with Mark Wood (3-20) leading the way for England, who fell just short despite Moeen Ali's half-century off 35 balls.

Jamal claimed his maiden international wicket on just the second ball of his career and, under immense pressure, the youngster held his nerve to steer Pakistan to a tense win.

Wood's fierce pace had put England in command as he removed half of Pakistan's top six, with Babar Azam (9), Haider Ali (4) and Asif Ali (5) failing to reach double figures.

Mohammad Rizwan top-scored for Pakistan with 63 from 46 – his fourth half-century this series – but David Willey (2-23) and Sam Curran (2-23) restricted the home side's total.

Chris Woakes, making his first appearance since March, wrapped things up thanks to a swipe from Haris Rauf (8) as England were set a more-than-gettable target of 146.

However, opener Alex Hales went inside five balls for just a single run and fellow opener Phil Salt (3) pulled a short ball straight into the hands of Rauf soon after.

The tourists struggled for momentum, with Harry Brook (4) and Dawid Malan (36) trapped lbw after Ben Duckett (10) spooned Mohammad Wasim's short ball to Shan Masood.

Curran (17) sliced Jamal's second ball to Wasim as England chased boundaries, with Woakes (10) close behind, but Moeen kept his side ticking along.

England required 15 from the final six balls and would have forced a super over had David Willey cleared the boundary off the last ball, but it was not to be as Jamal held his nerve.

India capitalised on a blistering start to post an eight-wicket win over South Africa in their first T20I on Wednesday, becoming the first team to capture five wickets in the opening three overs of a game in the format.

The Men in Blue wasted no time in decimating the South African batting order in Kerala, with Arshdeep Singh and Deepak Chahar combining to reduce the Proteas to 9-5. 

The stunned tourists set a target of just 106, one India experienced little trouble in surpassing courtesy of half-centuries from KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav.

South Africa skipper Temba Bavuma failed to lead from the front on his return from injury as he was dismissed six balls in, and that was a sign of things to come as Arshdeep produced an incredible second over.

Arshdeep accounted for Quinton de Kock (1), Rilee Rossouw and David Miller – the latter duo for ducks – in the space of five deliveries as South Africa crumbled, before Chahar handed him a catch from Tristan Stubbs (0).

South Africa avoided further loss until Harshal Patel bowled Aiden Markram (25) lbw in the eighth over, but they made slow progress towards their score of 106-8 through Wayne Parnell (24) and Keshav Maharaj (41).

India joined South Africa in losing their captain early as De Kock caught Rohit Sharma for a duck following Kagiso Rabada's delivery before doubling up to fell Virat Kohli (3).

That was the extent of the Proteas' response, however, with the efforts of Rahul (51 not out) and Yadav (50 not out) ensuring India brought up 110 runs with 20 balls remaining as they seized the initiative in the three-match series.

South Africa run ends in dramatic fashion 

South Africa came into Wednesday's match having won their last four completed T20Is away from home, looking to post seven wins on tour in a calendar year for just the second time in the format (after winning 14 in 2021).

However, their hopes of extending that fine run were left in tatters by India's fast start with the ball, as Arshdeep and Chahar ensured they became the first bowling side among full-member teams to scalp five wickets in the first three overs of a T20I.

Rahul and Yadav ease India to victory

South Africa's tally of 106 runs is the seventh-lowest score they have managed in the format, with their worst such performance also coming in India this year (87 all out in Rajkot in June).

India made a slow start to their chase, posting their lowest score (17-1) in a six overs powerplay in the format. However, the patience of Rahul and Yadav ultimately paid dividends as India cruised to a routine win.

Captain of the Jamaica Tallawahs said his team are rested and ready to go for the playoffs of the 2022 Hero CPL season.

Guyana Amazon Warriors completed the perfect set of home victories in the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) with a comprehensive defeat of the table-topping Barbados Royals on Sunday night.

 The victory means the two teams will do it all again on Tuesday in the first qualifier. 

 The Amazon Warriors won the toss and opted to field first, and that proved to be an inspired decision. On a fresh surface, their seamers wreaked havoc taking three wickets inside the PowerPlay to leave the Royals in disarray.

Wickets continued to fall at regular intervals and the 125 the Royals mustered was never likely to be enough on a track that offered good value for positive stroke play. 

The Royals were able to take two early wickets of their own when they had their turn to bowl restricting the Amazon Warriors to 18-2 but that was as good as it got. 

 Shakib Al-Hasan produced a scintillating half-century to put the Amazon Warriors on the cusp of victory and the remaining batters saw the chase home to win the game inside 15 overs.

 Earlier Guyana Amazon Warriors had utilised the movement on offer to unleash their cadre of seamers on the Royals. Romario Shepherd, Keemo Paul and Odean Smith all weighed in with wickets to leave the Royals 97-9 and it was only late cameos from Ramon Simmonds and Mujeeb Ur Rahman that enabled the Royals to post 125.

 Although the Amazon Warriors lost Chandrapaul Hemraj and Shai Hope in the PowerPlay, Shakib played an enterprising innings to take the drama out of the chase. His knock of 53 came off 30 balls and laid the foundation for the Amazon Warriors to win with five over to spare.

 The two sides will now do battle again in the first qualifier on Tuesday to determine who will earn the right to go straight to the Hero CPL final.

Scores: Guyana Amazon Warriors 126-5 (Shakib 53, Gurbaz 22; McCoy 2-22, Mayers 1-20) beat Barbados Royals 125 (Holder 42, Khan 20; Shepherd 3-14, Paul 2-9) by 5 wickets.

Mohammad Rizwan and Haris Rauf starred as Pakistan clinched a three-run victory over England to level their T20I series at 2-2 after a stunning match in Karachi.

Captain Babar Azam and Rizwan combined for an opening partnership of 97 as Pakistan posted 166-4, setting a target that England would have fancied chasing down.

Yet the visitors were unable to get there, despite a determined rally from Liam Dawson, leaving Pakistan to celebrate victory in what was their 200th T20I.

Rauf picked up three prized wickets, including that of Dawson, to take the player of the match award.

After both made just eight in the third match, Babar and Rizwan this time rekindled the form they showed in the second contest of this series when Pakistan swept to a 10-wicket win.

Babar made a handy 36 before being caught by Ben Duckett off Dawson's bowling, but Rizwan ploughed on to reach 88, eventually falling to Reece Topley in the final over.

Shan Masood made 21 and Asif Ali clattered two late sixes in 13no from three balls, as Pakistan pushed up their score.

The home team had work to do with the ball but came out firing, taking early wickets to dismiss Phil Salt (8), Alex Hales (5) and Will Jacks (0) in the first two overs of England's reply, as Mohammad Nawaz and Mohammad Hasnain made inroads.

England found batting rhythm through Duckett, striking three consecutive boundaries, although Nawaz put down a sitter to drop Harry Brook before he dismissed Duckett lbw for 33 in the eighth over.

Captain Moeen Ali made 29 and Brook fell for 34, before Dawson looked like winning it with a gallant effort for England. He reached 34 at breakneck speed, but a brilliant over from Rauf (3-32) halted the fightback as he had Dawson caught before bowling Olly Stone with the next delivery.

It meant England went from 162-7 to 162-9, and Masood ran out Topley in the final over to finish the contest, with three matches remaining in the series as the teams head for Lahore.

Rizwan and Babar set record

Pakistan's opening pair of Babar and Rizwan became the first batting duo to register 2,000 runs as partners in men's T20I cricket, coming into the day with 1,946 and smashing their way through the landmark figure.

The duo also equalled Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul's record of 14 partnerships scoring above 50 in T20Is.

Dawson drives recovery

England looked to be down and out heading into the final few overs, but Dawson's blistering display with the bat took advantage of some lacklustre bowling to briefly change the tide of the game.

His runs came from just 17 balls and contained five fours and a six, providing a glimpse of a comeback, but he was unable to finish the job.

Virat Kohli and Suryakumar Yadav were decisive with the bat as India dramatically sealed a series win over Australia with one ball to spare.

Australia were put into bat first by the hosts and they looked to be in a decent position when reaching 186-7.

India's response did not start impressively but the 104-run stand of Kohli and Yadav put Rohit Sharma's men back on track, eventually sealing victory – and the series – right at the end as their T20 World Cup preparations continued positively.

Cameron Green (52) was crucial to Australia's blazing start, though he did not get much support as Aaron Finch (7), Steven Smith (9) and Glenn Maxwell (6) all failed to even reach double digits.

Axar Patel (3-33) more than played his part with the ball, taking Finch, Maxwell and then Josh Inglis (24), who did at least contribute to providing a little more stability for Australia.

Tim David (54) top scored and Daniel Sams (28 not out) aided a late flurry, with their total looking unlikely to be toppled at the beginning of India's chase as KL Rahul (1) and Sharma (17) fell without making much of an impact.

But Kohli and Yadav soon took over as India made a massive dent in the deficit.

Sams (2-33) and Josh Hazlewood (1-40) eventually claimed their respective scalps, but Hardik Pandya (25) came in to see India over the line, with a thick edge off Sams ensuring they got the job done with a ball left.

India wield the Axar

Patel is surely in contention to be player of the series, with this another very impressive bowling performance.

His efforts ruined Australia's middle-order momentum and you can make a case for that being ultimately decisive on the day.

Yadav powers India into the ascendancy

This was a brutal showing with the bat. Yadav's 69 was off just 36 balls and came at a time when India desperately needed an injection of bravery.

Kohli definitely played his part, but Yadav attacked with even greater emphasis.