Guyana Amazon Warriors open their 2021 Caribbean Premier League campaign against defending champions, Trinbago Knight Riders from 10.00 hours today at Warner Park, St. Kitts.
Warriors reached the semis in their last run winning six of their 11 matches while Knight Riders played unbeaten and dominated the tournament. History also favours the men in red who have won 12 of the 21 encounters against the South America Warriors.
However, only once have the two sides met at Warner Park, back in 2015 where TKR won by three wickets.
This year, both teams have a similar look from the previous season but Warriors will feel enhanced with the likes of Pakistan veterans, Mohammad Hafeez and Shoaib Malik returning to their camp.
Malik brings a wealth of experience as the fourth most capped player in the format with 435 matches under his belt. The 39-year-old has scored over
10,000 runs and has captained the side before.
Similarly, Hafeez comes with 331 matches under his belt where he has crossed 50 on 43 occasions and even gone on to reach triple figures twice.
Both of them have captained their international sides before with Malik leading the Warriors for two seasons. Their addition will no doubt be much welcomed by newly appointed captain, Nicholas Pooran, who along with Shimron Hetmyer forms the core of the Warriors’ batting.
Hetmyer finished as the leading run getter for the five-time finalists with 267 runs while Pooran was closely behind with 245 runs including his maiden century in the league.
This quartet has built a reputation of being among the better players of spin in the Caribbean while their openers in Chandrapaul Hemraj and Brandon King have handled seam well despite not having the best of strike rates last season.
However, both openers will want to justify their places having had a less than ideal season last year where both failed to score at a higher strike rate than 100.
Nevertheless if the duo can give the warriors a decent powerplay start, it can set the foundation for their power hitters and give their bowlers a score to work with should they bat first.
Their bowlers on the other hand continue to be a traditionally spin-heavy composition with both Malik and Hafeez being quality off-spinners to complement their most economical off-spinner, Kevin Sinclair and potent leggie, Imran Tahir. Also in their armory are the left-hand orthodox pair, Gudakesh Motie and Ashmead Nedd while Chandrapaul Hemraj has turned his arm over in the past.
But their pace attack is also equally as impressive with newbie, Niall Smith their quickest bowler with support coming from slingy seamer, Romario Shepherd and skiddy speedster, Naveen Ul-Haq. Hetmyer recently stressed the importance of players understanding their roles in the team, especially since the tournament is only three weeks long and Warriors are down to a 15-man squad.
These criteria will come in handy if they are to get the better of Kieron Pollard’s men. At the top of the order, the CPL’s leading run getter, Lendl Simmons.
Even if Warriors get last year’s most prolific batsmen, TKRs have a batting depth that is considerably brutal more than most teams.
Colin Munro and Sunil Narine at the top of the order, also strike at 145 in the format and lead the way with Darren Bravo being composed and anchoring the innings for the likes of Pollard, who had a strike rate of over 200 last season.
It is no surprise that last season they scored nearly 200 runs more than any other team in the competition and had the record for most boundaries.
TKR will be without the competition’s all-time leading wicket-taker in Dwayne Bravo but Jayden Seales coming into his own now, he will be supported by the experienced campaigners in Ali Khan, Ravi Rampaul and Anderson Phillip.
The defending champions also have a threatening spin contingent with Narine complemented by Akeal Hosein, Yasir Shah and Khary Pierre. In last year’s campaign TKR ended with the highest numbnercollection of wickets.
