– beat Antigua & Barbuda Falcons by 27 runs
Arguably one of their better acquisitions in the first season defending the Republic Bank CPL title, the Guyana Amazon Warriors had Moeen Ali’s all-round excellence to thank for a second successive win on home-turf as they grounded the Antigua and Barbuda Falcons, winning by 27 runs.
The win, another low-scoring contest at the Providence National Stadium in Guyana, also sealed the defending champions berth in the playoffs.
Ali, who led a rescue mission with the bat after Guyana were sent into bat and were in trouble, returned with the ball to snare 3-9 in a man of the match performance to knock the Falcons out of play-off contention.
After Tahir lost the toss for a second straight night, his men were sent into bat and struggled to score runs while losing early wickets as the Guyana management left fans scratching their heads at the opening pair selection again.
Raymond Reifer and Azam Khan this time around were the openers, and they went three overs, scoring just two runs.
Reifer was frustrated and eventually was caught trying to break the shackles, while Gudakesh Motie, promoted to number three, didn’t stick around for long either. By the time Ali entered the fray, Guyana were dragging along at 63/4 in the 11th over with Hetmyer also back in the hut.
Ali bided his time at the crease and played intelligent cricket to accumulate 42 from 33 balls, inclusive of three fours and three sizes, to help Guyana to a decent total. Aside from Ali, only Azam Khan at the top of the order pitched in with 29 as Guyana ended on 135/7 in their allotted overs.
Leading the way for the Falcons with ball in hand was left arm seamer Mohamed Amir, who captured 2/15 in his four overs, one of which was a maiden.
In response, the Falcons batsmen also struggled to score runs consistently, and who else but Moeen Ali stepped up for the Warriors with the ball, striking frequently to remove danger men Fabian Allen, Imad Wasim, and Hayden Walsh Jr.
Ali was in rip-roaring form, bowling a maiden as well from his four overs. His sharp turn and bounce proved to be too much for the Falcons batsmen.
He received valuable support from Dwaine Pretorius (3/9, 2.5 overs) and Imran Tahir (2/40, 4 overs), while Shamar Joseph and Gudakesh Motie had a wicket apiece as the Falcons were bowled out for 108 in 18.5 overs. Only Kofi James, batting at number three, eked out a painstaking 27 from 23 balls to offer resistance, but he received no backing, and they crumpled in a heap and out of the playoff spots.
While the win secured a playoff finish for Guyana, they will be looking to push for a top-two finish and are slated to play Barbados on Wednesday at the same venue.
