The Antigua and Barbuda Falcons (ABF) won their first match against Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) of CPL 2024 at the iconic Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua by seven wickets on September 5.
Winning this match has made the Antigua and Barbuda Falcons (ABF) break their losing streak, whereas Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) now have one win and one loss from two games.
The Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound, Antigua, has a well-balanced pitch. Both batsmen and bowlers have found it a fair challenge. Bowlers have succeeded here, but patient and calculated batting can also yield high scores.
The Antigua and Barbuda Falcons (ABF) scored an outstanding 176/6 and successfully defended, winning the match by six runs. The remarkable performance of ABF players Fabian Allen and Imad Wasim one-sidedly destroyed the TKR batters.
After losing the toss and being put into bat, the Antigua and Barbuda Falcons (ABF) Fakhar Zaman and Justin Greaves’s incredible partnership led to a solid start. An impressive 66-run opening put the ABF at ease. Zaman played aggressively, scoring 38 off 26 balls, while Greaves was equally aggressive, hitting 37 off 19 balls.
Imad Wasim played a deceive inning of 46 from 29 balls, holding the middle order with four boundaries and two sixes. Fabian Allen added a quick 25 runs off 11 balls in the end, pulling ABF to 176/6.
Narine (2/32 in 4 overs) and Salamkheil (2/27) stood out for the second over. Sunil Narine and Nicholas Pooran were out quickly and made a weak start for Trinbago Knight Riders(TKR) at 2/7. TKR players Andries Gous and Shaqkere Parris had a stable 62-run partnership in the next few innings. However, this partnership was not enough to win.
Batters Keacy Carty and Kieron Pollard revived TKR with impactful innings. Carty scored 34 off 22 balls with four massive sixes, while Pollard scored 30 off 15 deliveries swiftly. Despite their momentum shift, ABF bowlers’ incredible breakthroughs stalled TKR’s progress.
Fabian Allen played extraordinary and excelled both with the bat and the ball. He took 3/23 in four overs, including the very important wicket of Kieron Pollard. Roshon Primus also impressed with two wickets. Mohammad Amir and Chris Green’s remarkable innings with one wicket each stopped TKR at 170/9.
The match went to the final over, with TKR needing 18 runs. ABF’s bowlers played aggressively, kept the pressure in the last over, and secured a win.
Allen’s all-around outstanding performance made him the Player of the match. Expressing his excitement in the post-interview of the game, he said, “Oh my god! We were searching for that win and were happy to get that tonight. I am ready to bat up the order. But wherever the team needs me to bat, I am happy to do so. When you take such catches, especially of the best T20 batter in the world, you have to celebrate, and I am grateful that I could take it.”
