CPL 2021 | SNP vs BR: Patriots eye five consecutive wins as they face battered Barbados

When St Kitts and Nevis Patriots take the field against Barbados Royals on September 03rd (IST), they would be eying their fifth victory in the row and also a way to confirm their place in the Semi-Finals as 10 points will surely take them there. To get there, they have to get past the Barbados Royals who haven’t been in a good form themselves, losing three of the four games that they have played.

For the Patriots, Sherfane Rutherford has been in great form with the bat while with the ball in hand, Dominic Drakes has done some great things. He has so far had seven wickets in his kitty and has gone wicketless in only one game. Skipper Dwayne Bravo has been able to do the talking with the ball as well, picking up three wickets in the last match.

For the Royals, in the one game that they won, all-rounder Raymon Reifer and Kiwi batter Glenn Phillips were at their very best. However, it is the likes of Jason Holder, Thisara Perera and Johnson Charles along with Azam Khan that need to join the party with the bat for the team to make any impact.

Whether or not this happens is yet to be seen. Also to be seen is if the Patriots could get five in five and pose a great threat to Trinbago Knight Riders’ title defence.

St Kitts and Nevis Patriots vs Barbados Royals

Match Number: 14

Date and Time: September 03, 2021, 04:30 am IST, 07:300 pm Local (02nd September), 11:00 pm GMT (02nd September)

Venue: Warner Park, Basseterre

Broadcast: Star Sports

Live Stream: Fancode

Pitch Report

The pitch has slowed down considerably from the first week of action and it now seems that 160 is a winning total given that the defending team has the right kind of bowlers who could bowl slower one and back of the hand deliveries forcing the batsman to apply his strength and into the wind, it is really becoming hard to clear the boundary lines.

Weather Forecast

The weather at Warner Park will remain hot and humid with humidity decreasing to 78% from touching 80 in the last week. The temperatures would remain below 30 with the moderate breeze blowing. Since it is an evening game, a captain winning the toss would look to bowl first.

Probable XI

St Kitts and Nevis Patriots

Devon Thomas (wk), Evin Lewis, Asif Ali, Sherfane Rutherford, Ravi Bopara, Dwayne Bravo (c), Fabian Allen, Dominic Drakes, Sheldon Cottrell, Paul van Meekeren, Fawad Ahmed

Barbados Royals

Johnson Charles, Shai Hope (wk), Kyle Mayers, Glenn Phillips, Jason Holder (c), Azam Khan, Raymon Reifer, Oshane Thomas, Mohammad Amir, Joshua Bishop, Hayden Walsh Jr

Dream XI Team

Wicketkeepers Azam Khan

Batters Evin Lewis, Glenn Phillips, Sherfane Rutherford

All-rounders Dwayne Bravo, Raymon Reifer, Jason Holder, Fabian Allen

Bowlers Dominic Drakes, Mohammad Amir, Paul van Meekeren

Vice-Captain Azam Khan

Captain Sherfane Rutherford

Discover more

Liam Plunkett to feature in USA's Major League Cricket

Fast bowler Liam Plunkett who was a part of England’s squad that lifted the World Cup in 2019 will now be featuring in USA's Major League Cricket after he has signed a three-year deal. The right-arm pacer who will play for The Philadelphians in the 2022 edition of Minor League Cricket expressed his delight in joining the side. "I'm thrilled to have the opportunity to join Major League Cricket and focus my attention on helping to grow the sport in the United States. I've enjoyed a fantastic career with England, and after retiring from international cricket, I am delighted to be able to help build cricket in America in both playing and coaching capacities," stated Plunkett to the MLC website. "In addition, I am looking forward to supporting the team closest to our home in America by being able to play for The Philadelphians in Minor League Cricket." Plunkett has played 13 Tests for England while was capped 89 times in ODIs and featured in 22 T20Is. The right-hander picked up 41 wickets in the Test format while has135 scalps to his name in ODIs and 25 in T20Is respectively. Plunkett bagged a total of three wickets in the World Cup final at Lord’s which included the priced wicket of New Zealand captain Kane Williamson.

New Zealand get security clearance for white-ball tour of Pakistan

The New Zealand team has received the clearance from a security team of NZC for their tour of Pakistan. The side that would be led by Tom Latham will reach Pakistan next week for a three-match ODI series and five T20Is. This is the first time in 18 years when a New Zealand teal will be touring Pakistan. The Kiwis last visited the Asian nation back in 2003. "The pre-tour check has been completed and the tour will be continuing as planned so far," confirmed Heath Mills, chief executive of the New Zealand Cricket Players Association (NZCPA), to Cricbuzz on Thursday. "We have confidence in the security team and the various arrangements in place for the tour," Mills said. The Blackcaps are currently touring Bangladesh for a five-match T20I series. They will arrive in Islamabad on September 11 and will be in room isolation for three days. The side can then have the practice session on September 15 and 16 while the first ODI is scheduled to take place on September 17 in Rawalpindi. All the ODIs will be held at the same venue before the teams travel to Lahore for the T20I fixtures that begin on September 25. The series will conclude on October 3.

SL vs SA | Avishka Fernando hits third ODI ton, propels Sri Lanka to big total

Sri Lanka’s opening batter Avishka Fernando brought up his third ODI century as he scored a classic 118 off 115 balls against South Africa in the first of the three ODIs at R Premadasa Stadium in Colombo. Courtesy to his hundred, Sri Lanka were cruising to great first innings total having made 234 in the 43rd over. However, the batter was dismissed trying to further increase the tempo of the innings off the bowling of Tabraiz Shamsi, getting caught by Andile Phehlukwayo. This is Avishka’s first ton in 2021 having got two fifties against India earlier this year. His previous two centuries came in 2019 and 2020 against West Indies during the World Cup at Chester-Lee-Street, Riverside and at home in Hambantota respectively. In this innings of his, the 23-year-old hit 10 fours and two sixes and looked hugely impressive with his running between the wickets as well. Tom Moody, Sri Lanka’s Director of Cricket was mighty impressed by the batter’s efforts to this time convert the start that he got into a hundred. The Australian tweeted in favour of the man born in a coastal town named Wadduwa. Fernando remained an anchor throughout the innings adding 57 for the first wicket with Minod Bhanuka, 79 for the third wicket with Dhananjaya de Silva and 97 for the fourth wicket with Charith Asalanka with the last partnership coming in just 71 balls. Overall, Avishka has now accumulated 946 runs in 24 innings with an average of 39.14 and at a strike rate of more than 90. Sri Lankan went on to score 300-9 in 50 overs as Asalanka scored a brilliant 72 off 62 balls as the team scored 90 runs in the last 10 overs.

2nd T20I Preview: Bangladesh look to stretch lead, New Zealand eye revival

New Zealand’s new recruit Rachin Ravindra had said that keeping the scoring rate to six an over against a spinner can be treated as a good result in Bangladesh ahead of the first T20I of the five-match series between the two teams. “Maybe getting six runs per over is a good result here whereas in New Zealand facing a spinner if you are taking 8-10 runs then that is a good result,'' Ravindra had said. The left-handed cricketer who made his debut for New Zealand in the first clash against Bangladesh was on spot with his observation but the visitors certainly missed the trick that the youngster had pointed out and recorded their lowest total in T20Is after getting bundled out for 60 in the 17th over. This was the second time that the Blackcaps had been dismissed for 60 as it had happened earlier against Sri Lanka in Chattogram back in 2014. Well, it wasn’t just about the forgettable records but the dismal show with the bat by the Kiwis in the first game. The majority of the batsmen failed to negotiate the spinners. While the New Zealand team didn’t really look comfortable against the spin bowlers and the slowish nature of the pitch, the hosts were also in a spot of bother in the beginning of the chase. It was the experienced duo of Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim that helped them come out of tricky situations. The visitors have a lot of work to do before they come out in the middle in the second T20I while Bangladesh too need to make some tweaks as they didn’t get a stable start in the first encounter. Match Details Match:BAN vs NZ, 2nd T20I, New Zealand tour of Bangladesh, 2021 Date: Friday, September 03, 2021 Time: 3:30 PM Venue: Shere Bangla National Stadium, Dhaka Pitch Report The pitch in Dhaka helped the spinners in the first match between the two sides. The batsmen had a tough time negotiating the spin and the runs never looked easy to come. So, if you win the toss, elect to field and try to restrict the opposition for a lesser total. Team News Bangladesh: The Bangladesh bowling line up looked pretty solid as they produced a brilliant show in the first match. Apart from this, Mushfiqur Rahim who returned back in the squad for this series showed his class and stitched a responsible and important partnership with Shakib to help the side in a critical time. The hosts are unlikely to make any changes in the XI. New Zealand: Despite suffering a thumping defeat in the first match, New Zealand received some good news on Thursday. Finn Allen, who had tested positive for Covid-19 upon his arrival in Dhaka has returned with two negative tests and will now join back the team bubble, New Zealand Cricket said on Thursday. Though, Allen’s availability for the selection is still not confirmed. Apart from him, Matt Henry who was called in as a replacement for Allen is in the final day of his three-day hotel isolation. He too will be joining the team on Friday pending a negative test for Covid-19. Bangladesh’s key players Shakib and Rahim showed their class with the bat as the two were not just among runs but they chipped in with some responsible runs. Other than the batsmen, Mustafizur Rahman’s usage of slower deliveries has been doing wonders for him since the IPL. The left-arm pacer has deceived the batsmen quite efficiently and has been picking up wickets consistently. New Zealand bank on youngsters Rachin Ravindra might have failed with the bat but he has the ability to get back on track quickly. In the last innings too, the left-hander was dismissed not because of an ambitious stroke but was deceived by Mahedi Hasan after he closed the face of the bat early while trying to work a length delivery towards the on side. He just needs to stay at the crease and rotate the strike as much as he can which would help in keeping the scoreboard moving. Ajaz Patel-The trump Card Left-arm spinner Ajaz Patel can be the player for New Zealand who can fetch wickets for them in the early stage of the innings. The spinner would have help on offer from the track while the kind of flight he generates can help him get that extra turn on these kinds of wickets. Probable XI Bangladesh: Mohammad Naim, Liton Das, Shakib Al Hasan, Mushfiqur Rahim, Mahmudullah (c), Afif Hossain, Nurul Hasan (w), Mahedi Hasan, Mohammad Saifuddin, Mustafizur Rahman, Nasum Ahmed New Zealand: Rachin Ravindra, Tom Blundell, Will Young, Colin de Grandhomme, Tom Latham (w/c), Henry Nicholls, Cole McConchie, Doug Bracewell, Ajaz Patel, Blair Tickner, Jacob Duffy Fantasy XI Mushfiqur Rahim, Tom Latham, Mohammad Naim Sheikh, Mahmudullah, Henry Nicholls, Mahedi Hasan, Shakib Al Hasan (C), Cole McConchie, Mustafizur Rahman (VC), Ajaz Patel, Blair Tickner