Desk Report:
Trinbago Knight Riders already held the record for the most titles in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL). Today, Knight Riders further enriched that record. They had to wait five years for this CPL title.
Knight Riders won the CPL title for the fourth time in 2020. Later, the team was able to play the final only once from 2021 to 2024. However, in 2023, Knight Riders had to burn with the pain of a broken dream. They were able to heal that wound in the final held at Providence Stadium in Guyana this morning, Bangladesh time. Knight Riders defeated Guyana Amazon Warriors by 3 wickets to become the champions of the 2025 CPL. This is the fifth title for Knight Riders in the history of the tournament.
Knight Riders started explosively by setting a target of 131 runs in the title-deciding match today. The team scored 33 runs for no wickets in 2.3 overs. Guyana pacer Dwayne Pretorius dismissed Knight Riders opener Colin Munro on the fourth ball of the third over. Munro scored 23 runs off 15 balls with 3 fours and 1 six. Knight Riders were immediately reduced to 54 for 3 in 7.5 overs. Sunil Narine and Alex Hales put on a 35-run partnership for the fourth wicket off 30 balls. Shamar Joseph dismissed Narine on the fifth ball of the 13th over.
Narine was dismissed for 22 runs off 17 balls with 2 sixes. As a result, Knight Riders’ score was 89 for 4 in 12.5 overs. Although they did not face any problems with their run rate, the team kept losing wickets at regular intervals. At one stage, the team was 116 for 7 in 16.2 overs. When opener Hales was dismissed as the seventh batsman of the team, his score was 26 runs off 34 balls. In such a situation, Kisi Karti and Akil Hossain left the field with an unbreakable partnership of 17 runs in 10 balls for the eighth wicket. Akil Hossain hit Gurakesh Moti for a six and a four in the fifth and sixth balls of the 18th over to give the team a taste of the title.
Trinbago Knight Riders became the champions of the CPL for the fifth time by winning by 3 wickets with 2 overs in hand. Akil was named the best all-rounder in the final. He remained unbeaten on 16 runs with a four and a six in 7 balls. This left-arm spinner took 2 wickets for 26 runs in 4 overs in bowling. Knight Riders all-rounder Kieron Pollard won the Man of the Tournament award. He has scored 383 runs at an average of 54.71 and an average of 174.09. He has three fifties in this tournament. He has taken 1 wicket.
In the title-deciding match today, Guyana Amazon Warriors captain Imran Tahir won the toss and elected to bat. The team scored 130 runs for the loss of 8 wickets in the stipulated 20 overs. Iftikhar Ahmed top-scored with 30 runs. Knight Riders’ Sourav Netravalkar took 3 wickets for 25 runs in 4 overs. Knight Riders have won the CPL five times out of 13 times so far. Jamaica Tallawahs have won the title three times. Barbados Royals have won the title twice. Guyana Amazon Warriors, St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots and St. Lucia Kings have won the title once each.
