CPL 2016, Match 1: Trinbago Knight Riders lock horns with St Lucia Zouks in tournament opener

The fourth edition of the Caribbean Premier League is set to kickstart with defending CPL champions Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) will start their title defence against St. Lucia Zouks at the Queen’s Park Oval on Wednesday. The 2016 edition is special in many ways. A plethora of foreign stars are set to make their presence felt in the league. The likes if Brendon McCullum, Hashim Amla, Morne Morkel and David Miller will most likely make their CPL debuts tomorrow and will be live in action tomorrow.

Both the squads also have a couple of under-19 stars in their side who can fancy their chances of playing. Both teams have a very contrasting composition. Trinbago Knight Riders has a team full of all-rounders while St Lucia Zouks have specialists for each department. It would be really tough to guess the favourites but considering the current form of players and variety in the squad, Knight Riders will start out as favourites.

Trinbago Knight Riders:

The newly named side will look forward to emulating last year’s title-winning performance. Dwayne Bravo will be leading the team. The Knight Riders can opt for the dynamic duo of Hashim Amla and Brendon McCullum as the openers. Darren Bravo and William Perkin, who played in the top order last year, will make up for the rest of the top order.

Umar Akmal will take the wicket-takers spot most likely given his international experience as a wicketkeeper. The advantage of the side is that it is full of match-winning all-rounders. All-rounders Kevin Cooper, Javon Searles and 19-year-old Anderson Phillip along with the skipper Bravo himself will be performing the all-rounder’s role. Sulieman Benn will have the company of the wily Sunil Narine with him this season.

Probable XI:

Hashim Amla, Brendon McCullum, Darren Bravo, William Perkins, Umar Akmal (WK), Dwayne Bravo (C), Kevon Cooper, Anderson Phillip, Sunil Narine, Javon Searles, Sulieman Benn

Squad:

Hashim Amla, Sulieman Benn, Yannic Cariah, Anton Devcich, Brendon McCullum, Colin Munro, William Perkins, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Umar Akmal, Ronsford Beaton, Dwayne Bravo, Kevon Cooper, Hamza Tariq, Nikita Miller, Sunil Narine, Anderson Phillip, Javon Searles, Darren Bravo

St Lucia Zouks:

St Lucia Zouks, who finished 5th in the last edition, will be looking forward to perform more consistently this year. They will start out as the underdogs once again and with the kind of squad they have, the Zouks can surely spring a surprise. The world cup winning skipper Darren Sammy will be at the helm of the aside. Talking about the side composition, they have the current West Indies opening pair of Johnston Charles and Andre Fletcher at their services.

Denesh Ramdin will be take up the wicket-keeping responsibility. Shane Shillingford may claim the spinner’s slot in the team while Derlorn Johnson and Fidel Edwards will be the preferred choice as fast bowlers. Australian star Shane Watson and the South African pair of David Miller and Morne Morkel will the foreign imports adding more firepower to the team.

Probable XI: 

Johnston Charles, Andre Fletcher, Shane Watson, Kyle Mayers, Denesh Ramdin (WK), David Miller, Darren Sammy (C), Shane Shillingford, Delorn Johnson, Morne Morkel, Fidel Edwards

Squad:

Johnson Charles, Derone Davis, Andre Fletcher, Delorn Johnson, Eddie Leie, Kyle Mayers, Morne Morkel, Darren Sammy, Shane Watson, Keron Cottoy, Fidel Edwards, Michael Hussey, Nitish Kumar, Keddy Lesporis, David Miller, Gidron Pope, Shane Shillingford, Miguel Cummins, Denesh Ramdin, Kristopher Ramsaran

Pitch & Conditions:

Most of the matches played at the picturesque Queen’s Park Oval have been high-scoring ones with the chasing team enjoying a better success rate. The weather is forecasted to be moderate or heavy rain shower with daytime temperature reaching 26°c