CPL 2017, Match 14, STS v JT, Review: Andre McCarthy rides the Jamaica Tallawahs to victory at the Darren Sammy International Stadium

Match 14 of the 5th edition of the Caribbean Premier League saw the St Lucia Stars lock horns with the Jamaica Tallawahs at the Darren Sammy National Cricket Stadium. Playing on their home ground did not turn the fortunes for the Darren Sammy led St Lucia Stars as they were handed their 6th consecutive defeat of the season. In a thrilling encounter that went to the last over, the Jamaica Tallawahs reigned supreme to pile the misery upon the drastically out of form St Lucia team.

Batting first, the St Lucia Stars managed to put up a healthy total on the board as they registered 173 runs in their innings. They lost 7 wickets in the process and the highlights of their innings were the West Indian duo of Andre Fletcher and Marlon Samuels. Fletcher, who is often seen as a wicketkeeper, played a tremendous knock of 84 runs after opening the batting. The batsman hit 4 maximums and 7 boundaries on his way to the score and remained not out till the end.

He got support from the experienced Marlon Samuels who chipped in with 54 runs from 36 balls. Samuels equalled Fletcher in the six hitting contest while his number of boundaries in the innings stood at 2. The rest of the batting line up did not live up to the expectations as it has been the case for the St Lucia team in the tournament so far. Skipper Darren Sammy managed to score just 3 runs before falling victim to Mohammad Sami of Pakistan.

Shane Watson continued to struggle with his form since the iconic 10th edition of the IPL, as he departed for just 1 run. Jesse Ryder came significantly low down the order but the change of position did not work for him. The Kiwi played a knock of 10 runs from 6 balls and was sent back to the pavilion by Kesrick Williams.

Mohammad Sami was the pick of the Jamaica bowlers as he picked up 3 wickets to his name conceding just 27 runs which is a decent figure in the T20s. Kesrick Willams and Rovman Powell picked up 2 wickets each for the Jamaica Tallawahs.

The run chase:

Coming on to chase the target, the Jamaica Tallawahs completed a successful run chase as all the batsmen who got to bat got into double figures, except Rovman Powell. The Kumar Sangakkara led side was guided to victory by Andre McCarthy of West Indies who played a stellar knock of 61 remaining not out till the end. His innings was marked by 4 sixes and 3 fours as he played with a strike rate of 164.86. He got support from opener Glenn Phillips of New Zealand who contributed with his share of 32 runs.

West Indian star Lendl Simmons and Kumar Sangakkara scored 17 and 13 runs respectively which actually proved to be effective contributions at last. 26-year-old Jonathan Foo’s 22 run knock has its own importance too. However, Pakistan all-rounder Imad Wasim remained not out at 18 alongside Andre McCarthy to guide him past the St Lucia target. Wasim, who also contributed with the bat in the ICC Champions Trophy final against India has developed himself to be a crucial all-rounder for whichever team he plays.

Jamaica Tallawahs ended their chase at 179/5 with two balls to spare. The bowling was not particularly good for  Darren Sammy’s team as no bowler could take more than a single wicket. Mumbai Indians bowler Mitchell McClenaghan, Shane Shillingford, Marlon Samuels and Timil Patel had to settle for a wicket each.

Andre McCarthy was declared the Man of the match for his impressive inning. He combined brilliantly with Imad Wasim to score 45 runs in 15 balls which saw their team emerge victoriously. The St Lucia team still find themselves toiling at the rock bottom of the chart and is the only team yet to win a match in this edition of the CPL.

Brief scores:

St Lucia Stars 173/7 (Andre Fletcher 84*, Marlon Samuels 54, Mohammad Sami 3/27)

Jamaica Tallawahs 179/5 (Andre McCarthy 61*, Glenn Phillips 32, Marlon Samuels 3/19)