Bowlers and in-form Shimron Hetmyer help Guyana Amazon Warriors beat St Kitts & Nevis Patriots in Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2020

Pic credit: CPL via Getty Images

Keemo Paul and the spinners proved Guyana Amazon Warriors’ decision to go with an unchanged XI right on Wednesday as they defeated St Kitts & Nevis Patriots by three wickets on Wednesday. Shimron Hetmyer once again batted superbly to help his side register an important victory after facing defeat in the opening match of the Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2020.

The Patriots started nervously with Evin Lewis dropped off captain Chris Green by Ross Taylor and Chris Lynn surviving a clean bowled off Naveen-ul-Haq slower ball. Imran Tahir was brought into the attack early by Guyana and he responded by dismissing Lynn.

Lewis, however, held his nerves and started scoring freely against Tahir and Naveen before he was dismissed by Green. Lewis scored 30 runs. Joshua Da Silva’s replacement Nick Kelly fell early but Ben Dunk looked confident before he was also claimed by Green. The Amazon Warriors did well to keep Dunk quiet and he was run out while he was searching for a desperate two.

In response, Guyana's Hetmyer started brilliantly with a flurry of early boundaries, including a Hero Maximum. Chandrapaul Hemraj supported Hetmyer well, helping Guyana reach 54/1 at the end of the Powerplay. Hetmyer hit a huge six over Ish Sodhi’s head to score his second fifty in two games. He reached the landmark ioff just 31 balls.

Emrit claimed two wickets in two balls, including Pooran for a golden duck, to add some excitement in the match but the Amazon Warriors remained calm to register an easy three-wicket win with three overs to spare.

Brief scores: Guyana Amazon Warriors 131/7 (Hetmyer 71, Hemraj 19, King 10, Rutherford 10; Emrit 3/31, Cottrell 1/24, Drakes 1/28) beat St Kitts & Nevis Patriots 127/8 (Lewis 30, Dunk 29, Emrit 17, Lynn 16; Paul 4/19, Tahir 2/18, Green 1/24) by 3 wickets