CPL 2020: Mohammad Nabi, Roston Chase trounce Patriots in battle of Saints

A brilliant all-round show by Mohammad Nabi, ably supported by Roston Chase and Scott Kuggeleijn helped St. Lucia Zouks get a commanding victory over the St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots. That win bumps Daren Sammy’s side towards the top of the table in the 2020 Hero Caribbean Premier League, ahead of their next game against the Guyana Amazon Warriors on August 23.

Being asked to bat first, the Zouks got off to a good start as they put up 16 on the board after two overs, with Andre Fletcher playing a couple of textbook off drives. Fletcher’s partner Rahkeem Cornwall had to retire prematurely in the next over, but new man Mark Deyal kept the aggression going, getting a six over mid-wicket of his very first ball.

The next over saw spin being introduced into the attack, with Jon-Russ Jaggesar, but luck was with the Zouks as two dropped catches helped them climb to 42 after four. Fletcher’s immaculate strokeplay on the off-side continued, as a couple more boundaries pushed the score to 64 by the end of the powerplay.

The Zouks partnership was broken shortly after the powerplay, as captain Rayad Emrit struck of his first delivery and piled on the pressure by bowling five dot balls after that to get a wicket maiden. New man Najibullah Zadran and Fletcher began playing a little more cautiously, as they added just 37 in the five overs post the powerplay.

Attempting to relieve the pressure, Fletcher tried to hoof one over mid-wicket of Jaggesar’s third over, but only found the fielder in the deep, and disgruntledly walked back to the pavilion after scoring 46. Jaggesar struck again in his final over, surprising the in-form Roston Chase with a carrom ball that bounced devilishly off the pitch to get him caught behind.

Sensing blood, Patriots skipper Emrit brought back strike bowler Sohail Tanvir into the attack, and the Pakistani pacer immediately accounted for the wickets of Zadran and Daren Sammy. Despite that brilliant start, the Zouks found themselves at 123/5 after 15 overs. The Patriots continued their comeback in the game, as good overs from the skipper and from Sheldon Cottrell dropped the scoring rate to just above seven an over.

Mohammad Nabi finally gave the fans something to cheer about in the penultimate, getting two huge sixes on the leg side to get to 4000 runs in T20 cricket. The Afghani all-rounder piled on the runs in the final over as well, adding 32 off the last two overs to finish with the highest total in CPL 2020, ending at 172/6.

Nabi started off proceedings with the ball as well, conceding just one run of the first over. Patriots openers Evin Lewis and Chris Lynn though compensated for that in the next over, scoring 21 runs of it. Lynn tried to keep that attack going, but his innings was cut short thanks to a one handed blinder from Zadran.

A part-time spinner struck again for the Zouks, as Roston Chase enticed Joshua Da Silva to loft one into the air and get caught in the deep. Lewis though remained undeterred by the loss of wickets around him, as he smashed four fours and two sixes in the powerplay overs to bump the team score to 52.

The southpaw’s innings didn’t last too long post the powerplay, as a faint edge to the keeper of Chase’s bowling sent his packing. The third wicket dampened the Patriots scoring rate, as they ended up adding only 26 runs in the next four overs, leaving themselves a mountain to climb in the last ten.

The pressure was palpable, and forced veteran Ben Dunk to play a rash shot against the off-spin of Chase, only to lose his bearings in the process. Dunk’s wicket all but ended the contest as the chase became too steep for this top-heavy St. Kitts and Nevis side. The chasing side’s misery was further compounded by Scott Kuggeleijn who dismissed Kieran Powell a few overs later.

Kuggeleijn next picked up the wicket of the last recognised Patriots batsman in Denesh Ramdin, who walked back after scoring 46. Next to fall was Tanvir, who skied one in the air to be caught at mid-off. The Kiwi pacer got the fourth of his night in his final over, with opposition skipper Emrit being caught in the deep.

Sheldon Cottrell provided some fireworks in the end for the Patriots, but it was always going to be too little, too late for the chasing team, as they finished with a score of 162/8 after 20 overs.