CPL 2019, Match 22, St Lucia Zouks vs Guyana Amazon Warriors, Match Prediction – Weather Report, Pitch Conditions, Playing XIs and Live Streaming Details

The Warriors are unbeaten after six matches and have already qualified for the playoffs.

Published - 25 Sept 2019, 13:52 IST | Updated - 25 Sept 2019, 13:52 IST

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Guyana Amazon Warriors have looked a class apart from the other teams in the ongoing CPL. The Shoaib Malik-led unit became the first team to qualify for the playoffs, decimating the Jamaica Tallawahs in their previous match. Their Net Run Rate of +1.858 also tells a story about their dominant run. Their next match is against Daren Sammy’s St Lucia Zouks at the Gros Islet.

Last time around, the Warriors beat the Zouks by 13 runs in Guyana. As far as the Zouks are concerned, they are still in contention for a playoff berth after their win over the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots. However, the visitors, being unbeaten, will pose a massive threat to them, especially in the bowling department. In their last seven meetings, the Warriors have come out trumps five times.

Pitch and Conditions

The pitch in St Lucia has tended to help the spinners despite the soggy conditions due to rain. Runs haven’t been all that easy to come by. Both teams have some quality spinners in their ranks and hence, winning the toss and batting first should be the way forward. There are forecast of a downpour yet again and it won’t be a surprise if play gets stopped for a fair amount of time.

Team Combinations

St Lucia Zouks

The Zouks’ batting has mostly been powered by Rahkeem Cornwall, being their leading run-scorer. But even he hasn’t been amongst the runs in the last couple of matches. Andre Fletcher has gotten 141 runs and needs to show a bit more fluency. Colin Ingram didn’t have a great first match, but he is seeming to find his rhythm, especially after his half-century against the Knight Riders in St Lucia.

Colin de Grandhomme has looked good, having scored 117 runs at 23.40. In the bowling department, Hardus Viljoen picked up a three-wicket haul after going wicketless for four matches in a row. Jeavor Royal hit the right channels with his left-arm spin. A lot will depend on how Fawad Ahmed steps up as he has eight wickets at 6.77. Kesrick Williams has also made breakthroughs.

Probable XI

Andre Fletcher (wk), Rahkeem Cornwall, Colin Ingram, Colin de Grandhomme, Andre McCarthy, Christopher Barnwell, Daren Sammy (C), Hardus Viljoen, Jeavor Royal, Kesrick Williams, Fawad Ahmed

Guyana Amazon Warriors

Bowling has arguably been an X-factor for the Warriors. Even skipper Malik, who isn’t a regular bowler, has an economy of 3.33. Chris Green has been the standout with 10 wickets at 6.98. Imran Tahir has been hard to get away as he has picked up a minimum of two wickets in each of the three matches. Pacer Romario Shepherd is another of those bowlers with an economy of less than 6.

There’s a bit of concern with Keemo Paul’s economy, which is currently at 9.90. The positive aspect is that he has eight wickets. In the batting department, Brandon King has been outstanding at the top as he has 194 runs. Malik has captained from the front, scoring 150 runs at an average of 75. Hemraj and Hetmyer are also in good form. Not to forget Pooran and Rutherford’s power hitting.

Probable XI

Brandon King, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Shimron Hetmyer, Shoaib Malik (C), Nicholas Pooran, Sherfane Rutherford, Keemo Paul, Chris Green, Romario Shepherd, Odean Smith, Imran Tahir