CPL 2020: Predicted Best XI of the six teams

After the resumption of Test and ODI cricket, it’s time for some T20s, though the threat of COVID-19 keeps looming large. The 2020 edition of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) is all set to get underway on Tuesday, August 18. Trinbago Knight Riders and last year’s runners-up Guyana Amazon Warriors will be locking horns in the opening game at the Brian Lara Stadium in Trinidad.

Earlier, it was learned that the tournament will only be played in Trinidad due to the coronavirus pandemic. The Brian Lara Stadium generally hosts the playoff matches in the CPL, but 23 out of 33 matches will be played there. The Queen’s Park Oval at Port of Spain is the other venue for upcoming T20 league in the West Indies. Last month, the drafts for the 2020 CPL took place.

The Barbados Tridents, led by Caribbean Test skipper Jason Holder, are the defending champions after they beat the Warriors in the 2019 final. Last year’s CPL had a viewership of 312 million and this time, the numbers are expected to soar due to the long break cricket has witnessed due to the pandemic. Social distancing and other protocols will be in place, keeping in mind the current scenario.

Here’s the best predicted XI of the teams in CPL 2020: –

1. Guyana Amazon Warriors

Brandon King, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Shimron Hetmyer, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Ross Taylor, Sherfane Rutherford, Keemo Paul, Chris Green, Romario Shepherd, Naveen-ul-Haq, Imran Tahir

2. Trinbago Knight Riders

Lendl Simmons, Sunil Narine, Colin Munro, Tim Seifert (wk), Darren Bravo, Kieron Pollard (C), Dwayne Bravo, Fawad Ahmed, Khary Pierre, Ali Khan, Anderson Phillip

3. Barbados Tridents

Johnson Charles, Shai Hope (wk), Shamarh Brooks, Justin Greaves, Jonathan Carter, Corey Anderson, Jason Holder (C), Raymon Reifer, Ashley Nurse, Rashid Khan, Hayden Walsh Jr

4. St Kitts and Nevis Patriots

Chris Lynn, Evin Lewis, Denesh Ramdin (wk), Ben Dunk, Nicholas Kelly, Joshua de Silva, Rayad Emrit (C), Sohail Tanvir, Ish Sodhi, Sheldon Cottrell, Alzarri Joseph

5. St Lucia Zouks

Rahkeem Cornwall, Andre Fletcher, Leniko Boucher (wk), Najibullah Zadran, Mohammad Nabi, Kavem Hodge, Daren Sammy (C), Chemar Holder, Kesrick Williams, Zahir Khan Pakteen, Obed McCoy

6. Jamaica Tallawahs

Glenn Phillips (wk), Chadwick Walton, Jermaine Blackwood, Rovman Powell, Andre Russell, Asif Ali, Carlos Brathwaite, Oshane Thomas, Sandeep Lamichhane, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Fidel Edwards