GEORGETOWN, Guyana – THE Guyana Amazon Warriors sealed a top-two finish in the CPL with a commanding 64-run victory over the struggling Barbados Royals at the Guyana National Stadium on Sunday night.
In the final match of the preliminary round, the Royals won the toss and sent the Warriors in to bat on the same Providence pitch used earlier in the women’s doubleheader.
The Warriors’ ongoing struggles at the top were evident again when Ben McDermott was run out for just 2 with the score on 13. However, Shai Hope and Quinton Sampson steadied the innings, pushing the total to 41-1 at the end of the powerplay. Hope looked in fine form, racing to 31 off 19 balls before falling to Zishan Motara while going for a big shot. At the halfway mark, the Warriors were well placed at 88-2.
Sampson continued his excellent run, bringing up his second consecutive CPL half-century off 35 balls before falling to Sherfane Rutherford. Romario Shepherd added a useful 20, while Shimron Hetmyer, after a cautious start, accelerated brilliantly to reach his fifty from 32 deliveries. Hetmyer’s 68 in the final over pushed the Warriors to a strong 189-6 from their 20 overs.
The Royals’ reply started disastrously, losing both openers to Dwaine Pretorius. Shamar Joseph then bowled Rassie van der Dussen for 4, leaving Barbados reeling at 32-3 at the end of the powerplay. By the 10th over, they had crawled to 58-3 and were already facing an uphill battle.
Joseph struck again to remove Rutherford for a scratchy 27 off 32, and captain Rovman Powell followed soon after, all but ending Barbados’ hopes. Kofi James offered some late resistance with a quick 26 off 13, but Gudakesh Motie tore through the lower order, finishing with 5-21 to seal the emphatic win.
With the result, the Warriors head into the playoffs full of momentum. The knockout stage bowls off Tuesday at Providence Stadium.
