Saint Lucia Kings wins first-ever trophy of Caribbean Premier League

Caribbean: Saint Lucia Kings has created history by winning first-ever trophy in the Caribbean Premier League on Sunday night at Guyana Providence Stadium. The Kings defeated Guyana Amazon Warriors by six wickets and chased the target in 18 overs. 

With the powerful partnership of 87 runs by Aaron Jones and Roston Chase, the Kings made 139 runs while having six wickets in hand. Rostan Chase, who made 39 runs off 22 deliveries and took one wicket in his four-over spell with 12 runs, won “Player of the Match”. 

On the other hand, James made 48 runs off 31 deliveries and fell out of his half-century only by two runs. Saint Lucia Kings received a powerful start in the second inning of the game with the batting of Faf du Plessis who made 21 runs off 21 deliveries. 

However, the bowlers remained key figures to bring glory as they restricted Warriors to 138 total runs while taking eight wickets. 

Noor Ahmad took three wickets in his four-over spell with 19 runs and was also supported by Mathew Forde who took one wicket in his three-over spell with 11 runs. The toss was won by Kings who decided to bowl first, and the Warriors did not show class cricket in their home ground. 

Shai Hope from Warriors made 22 runs off 24 deliveries and Dwaine Pretorius made 25 runs off 12 deliveries. With the performance, Saint Lucia Kings managed to lift their first-ever CPL trophy after 11 years of wait. 

Notably, the CPL 2023 was won by Guyana Amazon Warriors, and they were playing their seventh final in CPL 2024. 

Celebration at Guyana

The Guyana National Stadium was jam-packed with enthusiastic crowd as people gathered to support their favourite team. The celebration erupted among the fans of the Kings after they were announced winners of the league as they started dancing to the beats of Caribbean music.

Fans chanted the names of their favourite players including Skipper Plessis, Roston Chase and Jones and stated that they truly deserve the trophy. Some also extended greetings to Plessis for winning his first-ever trophy as a captain and lauded him for his performance throughout the season. 

The player of the tournament was given to Noor Ahmed for showcasing exceptional bowling skills throughout the season. People in Saint Lucia expressed delight with another glory for the country after winning first-ever medals at the Summer Olympics. 

 The team also celebrated their maiden victory in the Caribbean Premier League on the ground and danced their heart out after receiving trophy.