BASSETERRE – St Kitts & Nevis Patriots and St Lucia Kings will meet in the final of the Caribbean Premier League Twenty20 on Wednesday in St Kitts, with one side set to win their maiden title.
Opener Evin Lewis hit his third half-century to pass 400 runs for the campaign and the Patriots romped into only their second CPL final with an emphatic seven-wicket victory over Guyana Amazon Warriors in the second semi-final on Tuesday at Warner Park.
In the first semi-final, Mark Deyal smashed a maiden Twenty20 half-century and David Wiese snatched his second five-wicket haul in four days, and the Kings surged into their second successive final by toppling reigning champions Trinbago Knight Riders by 21 runs.
Patriots completed their highest run chase of the tournament in a canter, overhauling a target of 179 with 13 balls to spare.
Lewis, coming off a hundred in the previous match four days ago, punched three fours and eight sixes in an electrifying, 29-ball, unbeaten 77 to spearhead the run chase.
Crucially, Lewis put on 76 off 44 balls for the first wicket with veteran Chris Gayle, who equalled his best score of the tournament with 42 off 27 balls, before adding a further 88 for the second wicket with captain Dwayne Bravo, whose 34 required 31 balls.
Shimron Hetmyer earlier struck an unbeaten 45 off 20 deliveries as Amazon Warriors raised 178 for nine off their 30 overs, after choosing to bat first.
Openers Chandrapaul Hemraj and Brandon King chipped in with 27, and captain Nicholas Pooran struck 26, and off-spinner Jon-Russ Jagessar, leg-spinner Fawad Ahmed, left-arm pacer Dominic Drakes and pacer Naseem Shah, all grabbed two wickets each.
Earlier, Kings, choosing to bat, stormed to an imposing 205 for four off 20 overs with the left-handed Deyal cracking 78 off 44 balls.
Tim David belted an unbeaten 38 off 17 balls, in-form Roston Chase carved out 36 off 21 balls and Wiese also proved handy with the bat with a 21-ball, unbeaten 34.
In reply, the match was in the balance at 159 for four, but seamer Wiese got the key wicket of TKR captain Kieron Pollard for 26 in the 16th over to grab three of the last six wickets to fall for 25 and end with the spectacular figures of 5-39 off four overs.
Sunil Narine hit a 17-ball 30, Denesh Ramdin belted 29, Colin Munro got 28 and Darren Bravo added 25 and as TKR folded for 184 in the final over.
(CMC)
