Knight Riders vs Falcons, Eliminator [ 8.00 pm ]

Okay. I calling this the battle of the 2 O's

...a who tell them I can wait the extra hour.

Trinbago Knight Riders have won the toss and have opted to field

In reply to Narper

Sheldon: "It will be a good night for TKR openers to return to form. Also Darren Bravo needs to turn back the clock. Go TKR"


Alex Hales: "I think it's really important to start well. In the last three games that we've lost, we probably haven't started well. As a batting unit, we found ourselves two or three down in the Powerplay. So in these pressure games, it's important to throw the first punch and stay on top. That hundred is the highest score of my career, so that's a pretty special experience. But apart from that, I've actually struggled at this ground. I think this is a great opportunity for me to put it right with a great franchise in some pressure games. [Longevity] I guess it's the love of the game and working hard behind the scenes. In T20, you always have to be looking to get better and adapt as a batter. These analysts seem to know your strengths and weaknesses, so you have to keep finding ways to improve, and that's something I've managed to do over the years. [On the Team's Power-Hitters] I love the banter. It's pretty impressive to watch those guys go about it, particularly Pollard and Russell. It's just unbelievable to watch them. I can't quite keep up with them. I've hit a few sixes, but I'm more of a boundary hitter, more of a four-hitter. Those guys can hit it to the moon and back, so I can just stand in awe and watch. [Who hits the Biggest Six] Honestly, it's so tough to say. I'd probably have to say Russell would hit the biggest, but Pollard consistently just seems to hit it as far as he wants."

Pitch Report from Samuel Badree: "It's a pleasant day, much cooler than we've seen before, at around 28 degrees Celsius. The humidity is always high, and there's a little breeze that's coming across at the moment. In terms of the dimensions, there is just a two-meter differential in the square boundaries, and the straight boundary is 75 meters. As I look at the surface, it's really a tale of two halves. On one half, it's quite bare and favors spinners. We saw someone like Usama Mir exploit these conditions. He bowled at a good pace and was able to extract significant turn from the surface, keeping the stumps in play as much as possible. As I go further down the track, there's a grass area around the 8.6-8.9 meter mark that the bowlers can use as a guide. The other half has more green grass, which someone like Jayden Seales utilized well. The last time he bowled here, he was able to get some seam movement and pick up two wickets in the Powerplay. Both teams have wonderful bowlers who can bowl on a pitch like this. We have skillful spin bowlers on both sides and skillful fast bowlers on both sides. There are runs on offer as well, so this one sets up for a wonderful game."

Imad Wasim: "We wanted to bat first. I think runs on the board are very important, especially against TKR. If we get a good score, a par score, I think we have the bowlers to defend it. [On Making the Playoffs] It's a good achievement, a great achievement, I must say. But we're just not here to play playoffs. We want to win every game. I'm really honored by how Antiguans supported us last year and how they keep on supporting us this year. I'm really happy about it. [On the Long Break] We had good sessions. The confidence is high, and the atmosphere is nice, so we're enjoying it here. [Team Changes] Yes, unfortunately, Salman Irshad has a groin injury from the last game, so he's not playing. Obed McCoy is in. And Rahkeem Cornwall is in instead of Shamar Springer."

Nicholas Pooran: "We're going to bowl first. We just want to try to limit them as much as possible, and hopefully, we can chase them down. It's all about respecting the conditions and really focusing on different areas we have to improve. We know that in the Powerplay, we have let ourselves down by losing three or four wickets. That's something we definitely spoke about. The bowling group has been fantastic for us so far, and hopefully, that continues. We have one change. Joshua Da Silva is out, and Darren Bravo is in. T20 cricket is all about tactics and strategy. We just feel like they have a lot of left-arm spinners and leg spinners, and we felt like that was a good tactical decision."

In reply to Narper

OK Narps ..ah, on the wagon for TKR victory tonite...

Antigua and Barbuda Falcons head coach, Paul Nixon: "[On Playoff Qualification] The first mission is accomplished, which is a great challenge from everybody's side. We are all different teams working hard for this first step in the tournament. I'm really pleased with the way we've gone about it as a team. The energy in the unit has been good, and the leadership group has worked well. We have a bit to go yet, but we're in the mix, and that's really important. What has gone brilliantly so far is the team cohesion and the quality of our preparation. The captain has been closely involved with those decisions, and we have a lot of flexibility within our team. [On Adapting to Pitches] There are two sides of Guyana. There's a very low, slow, dogged pitch, which is very tough to score on. Then there's another pitch where the scores are 170-180. You're never quite sure what you're going to get, and that's where you have to be very intelligent with your decision-making. The messages coming back from the center to the players early on are really important. We've got local guys who have played before, who know the square and the pitches on the square, and that makes a difference for us. [On Winning the Championship] To take the trophy back to Antigua and Barbuda Falcons, to take it back home, would be amazing. The franchise hasn't been this far before, so we're very positive and very bullish about how we can move forward and the belief we've got in our unit. We believe we can do it; we can win it. [Playing Against TKR] We know we're playing against a big franchise, a big-money franchise, with big players and big names. So for us, it's about doing what we've done well. We know how people play, and we've done our preparation. We know where they are. We've already beaten them at home, so we know we can do well against them. We've played well against them in the past, and we're going to play well against them in the future."

7:55 pm And we are five minutes away from the first ball of the match. The atmosphere here in Guyana is lovely, and the weather is perfect for a game of cricket, with no signs of rain in the forecast.

The umpires are making their way out to the middle. Amir Jangoo and Rahkeem Cornwall to open the innings for the Falcons.

Jangoo and Cornwall are at the crease.
Jangoo is on strike.
Netravalkar will open the attack

0.1
Netravalkar to Jangoo, leg byes, FOUR, good start for the Falcons! Jangoo walks down the track and shuffles a bit. He is cramped for space with the angle in and can't flick it as the ball deflects off his pads and rolls past the right side of the keeper

ABF 6/0 (1) CRR: 6

Amir Jangoo 1(5)
Rahkeem Cornwall 1(1)

Saurabh Netravalkar
1-0-2-0

1.2
Akeal Hosein to Cornwall, FOUR, almost chopped on! On a fuller length on off, turning away, Cornwall pushes at it with minimal foot movement

While watching the women's game today I decided to be a matchmaker and paired the Qiana Joseph woman with Jumbo Corn.