Patriots rally to hand Tridents third straight defeat

St Kitts and Nevis Patriots produced a batting performance for the ages, chasing down 218 to defeat the Barbados Tridents by six wickets in a pulsating Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL) clash at Warner Park.

Johnson Charles and Andre Fletcher were the standout performers for the home side, with strong support from their teammates, as the two teams at the bottom of the table served up an entertaining contest. For the Tridents, however, Quinton de Kock’s brilliant 106 ultimately proved in vain.

Sent in to bat, the Tridents got off to a rocky start when Brandon King departed after just eight balls. The setback did little to slow the visitors as Zachary Carter and de Kock took control during the Power Play.

Carter was particularly destructive, consistently finding the middle of the bat and using his power to launch the ball to all parts of the ground. He cleared the ropes seven times, while de Kock maintained the scoring rate through a more classical approach, finding gaps with remarkable consistency.

The pair added 116 for the second wicket before Carter was dismissed for 57. During that period, the Patriots were their own worst enemies, putting down three routine catches and struggling to contain the Tridents’ assault.

The Tridents maintained a run rate of between nine and 10 runs per over throughout the innings, with de Kock continuing his onslaught alongside Sherfane Rutherford. The Patriots struggled to keep the in-form South African off strike as he repeatedly punished their bowling attack.

De Kock reached his century from just 54 balls, becoming the fourth player to score a hundred in the CPL this season. Having earlier been among those to spill a chance, Navin Bidaisee redeemed himself in spectacular fashion with a stunning running catch to finally end de Kock’s innings.

Chris Green and Rivaldo Clarke then saw out the innings, carrying the Tridents to 217 for four.

There was little for the Patriots bowlers to celebrate. Wanindu Hasaranga was the only bowler to finish with a single-digit economy rate after bowling more than one over, and his one for 22 was the best return among the seven-man attack.

The Patriots knew they needed a flying start in reply, and Charles delivered.

The opener attacked from the outset and quickly found his rhythm during the Power Play. Then came a bizarre moment when Charles lofted a full toss towards deep midwicket and was caught.

The Patriots bench was furious that a no-ball had not been called as Charles headed off the field.

However, the third umpire intervened and overturned the decision, sending Charles back to the crease. To make matters worse for the Tridents, Charles promptly smashed the resulting free hit for six.

Charles and Kyle Mayers continued to keep pace with the required run rate, but the Tridents eventually made a breakthrough through a slice of fortune. Rutherford deflected Charles’ straight drive onto the stumps, leaving Mayers stranded and run out.

The Tridents appeared to move another step closer to victory when Charles was eventually dismissed for a superb 78 by Mujeeb Ur Rahman.

But the Patriots refused to buckle.

Instead, they dug deep and avoided surrendering cheap wickets. Dasun Shanaka, Jason Holder, Fletcher and Hasaranga all made valuable contributions to keep the chase alive and propel the Patriots towards what became the fourth-highest successful run chase in CPL history.

Fletcher has repeatedly been the man the Patriots turn to when they need someone to finish the job, and once again he delivered.

The veteran smashed a towering six to seal a sensational six-wicket victory with five balls to spare, sparking wild celebrations at Warner Park.

The Patriots will complete their home leg in two days’ time against the St Lucia Kings, while the Tridents return home to begin their run of home matches, starting on Saturday against defending champions Trinbago Knight Riders.