TKR W 113/9 in 20 Overs [Shikha Pandey 30(34), Deandra Dottin 28(26); Amanda-Jade Wellington 2/14 in 4 overs] lost to BR W 116/3 in 17.1 Overs {Hayley Matthews 67*(56); Jess Jonassen 2/21 in 4 Overs)
Trinbago Knight Riders clashed against the Barbados Royals in their first game of the WCPL 2024. With a strong core group alongside additions of experienced overseas players, TKR women’s squad looked strong as ever and ready to take the WCPL by storm. TKR women aimed to start their campaign with the victory and commence their road to 2nd WCPL title on a positive note. The TKR fans were eager to see their team deliver some stunning performances on the field.
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After being put into bat first, TKR women suffered a couple of early blows with both openers going back in the hut in the powerplay itself. Jemimah Rodrigues, who was playing her first-ever WCPL took the mantle upon herself and scored a couple of boundaries to ease the pressure. Skipper Deandra Dottin joined the party, as she aimed to stabilize the innings alongside Jemimah. Deandra struck some stunning blows against the spinners, despite the bowlers finding a lot of turn from the pitch. However, things started to look better for TKR, they lost another couple of wickets in quick succession. BR looked to capitalize on the situation, however, Shikha Pandey alongside young Zaida James forged an impressive partnership to get TKR back in the game. Shikha played a crucial hand of 30 runs, lower down the order, as TKR fought their way to 113 at the end of the innings. With enough assistance for the spinners in the pitch, it was all on the TKR bowlers now to turn it around for the team and defend the total.
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The TKR Women took the field with an aggressive mindset and aimed to defend the target by delivering a strong performance. They aimed for early wickets and that’s exactly what Jess Jonassen delivered as she dismissed the dangerous Chamari Athapaththu in her first over itself. TKR looked to capitalize on the momentum they got with the early wicket and apply pressure on the BR batters. However, despite their best efforts, BR skipper Hayley Matthews led the charge with an impressive half-century. The TKR spin-twins Jess and Anisa tried their level best to turn it around and picked up a few wickets in the middle phase, however it wasn’t enough to stop the Royals from chasing the total. The TKR Women will now be aiming to learn from this game and looking forward to bounce back in their next game.
