WCPL: Matthews, Chamari dazzle as Royals retain title

After her recent Women’s Asia Cup 2024 heroics, Chamari Athapaththu, who guided Sri Lanka to their maiden title, seems to be in a championship winning spree.

Chamari was one of the key stars for Barbados Royals, who conquered Trinbago Knight Riders by four wickets in the final of the 2024 Massy Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy in Tarouba, Trinidad to retain their title. 

Last season, Barbados Royals won the WCPL 2023 championship beating Guyana Amazon Warriors in the final. 

Player of the Tournament Hayley Matthews won the toss and chose to insert the opposition on Thursday in the summit clash. Royals captain herself struck a vital blow early on, bowling the dangerous Deandra Dottin for just six runs with a lovely ball that zipped off the wicket and onto the stumps. Chinelle Henry then held a smart return catch to dismiss Jemimah Rodrigues, leaving the Knight Riders struggling on 10/2 inside three overs, revealed an ICC communiqué.

Jannillea Glasgow and Shikha Pandey steadied the ship, facing 31 balls each for 24 and 28 runs respectively but the Knight Riders fell from 53-3 in the eleventh over to 75/8 in the 17th.

A struggle to find the boundary was a theme throughout the Knight Riders’ innings, they managed just two sixes and six fours in their twenty overs in contrast to the Royals, who peppered the advertising hoardings 13 times in five less overs. 

The Knight Riders’ total of 93/8 never looked like being enough to prevent the Royals scooping a second consecutive WCPL title and so it proved.

Chamari Athapaththu set about the lowly target with relish, hitting a flurry of early boundaries to break the back of the chase. Before the game the Sri Lankan all-rounder had spoken of how much she enjoys playing in the tournament.

Earlier in the afternoon, Aaliyah Alleyne starred with the ball in hand for the Royals, the right arm seamer bowling an accurate line, exerting pressure and forcing some rash shots. She ended with figures of 4/21 off her four overs and threw in some entertaining and well-choreographed dance moves upon picking up her wickets. It was to be a Player of the Match performance.

Pandey bowled fast in search of early wickets for the Knight riders, beating the bat without success. Nevertheless, the Royals motored to 48-0 in the PowerPlay.

The reigning champions did then lose some momentum as wickets began to fall in clusters. Ramnath snared the big wicket of Hayley Matthews (13) with the first ball of the seventh over, a lofted back foot punch flying too close to Dottin at backward point, the fielder leaping to her left and clinging on to a smart chance.

Qiana Joseph landed some lusty blows before being caught on the long off boundary in spectacular sliding fashion by Shamilia Connell. Alleyne was caught in a similar yet simpler vein by Connell, the batter going for the lofted six down the ground but not quite middling it enough to clear the fielder.

Williams and Henry fell cheaply as some jitters seemed to seep into the Royals with the finishing line in sight, and yet, despite a fine showing with the ball by the Knight Riders the result never truly looked in doubt.

Chamari Athapaththu (39*) anchored the innings and struck the winning runs back down the ground with five overs left unused and four wickets remaining. Her Royals teammates swarming the pitch in a pink hued throng to celebrate back-to-back WCPL titles, the ICC communiqué added.

--Agencies