Despite an incredible all-round display from Roston Chase against the Jamaica Tallawahs in the opening match of the 2023 CPL, Saint Lucia Kings narrowly lost the game. But we have a chance of correcting our mistakes in our very next game when we take on the Barbados Royals.
Chase came up with the goods with a half-century and 3 wickets against the Tallawahs, but we will need more than one player to show up against Barbados Royals to get off the mark in the league.
The Royals are stacked with star players like Kyle Mayers, Jason Holder, Obed McCoy, and Rahkeem Cornwall. Mayers was the Royals’ leading scorer last season with 366 runs and was the second-highest run-scorer in the season. We will need to keep the hard-hitting batter in check to avoid the Royals getting to a mammoth total.
On the other hand, in the bowling department, Holder was picking up wickets at regular intervals last season. The right-arm fast bowler picked up 17 wickets and was the second-highest wicket-taker only behind our star player - Alzarri Joseph.
Cornwall is another threat in the Royals’ team. His batting prowess in the death overs is second to none, so Alzarri & co will need to be at their best to keep him at bay.
There are no easy fixtures in the CPL and the opening match was the perfect example of it. Having shown early signs that we are a force to reckon with, it is now time for our players to put in the work and reap the rewards.
The match against Barbados Royals will be a true test of our grit and determination of grinding out results. Faf du Plessis and his men have warmed up, so we can expect big things in this game!
