WITH two matches remaining in the 2021 Hero Caribbean Premier League T20 tournament group stage for the Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR), skipper Kieron Pollard wants to extend the team’s three-game win-streak to five as the race tightens ahead of the knockout round.
The defending champions secured a six-wicket win over Barbados Royals at Warner Park in St Kitts on Thursday and now sit atop the standings on ten points. The dominant victory saw TKR unseat tournament leaders St Kitts and Nevis Patriots (SKNP) from pole position.
However, both TKR and SKNP face each other in their final two matches of the group stage on Saturday and on Sunday.
The results from these matches will determine who progresses on to the knockout stage as group leaders.
After’s Thursday’s result, Pollard hopes his team will maintain a winning momentum and enter the next stage atop the standings.
“We are focused on trying to get two points each from the next two games. We’ll watch the table, see where we’re at and see where we need to continue to improve.
[caption id="attachment_912226" align="alignnone" width="1024"] Jayden Seales (L) of Trinbago Knight Riders celebrates the dismissal of Johnson Charles (R) of Barbados Royals during the 2021 Hero Caribbean Premier League match 23 at Warner Park Sporting Complex on Thursday, in Basseterre, St Kitts - Photo courtesy CPL T20[/caption]
“The strongest soldiers always get the hardest fight. We are strong and hopefully, we can give a good account of ourselves in the next two games.
“This is the business end of the tournament so we need to try to nail down all the hard moments,” he said. Looking ahead at this weekend’s games, Pollard acknowledged SKNP’s wealth of talent.
Former TKR talisman Dwayne Bravo captained the team to an unbeaten five-match run at the start of the competition.
But since he sustained a groin injury in the sixth match, SKNP have not been consistent and lost the last three matches.
Although Bravo is still injured, the likes of big-hitters Chris Gayle, Evin Lewis, Sherfane Rutherford and Fabian Allen, backed by pacers Sheldon Cottrell and Paul van Meekeran and spinners Fawad Ahmed and Asif Ali remain a threat to any batting and bowling line-up. Pollard, however, is undeterred and chasing full points.
“They (SKNP) are a good team, they have world-class players in their line-up, experienced players and well-balanced but it’s just a matter of us focusing on what we need to do as a team, and once we do that, that’s the main thing.
[caption id="attachment_912225" align="alignnone" width="732"] Khary Pierre (L) of Trinbago Knight Riders celebrates the dismissal of Glenn Phillips (R) of Barbados Royals during the 2021 Hero Caribbean Premier League match 23 at Warner Park Sporting Complex on Thursday in Basseterre, St Kitts. - Photo courtesy CPL T20[/caption]
“We don’t really focus much on the opposition, we respect the opposition but we have to focus on what we need to do in order to get our victory,” he added.
Thursday’s clash saw TKR restrict the Barbados fr
