Captain Rovman Powell led the way, blasting an unbeaten 41 off 17 balls to secure Barbados Royals’ first CPL victory in 2025. Despite this, the Royals remained at the bottom of the points standings, with David Wiese’s St Lucia Kings and Nicholas Pooran’s Trinbago Knight Riders leading the way. Currently, Kings and TKR are separated only by their net run rate.
The Royals struggled to get off to a good start when asked to bat first. They lost Quinton de Kock to left-arm fingerspinner Khary Pierre in the third over, and by the end of the powerplay, they were only 39 for 1. Tabraiz Shamsi, South Africa’s left-arm wristspinner, then stifled the Royals even more, taking out Brandon King (42), Kadeem Alleyne (39) and Sherfane Rutherford (16) in four overs for only 26 runs.
When Powell joined Chris Green, the Royals were 120 for 5 in the 16th over.
Powell then teed off, setting up Alzarri Joseph for two sixes and a four in the nineteenth over. Powell and Green scored three fours and a six in the innings’ last over, bowled by rookie Delano Potgieter.
Green wasn’t finished quite yet. He struck with the new ball, dismissing Johnson Charles and Roston Chase. Wicketkeeper-opener Tim Seifert scored 24 off 13 before being bowled by Jomel Warrican. Tim David, one of the world’s most dangerous finishers, threatened to take the game away from the Royals until Daniel Sams intervened and ended his innings on 44 off 28 balls.
David’s dismissal left Kings on 94 for 6 in 12 overs, requiring 98 off 48 balls. Cameos from Wiese and Joseph brought the Kings closer, but the Royals eventually secured their first victory of the season and kept their playoff chances alive.
India
