The later of the two semi-finals in the Caribbean Premier League on Tuesday sees the second and third placed teams in the CPL 2021 table meeting when the Guyana Amazon Warriors go up against the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots.
The Amazon Warriors are no strangers when it comes to making the final of this competition while the Patriots are looking to make the final of their own party so this one is going to be feisty and competitive throughout.
Guyana Amazon Warriors
The Guyana Amazon Warriors deserve a lot of credit. They had to win both of their matches over the weekend to ensure they were in these semi-finals and although they were up against a dangerous Jamaica Tallawahs outfit, they snuffed out the threat from the opposition and imposed themselves on both matches and got the desired result. The fact they have effectively played knockout cricket should stand them in good stead now that they are here in knockout action.
The Amazon Warriors’ bowlers have been very good in the latter stages of this competition. Their spinners have bowled tight lines and excellent lengths and generally been hard to get away while their seamers have been canny. Guyana haven’t been great with the bat but they’ve won six matches so they’ve got the job done more often than they haven’t. If their unit delivers as one then they are going to be tough to beat once again.
St Kitts and Nevis Patriots
When we reached the halfway mark of the regular season it looked like the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots were going to steamroll the competition. They had won five out of five and only one of those matches was even close in any way. They started well but haven’t finished very well as they only won one of their last five outings, which was on Saturday evening when Evin Lewis smashed 100. In the other four games they’ve been pretty soundly beaten.
The best thing to happen to the Patriots over the final weekend of the regular season was the return of their captain Dwayne Bravo. He balances out the side not just in his skillset but also in his performances and you can tell that brings confidence to the side because their top order hadn’t been getting going at all without him. He brings an energy to the team which the Patriots will hope is enough to lead them to the final.
Special Offer
Sign up for a Boylesports account to get up to £25 in free bets! Perfect offer for this league! Click the image below for this great offer! New accounts only. 18+ T&Cs apply. Gamble Aware.
Key Men
Romario Shepherd has been touted as an all-rounder for a while now and on Sunday we saw why when he delivered an insane blitz with the bat which blew the Jamaica Tallawahs away. He has been strong with the ball throughout the competition so he is key for Guyana here.
Dwayne Bravo has shown his importance to the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots throughout the competition when he has been fit. He brings an experience bowling option and he is hitting the ball about as well as he has done for a while.
Betting
The Guyana Amazon Warriors probably have the edge with the ball in this match but they have suffered two heavy beatings at the hands of the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots and I fear a little for their batting. You would imagine that at least one of the Patriots’ batsmen will come off in this semi-final, there are too many good ones not to, so at some point the Amazon Warriors are going to need to come up with some big runs.
The other issue I have with the Amazon Warriors here is that they were only as competitive as they were in those opening two matches because of the form with bat and ball of Mohammad Hafeez. He isn’t around for this match and although they have won their last three games, they have relied on an insane individual scores to get them up to something competitive. Their second highest score in the last three matches has been 25 so Guyana aren’t really batting as one. St Kitts and Nevis haven’t been in sparkling form in the second half of the campaign but the return of Dwayne Bravo does wonders for their side and that might prove the difference here.
Tips
Back St Kitts and Nevis Patriots to beat Guyana Amazon Warriors for a 3/10 stake at 1.80 with Betfair
Back them here:
Copyright secured by Digiprove © 2021
