Tahir's Five-Wicket Haul and Samspon's Blitz Seal Victory for Amazon Warriors
Guyana Amazon Warriors tightened their grip on the top of the table with a gritty, low-scoring win over Saint Lucia Kings in Guyana, a night when Imran Tahir’s guile and Quentin Samspon’s fury bookended a contest that never quite allowed anyone to breathe easy.
Kings fly, then crash
Sent in to bat, the Kings began like a side intent on silencing the home crowd early. Kamil Pooran took charge after Tim Seifert’s early exit, counterpunching with crisp, clean hitting. Five fours, two sixes, all in the Powerplay. He hunted anything even slightly off length, and with John Campbell settling in, Saint Lucia strode to 51 for 1 after six overs, well placed and seemingly in control.
Then the game turned on its head.
Mehidy Hasan Miraz broke the stand right after the Powerplay, removing Campbell and snapping a 40-run partnership that had looked increasingly dangerous. That wicket cracked the door open. Tahir kicked it down.
The Warriors captain trapped Pooran lbw, then pinned Roston Chase in front in quick succession, his variations suddenly too sharp, his pace through the air too clever. The Kings’ innings, once smooth, began to stutter.
Mehidy returned in the 11th over and ripped out Kemol Savory and Charith Asalanka, both gone in the space of a few deliveries. Panic set in. Footwork vanished. So did the middle order.
Tahir smelled blood. McKenny Clarke’s stumps went cartwheeling. Matthew Forde followed, also bowled, undone by drift and dip. Saint Lucia had lost seven wickets for just 19 runs, a collapse that sucked the air out of their early flourish.
By the 14th over, Tahir had his fifth, trapping Joshua Bishop lbw to complete a masterful spell and leave the Kings gasping at 81 for 9.
Only Obus Pienaar stood firm. His 35 was not flashy, but it was vital. He farmed the strike, dragged the score forward, and stitched together a 38-run last-wicket stand with Maheesh Theekshana that at least gave the bowlers something to work with. Pienaar finally holed out in the 19th over, fittingly to Tahir, as Saint Lucia were bowled out for 119 — a total that looked light but not irrelevant on a surface offering plenty to the spinners.
A chase that refused to flow
A target of 120 should have been routine. It wasn’t.
Guyana’s reply started in a crawl. The Kings’ attack, sensing their only route back into the game, hit their lengths and strangled the scoring. At the end of the Powerplay, the Warriors had limped to 23 for 1, just two boundaries on the board and no rhythm to speak of.
After the loss of Mavendra Dindyal, Glenn Phillips and Shai Hope tried to steady things. They did, but at a cost. Their 53-run stand consumed 58 balls, a partnership that kept wickets in hand but never quite broke the shackles. Singles, dots, the odd release shot — it was functional, not convincing.
That caution left the door ajar. The Kings barged through it.
Three wickets fell in three overs, the chase suddenly wobbling. The required runs were never out of reach, but the mood had shifted. The crowd grew restless. The Kings found their voice in the field, sensing an opening that had not existed half an hour earlier.
Then Samspon walked in and ended the debate.
Samspon slams it shut
Quentin Samspon did not bother with a sighter. He went straight to demolition mode. Length balls disappeared over the ropes. Anything fractionally short or overpitched was punished.
Five sixes. Eleven balls. An unbeaten 37 that tore the tension out of the evening.
Where the top order had prodded and nudged, Samspon swung hard and true, turning a nervy finish into a statement win. The Kings’ faint hope of a miracle comeback vanished under a barrage of clean hitting, the chase wrapped up with four wickets to spare.
By the end, the story had two clear heroes. Tahir, with a five-wicket haul that dismantled Saint Lucia’s innings and underlined his enduring class. Samspon, with a whirlwind cameo that reminded the league how quickly this Warriors side can flip a script.
Top of the table secured, Guyana leave this one knowing they can win ugly, win tight, and still find room for a little chaos at the finish.
