Sports
Barbados Tridents End Losing Skid, Boost Playoff Hopes with Win Over St Lucia Kings
Barbados Tridents halted a four-match losing streak by defeating St Lucia Kings by eight wickets, keeping their playoff hopes alive despite remaining at the bottom of the points table. Mujeeb Ur Rahman took three wickets as Tridents restricted the Kings to 138 for 6, before chasing down the target with ease. Tridents have three matches remaining, two of them against direct rivals for a top-four finish.
After winning the toss, Tridents captain Chris Green opted to field first. Gudakesh Motie struck early, removing opener Tim Seifert in the second over. Kamil Pooran responded aggressively, hitting Green for 13 runs and Motie for 12 in consecutive Powerplay overs, and also targeted Jakeem Pollard as the Kings reached 51 for 1 after six overs.
Mujeeb ended Pooran's assault with a yorick that struck the stumps in the seventh over. John Campbell and Roston Chase then rebuilt cautiously until Daniel Sams dismissed Campbell for 24 off 27 balls in the 13th over. Chase tried to accelerate but fell to Sams at the start of the death overs. Mujeeb then claimed two wickets in the 19th over, removing Charith Asalanka and Matthew Forde, limiting the Kings' total. A six from McKenny Clarke in the final over helped St Lucia Kings finish at 138 for 6.
In response, Tridents openers Brandon King and Zachary Carter got off to a fast start, reaching 41 without loss in five overs. Chase dismissed King in the sixth over, and Joshua Bishop removed Carter in the ninth, but the Kings could not find further breakthroughs.
Rivaldo Clarke and Quinton de Kock then added an unbroken 76-run partnership to guide Tridents home. The pair took the score to 73 for 2 at the halfway mark before accelerating in the 15th over off Bishop's bowling, with de Kock hitting a boundary to fine leg and Clarke clearing the ropes down the ground. In the following over, de Kock struck a six over deep mid-wicket while Clarke added another boundary, as the pair added 29 runs in two overs to seal the chase.
Maheesh Theekshana conceded few runs in the 17th over, but two boundaries and a six in the 18th over completed Tridents' victory with 13 balls to spare.
Brief Scores: St Lucia Kings 138/6 in 20 overs (Kamil Pooran 37, Roston Chase 34; Mujeeb Ur Rahman 3-22, Daniel Sams 2-20) lost to Barbados Tridents 139/2 in 17.5 overs (Quinton de Kock 47*, Rivaldo Clarke 36*, Zachary Carter 32) by 8 wickets.