Shepherd’s class propels Warriors to victory

BASSETERRE, St Kitts – Lion-hearted Romario Shepherd dominated the game’s biggest moments to earn Man-of-the-Match honours as Guyana Amazon Warriors edged reigning champions Trinbago Knight Riders in a dramatic super-over on Wednesday.

For nearly 4-½ hours at Warner Park, the strapping 26-year-old flaunted his prowess with bat and ball, propelling Amazon Warriors to an important second win but more significantly, dealing TKR their third defeat in five games of the new Caribbean Premier League season.

Though he snatched three for 24 to help limit TKR to a modest 138 for nine and then blasted a cameo nine-ball 18 to help his side level the scores at the end of the regulation overs, his contribution was even more priceless in the super-over.

With Amazon Warriors defending only six runs, Shepherd removed the dangerous Kieron Pollard off the first ball, getting the TKR captain to hole out to long-off.

Displaying nerves of steel, he kept Colin Munro scoreless of the next ball and limited him to a single off the third, before Tim Seifert sprinted a couple to cover off the fourth, to leave TKR with four runs to win from the last two balls.

But Shepherd squirted the fifth delivery beyond Seifert’s desperate heave and then held the New Zealander to a single off the last ball, to pull off perhaps the most stunning victory of the campaign.

“I was confident, the First ball I got a wicket and that was the most important wicket for me,” a breathless Shepherd said afterward.

“It put them on the backfoot with two new guys there needing to score seven runs still, so I backed myself to hit my yorkers.”

He added: “I’m pleased. I’m developing with the bat also so you can see I’m going out there and finishing the game for us. I’m thankful. God is giving me the strength to go out there and do these things.”

Pollard said he shouldered the blame for having not won the contest for TKR in the super-over.

“I take full responsibility for that. Seven runs in a super-over, we should’ve gotten over the line especially after getting that lifeline after we batted and posted that total so [I have to] take that one on the chest,” Pollard lamented.”

“But these things happen. Cricket is a game of small margins and today was another one.”

Sent in, TKR never really got going and Munro’s top score of 32 off 28 balls, along with 21 apiece from Sunil Narine and Isuru Udana, were not enough to lift them to a dominant total.

Opener Narine put on 38 for the second wicket with Tion Webster (19) while Munro and Seifert (4) added a further 32 for the fourth, but Shepherd was incisive at the back end, removing Pollard (13), Denesh Ramdin (5) and Udana cheaply as TKR managed only 43 runs from the last 30 balls of the innings and lost four wickets.

“I thought we were short with runs,” Pollard said.

Left-handers Shimron Hetmyer and captain Nicholas Pooran then both punched 27 to dig Amazon Warriors out of a hole at seven for two after fast bowler Ravi Rampaul (4-29) had struck twice with successive deliveries at the end of the second over.

Hetmyer, who hit three fours off 29 balls, put on 33 for the third wicket with Mohammad Hafeez (16) before Pooran, who lashed two fours and two sixes in a 15-ball cameo, added a further 37 for the sixth wicket with Brandon King (10).

Rampaul removed both King and Pooran with successive deliveries in the 18th over to give TKR the edge, with 34 runs required for victory from 16 balls.

But Shepherd entered to smash a six and four as Rampaul leaked 12 runs from the last four deliveries, before blasting another two maximums off left-arm seamer Udana in the penultimate over which cost 14 runs.

Shepherd perished to the second delivery of the final over but Amazon Warriors scrambled the seven runs required to tie the game. (CMC)