GAW vs TKR, Review । Shai Hope, Shimron Hetmyer guide Warriors to beat Knight Riders by three wickets

Guyana Amazon Warriors won the toss and decided to bowl first. Batting first, the Knight Riders faced two early blows at the team score of just 24 runs in 3.2 overs. They cheaply lost both of their openers, Colin Munro and Alex Hales, at individual scores of 17 and seven runs, respectively. Following these two blows, skipper Nicholas Pooran gave a few hopes to his side with three boundaries, but his knock came to an early end at the individual score of just 13 runs. Following the fall of the top three, Keacy Carty and Darren Bravo stitched a crucial partnership of 66 runs for the fourth wicket, with Bravo scoring 33 runs off 35 balls, hitting two fours and a six. After Bravo’s dismissal in the 16th over, the veteran all-rounder Kieron Pollard launched a brutal attack on the Warriors’ bowling attack, smashing 54 runs off just 18 balls, with five fours and five sixes. Meanwhile, Keacy Carty had retired out on the last ball of the 18th over. He scored 29 runs off 34 balls, with two fours.

While chasing the target, the Warriors’ run chase faced a big dent as they lost two wickets at the score of just 14 runs in 2.2 overs. But the 83-run partnership for the third wicket, between Shai Hope and Shimron Hetmyer stabilised the Warriors’ run chase. Hope scored 53 runs off 46 balls, hitting three fours and as many sixes, following Hetmyer’s 30-ball 49, with two fours and four sixes. The partnership between Hope and Hetmyer accelerated the scoring rate for the Warriors in their run chase within just 8.5 overs from 2.2 overs to 11.1 overs. This partnership came to an end when Hetmyer fell prey to Sunil Narine, getting him caught by Keacy Carty on the first ball of the 12th over. Later in the innings, Dwaine Pretorius’ late burst of 26 runs off just 14 balls, with three sixes. These contributions took the Guyana Amazon Warriors across the line in 19.5 overs, scoring 168/7. Dwaine Pretorius won the ‘Player of the Match’ award for his 26-run knock with the bat after taking a wicket with the ball in the first innings. With this win, the Guyana Amazon Warriors have strengthened their chances of qualification for the tournament’s playoff stage.