Hetmyer’s ton keeps Guyana unbeaten run going

The Guyana Amazon Warriors extended their unbeaten run with a nine-run (DLS) win over Trinbago Knight Riders at the Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad on Monday. A century from Shimron Hetmyer helped the Warriors post a sizable 185 in a rain-curtailed 16-over contest. Mohammad Nabi then picked up three wickets to dent the Knight Riders, who despite Alex Hales’ best efforts, were unable to get over the line.

Asked to bat first, the Warriors were jolted early by Akeal Hosein who removed Glenn Phillips and conceded just one run in the first over. The pressure intensified with Sunil Narine following it up with another tight one-run over. Shai Hope broke free and struck two sixes but he was dismissed by Lahiru Kumara in the fourth over. After that, it started to rain, and the process took longer than 90 minutes.

Hetmyer took control once play resumed. In the seventh over, he hit Jyd Goolie for two consecutive sixes before taking Kumara for two fours and a six in the next over. After making a 21-ball 13, Matthew Nundu, who was having trouble, was run out at the end of the ninth over. Hetmyer continued and scored a fifty off 27 balls before scoring 30 runs off Kumara's 13th over.

In the 15th over, Romario Shepherd defeated Dominic Drakes by 27 runs to provide support from the opposing team. After that, Hetmyer scored his century with a six in the final over, giving the Warriors an impressive total of 185 for 5 in 16 overs.

The Knight Riders, who were without captain Kieron Pollard because of an injury, were aiming for an adjusted score of 182. They got off to a good start by scoring 52 for 1 in the Powerplay after 4.5 overs. While Narine fell early, Colin Munro and Nicholas Pooran shared a quick 35-run stand to get their team off to a strong start. However, as soon as the fielding restrictions were lifted, Nabi struck and eliminated Munro. That triggered a shocking collapse as TKR slipped from 52 for 1 to 68 for 5 in the space of three overs.

Hales led the fightback, first with a 43-run partnership with Hosein and then a 39-run partnership with Drakes. After Hales reached fifty, 40 runs were required in the final two overs, but he fell. The Knight Riders were unable to score the required 24 runs in the final over, despite Joshua Da Silva's two boundaries keeping the game alive.