Maaz Sadaqat’s 44-ball ton knocks Barbados Tridents out

When Jamaica Kingsmen defeated Barbados Tridents in the Eliminator at the Kensington Oval, Maaz Sadaqat, then 21, smashed 112 to become the youngest centurion in CPL history. Sadaqat’s one-man effort underlined the Kingsmen’s pursuit of 145 as they completed a nine-wicket win that secured their berth in Qualifier 2 of CPL 2026.

Sadaqat took a blow to the glove after opening his account with a six, but he did not take a backward step. The left-hander unleashed his full range of strokes, from a reverse-sweep to a one-handed six, after Rivaldo Clarke dropped him on 16 before slamming a hat-trick of maximums off AM Ghazanfar on the way to a fifty. The retaliation was a boundary, and the Tridents endured a fierce onslaught as a result of the riposte that was a boundary. Gudakesh Motie fired one down the leg-side but Quinton de Kock, who briefly took the gloves from Clarke, missed a stumping chance. The Kingsmen piled up 79 in the Powerplay, 65 of which came from Sadaqat’s bat.

Kirk McKenzie (22* off 34) was kept quiet at the other end but Sadaqat’s pyrotechnics meant that it did little to let the Tridents back into the game. In the tenth over, the Kingsmen went over 100 quickly, and Sadaqat soon hit a 44-ball century. Daniel Sams earned some consolation with the wicket of Sadaqat in the 14th over, just as the Kingsmen were within touching distance of the finish line - which they crossed one ball into the next over.

The Tridents were in dire straits earlier in the evening after being reduced to 30/5 in the seventh over. In the first over, Hassan Khan struck out Brandon King, giving him a five-ball duck. After that, Andre Russell grounded out Kevlon Anderson and Zachary Carter. Hunain Shah joined the party in the final Powerplay over, removing the in-form Sadrack Descarte for a duck before Saim Ayub castled Sherfane Rutherford.

However, following de Kock and captain Chris Green's remarkable recovery, the Tridents reached 144 with a 114-run partnership. Before de Kock, who had a good Powerplay start, was dropped by Vitel Lawes on 33, the Tridents reached 50 runs in the 11th over. He soon raised a 34-ball fifty, before Green upped the ante too as 71 runs came off the last seven overs. Russell proved expensive in the 18th over, which he couldn’t complete as he walked off clutching his back. Green soon brought up his maiden CPL fifty but Hunain aimed for the blockhole and conceded just seven runs off the last over, with the innings culminating in de Kock’s run out.