Salamkheil stars as Patriots prevail in sluggish start to CPL 2025

St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots needed just 15 overs to chase down Antigua and Barbuda Falcons' underpar total of 121 in the season opener of CPL 2025 at the Warner Park on Thursday..

Left-arm wrist spinner Waqar Salamkheil did most of the damage against the visitors, finishing with 4 for 22. Falcons' No.3 batter Karima Gore fought a lone battle as his 61 made up half the total posted by his team as the next best individual effort was Fabian Allen's 12.

Kyle Mayers, Fazalhaq Farooqi and Naseem Shah turned the screws on the Dragons early as they fell to 39/3 inside the PowerPlay after being asked to bat first. Gore and Allen attempted to revive the innings with a brief stand but that was disrupted by Salamkheil in the eighth over, with the wicket of Allen.

Gore then pushed on in the company of Shakib Al Hasan, but Farooqi returned to end the former's vigil in the 12th over. Salamkheil then bowled a double-wicket over to take out Shakib and Odean Smith, leaving the batting side on 102/7. Obed McCoy's unbeaten 10 pushed the team past 120 before Naseem wrapped up the innings in 17.1 overs.

Evin Lewis was proactive in chase, going after Jayden Seales in the second over with two sixes - one going as far as 98m. He then hit four fours off Allah Ghazanfar in the following over before Obed McCoy dismissed him in the fourth. Mayers capped off the PowerPlay in style, going 4 4 6 against McCoy as the Patriots reached 55/1 in 6 overs. Rakheem Cornwall dented the chasing side in the seventh over with two wickets. That brought Alick Athanaze to the middle, who hastened the chase in the second half of the chase.

From 76/4 in 10 overs, the Patriots crossed the 100-run mark in the 13th over. Smith and Seales then conceded 12 runs each as Athanaze wrapped up the chase with a boundary, finishing unbeaten on 37 off 28.

Brief Scores: Antigua and Barbuda Falcons 121 in 17.1 overs (Karima Gore 61; Waqar Salamkheil 4-22) lost to St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots 125/4 in 15 overs (Alick Athanaze 37*, Evin Lewis 25; Rahkeem Cornwall 2-19) by 6 wickets