The final of the 2024 WCPL at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba, Trinidad, brought into play an incredibly entertaining encounter between the previous champions, Barbados Royals, and the Trinbago Knight Riders. In a high-pressure situation, the Royals triumphed, defending their title with a vital four-wicket win.
The decisive moment of this encounter came in the 12th over of the Knight Riders’ innings. A fuller-length ball, outside the off-stump, was bowled by top bowler Aaliyah Alleyne to Jannillea Glasgow of the Royals. She tried to play the shot through the gap behind mid-off but misjudged it, and it was an easy catch for Amanda-Jade Wellington.
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The highlight was Alleyne sprinting toward her teammates, dropping to the ground in sheer elation – a very signature celebration of the match. The moment was thus described by official CPL social media: “What a TOPCO Celebration from the @BarbadosRoyals in the Massy WCPL Final at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy.”
What a TOPCO Celebration from the @BarbadosRoyals in the Massy WCPL Final at the Brian Lara Cricket Academy.#TopcoCelebration #WCPL #WCPL24 #BRvTKR #CricketPlayedLouder #BiggestPartyInSport pic.twitter.com/EoM1soMU1d
— CPL T20 (@CPL) August 29, 2024
Alleyne’s bowling figures of 4/21 were important to the Royals’ success. Her fine spell, allied to two significant wickets from skipper Hayley Matthews, meant that the Knight Riders were restricted to a modest total of 93/8 in their 20 overs. Heroic efforts, though, came from Shikha Pandey-28 runs and Kycia Knight-17 * for the Knight Riders proved insufficient.
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The Royals’ chase was anchored by a steady unbeaten 39 off 47 balls from Chamari Athapaththu in reply. A seven-boundary innings from Athapaththu saw her team through with five overs in hand. Matthews, along with Qiana Joseph and Laura Harris, chipped in to make it a convincing win as the Royals completed the title defence in the WCPL 2024.
