BRIDGETOWN, Barbados, (CMC)- Bangladeshi all-rounder Shakib Al Hasan melted the Trinidad Red Steel with a sensational spell of left-arm bowling which set-up a four-wicket victory for Barbados Tridents in their CPL T20 match at Kensington Oval last night. Al Hasan grabbed six wickets for six runs , in a four-over spell that mesmerised and crippled the opposition, before the Tridents were made to fight off West Indies paceman Fidel Edwards , who took five for 22, and threatened to spoil their celebrations.
Batting first after winning the toss, the Red Steel scored a less than adequate 52 off 12.5 overs while the Tridents wobbled and responded with 53 for six off eight overs.
Edwards , with a lively burst of speed and accuracy, rattled the Trident’s top order as he picked up the wickets of openers Dwayne Smith (6) and Johnathan Cater (14) and middle-order batsmen – Kyle Mayers (3), wicketkeeper Umar Akmal (0) and Shakib Al Hasan (1) before captain Keiron Pollard and Ashley Nurse stemmed the mid-pitch drama and guided the Tridents to their third win in three matches.
Before an expectant capacity crowd, the Red Steel never showed signs of controlling the match. They seemed uninspired for the encounter and once openers Davy Jacobs and Justin Guillen were sent back , with 15 runs on the board off three overs, wickets tumbled regularly as the Tridents ripped apart the opposition.
They were 25 for three by the fifth over , with pacemen Jason Holder and Shannon Gabriel sharing the early wickets, before man-of-the match Al Hasan began his demolition job.
Producing bounce and turn on a wicket that offered assistance, the left-arm spinner exposed the shortcomings of the opposing batsmen as they groped uncertainly and the Red Steel struggled to post 50 runs on the board.
The last eight wickets perished for just 27 runs and the innings shockingly collapsed when Sulieman Benn lofted the fifth ball of Gabriel’s third over to Johnathan Carter.
Chasing what appeared to be an easy target, the Tridents were off to a flying start as aggressive opener Johnathan Carter hit 14 off six balls, including two big sixes off left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn, but once he was the first man sent back by Edwards, the Tridents struggled to close out the match.
From 25 for one in the second over, the Tridents slipped to 39 for six in the sixth over, losing five wickets for the addition of 14 runs.
However Pollard and Nurse brought some stability to the innings and Nurse sealed the victory for the Tridents as he whipped the last ball of Edwards fourth over, off his pads for a boundary.
Scores: TT Red Steel 52 off 12.5 overs (Davy Jacobs 13, Ross Taylor 11; Shakib Al Hasan 6 for 6, Jason Holder 2/19, S. Gabriel 2/18).
Barbados Tridents 52 for 6 off 8 overs (J. Carter 14, K. Pollard not out 4, A. Nurse not out 10; F.Edwards 5/22).