HAVING shared last season’s home and away matches one apiece, Guyana Amazon Warriors and St Lucia Zouks will clash tonight, here at the Guyana  National Stadium, Providence, in the second match of this year’s Hero Caribbean Premier League (CPL) T20 tournament.0

The Guyana Amazon Warriors have been runners-up on four occasions with the CPL title proving elusive. However, ahead of tonight’s match, head coach Johan Botha has maintained that their main aim coming into this new campaign is to finish in the top four and take it from there.

Full of talent, the duo of young hard-hitting left-handed batsmen, Nicholas Pooran and Shimron Hetmyer, in the middle order ranks are two of the most dangerous batsmen in the tournament and they form part of a strong line-up along with Sherfane Rutherford and Shoaib Malik.

Pakistani international Shoaib Malik will lead the side and he will be a key member of the team while his countryman leg-spinner Shadab Khan and Australian Ben Laughlin will lead the bowling department as the Warriors look to make a solid start.

Formerly St Lucia Stars and now known the St Lucia Zouks, the Darren Sammy-led side will be looking to play hard as they seek a change in fortunes; for they are yet to finish any higher than fourth since the inception of the tournament.

Their squad has seen plenty changes from the initial group of players who were earmarked for the 2019 season, as Lasith Malinga, Thisara Perera, Niroshan Dickwella and Beuran Hendricks are all expected to miss the tournament.

In their stead Cameron Delport, Hardus Viljoen, Najibullah Zadran and Colin de Grandhomme have been called up although the latter two will miss out due to other commitments.

However, local boys Andre Fletcher, John Campbell, Obed McCoy and Rahkeem Cornwall will all be expected to rise to the occasion.

The game bowls off at 18:00hrs and is the first of three home games for the Warriors.

On Saturday (September 7), Warriors play St Kitts and Nevis Patriots while on Sunday (September 8), they will face Barbados Tridents.

Guyana Amazon Warriors squad reads: Anthony Bramble (wicketkeeper), Chris Green, Chandrapaul Hemraj, Shimron Hetmyer, Brandon King, Ben Laughlin, Saurabh Netravalkar, Keemo Paul, Veerasammy Permaul, Clinton Pestano, Nicholas Pooran, Sherfane Rutherford, Shadab Khan, Romario Shepherd, Shoaib Malik (captain), Keagan Simmons, Odean Smith.

St Lucia Zouks squad reads: Darren Sammy (captain), Chris Barnwell, John Campbell, Roland Cato, Rahkeem Cornwall, Colin de Grandhomme, Cameron Delport, Niroshan Dickwella, Fawad Ahmed, Andre Fletcher, Beuran Hendricks, Kavem Hodge, Nitish Kumar, Keddy Lesporis, Andre McCarthy, Obed McCoy, Lasith Malinga, Najibullah Zadran, Thisara Perera, Jeavor Royal, Hardus Viljoen, Kesrick Williams.