Sourced: SKNIS
The Warner Park Cricket Stadium was abuzz with energy on Wednesday, September 15, 2021, as fans of St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots celebrated the success of the home team in the Caribbean Premier League T20 tournament.
The final match was contested by the Patriots and the Saint Lucia Kings. Neither franchise has won the tournament, which is now in its ninth year. The Kings set a total of 159 runs off of their 20 overs. The Patriots chased down the total, scoring the winning run on the last ball of the 20th over.
Ian Twelftree was on the grounds enjoying the match. He migrated to Nevis with his wife and their two dogs 12 days ago from the United Kingdom. He went to Warner Park to support the home team in the finals having followed their progress while still in the UK.
“Watching this game today, it was as good as, if not better than watching England win the World Cup,” he stated, describing the match as amazing. “I didn’t expect a thrilling final. You hope to see one, and for them to come good in the end …. [in] that last over, that was tense.”
Sports enthusiast Louisa Jeffers, popularly known as Lulu, attended every Patriots match. She explained that she got vaccinated to ensure that she could go out to cheer for the team. Lulu credited the government for securing the hosting rights for the 2021 cricket tournament.
“It was a blessing to us here in St. Kitts and Nevis.,” she said. “I think it was a right decision to bring it here, and I pray that it will come back here.”
Minister of Sports, the Honourable Jonel Powell, said that the government is quite satisfied with the investment made in the internationally-acclaimed Caribbean Premier League.
“A lot of people said that it could not have happened for a number of different reasons,” Minister Powell said, noting that detractors spouted baseless criticisms such as “Oh, they spent too much money. You can’t have 33 matches on one pitch. St. Kitts is too small.”
“But we did it, and we did it successfully. We have set international precedence now, and I am satisfied that the people of St. Kitts and Nevis have gotten a significant return on the investment. We made back the money that we have spent,” Honourable Powell expressed.
The win by St. Kitts and Nevis Patriots, captained by Dwayne Bravo, comes on the eve of the twin-island Federation’s commemoration of National Heroes Day.
