Warriors spin barrage for Tallawahs

The Jamaica Tallawahs better be in the mood to face lots of spinners this evening when they meet the Guyana Amazon Warriors in match number 15 of the Caribbean Premier League at Sabina Park.

The unbeaten Amazon Warriors are expected to field an unchanged 11 from the team that defeated the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots on Saturday, so the side could feature as many as four spinners in their line-up.

Leading that charge will be South African veteran leg-spinner Imran Tahir, along with Afghanistan leg-spinner Qais Ahmad, South African-born Australian off-spinner Chris Green, and Guyanese left-arm bowler Chandrapaul Hemraj.

Head coach Yohan Botha says that spin has been doing the business for the Warriors, with the slow bowlers accounting for 26 of the 33 wickets to fall to the team this season.

“Our spinners have been very effective, as we saw in the previous match,” he said. “The first seven of the eight wickets to fall fell to spinners. We have been getting some quality overs from the spinners, and for me, as a former spin bowler, you can’t have enough spinners.”

Warriors captain Shoaib Malik is sharing the same sentiment as he believes that having good-quality spinners in any team will be beneficial.

“Good leg spinners will always create opportunities and can restrict any good batting line-up,” Malik said. “We know they have Chris (Gayle) and Chadwick (Walton), who we know very well, and once we remain consistent, we should do well.”

Despite the spin domination, the Warriors have been quite happy with the team balance, with seamers Romario Shepherd and Keemo Paul picking up seven and four wickets, respectively, so far in the tournament.

Stand-in Tallawahs captain Chadwick Walton believes that his team can do the business against the unbeaten Warriors as they will be riding on the momentum from their win against the Barbados Tridents on Sunday.

“We are not looking to change our approach,” Walton said. “We are going to do the things that have been working for us. We aim to qualify for the top four, and that is our focus.”

The Tallawahs will be weary that today’s game will take place at night as the team has lost all similar fixtures contested at Sabina Park.

There has been talk about poor visibility affecting the teams playing under the floodlights however, Walton was quick to point out that the team has to go out and perform irrespective of the conditions.

“The lights are what they are, we can’t do anything about it,” he said.

On a positive note, the Tallawahs could welcome back all-rounder Andre Russell, who is said to be match-fit after a concussion sustained in the game against the St Lucia Zouks on Thursday. However, the Jamaican is set to undergo a further test before getting the green light to play.

Barbadian all-rounder Shamar Springer may also find his way back into the final eleven once he gets the all-clear from the team doctors following a cut on the foot.