JACK BUTLER: With Trinbago Knight Riders dominating from beginning to end, The Cricketer looks back at some of the finest performances, biggest flops, most unusual moments and the fine effort from those involved to even stage the tournament
Lendl Simmons, who scored the most runs in this year's CPL, impressed with three fifties and 356 runs at an average of 39.55.
In his best knock, the West Indies veteran fell just four runs short of a maiden CPL century as he hit 96 against St Kitts and Nevis Patriots.
Incredibly, an unbeaten 86 in the final against St Lucia not only saw Simmons guide his side to victory, but also saw the 35-year-old overtake Chris Gayle to become the highest run-scorer in CPL history. He has now scored a mammoth 2,436 runs in his CPL career. Only last year, he was not even picked up in the initial draft.
96 fro 63 balls! Lendl Simmons was on Fire today and helped get Trinbago Knight Riders reach a match winning score #CPL20 #CricketPlayedLouder #TKRvSKP pic.twitter.com/Y7lnOl8Uf8
— CPL T20 (@CPL) September 2, 2020
Scott Kuggeleijn finished with the most wickets. However, spin dominated through the entire competition, with Imran Tahir, Mujeeb Ur Rahman, Mohammad Nabi, Sandeep Lamichhane, Rashid Khan and Fawas Ahmed all among the top ten wicket-takers.
Of special note is Tahir, who took 15 wickets with an economy rate of 5.82 - no mean feat for a 41-year-old who bowled 41 overs through the tournament and often in the powerplay.
After a poor display last year, St Lucia well and truly hit the restart button: new coach, new name, new owners and new captain.
Beginning with a blank canvas and little in the way of expectation, St Lucia surprised us all as they finished runners-up behind Trinbago Knight Riders, who were worthy winners.
Under the stewardship of Andy Flower and Darren Sammy, perhaps we should hardly have been surprised.
T20 cricket is fascinating. As much as it is a team sport, one moment of brilliance can often win the game. Nicholas Pooran deserves a mention for a 45-ball hundred - the third-quickest in CPL history - on a difficult surface.
But, this year's greatest moment of individual brilliance came from Kieron Pollard. Coming in at 62 for 5, Pollard hit 72 of 28 balls to somehow rescue a victory for the Knight Riders against Jamaica. At a strike rate of 257.14, the Trinbago skipper hit nine sixes and two fours.
It was about as destructive as T20 gets and perhaps the only time in the entire tournament that Pollard's men were ever staring defeat in the face.
St Lucia Zouks reached their first CPL final
Let's be honest, Roston Chase is never going to spark fireworks at the end of an innings, but he has been vital for St Lucia.
Frequently returning run-a-ball knocks on slow and turning pitches, the 28-year-old also deserves some praise for his off-spin.
Bowling 29 overs, Chase's economy of 4.65 was the lowest of anyone who took at least six wickets. For someone previously noted as more of a red-ball specialist, he may well have put himself in contention for a place in West Indies' T20 World Cup squad next year, especially with the competition in India taking place on not dissimilar surfaces.
There were a lot of eyes on the youngsters ahead of this year's CPL. In truth, none definitively took the bull by the horns, though there were several bright sparks.
Jayden Seales, Joshua Da Silva and Kevin Sinclair all impressed when given a chance. But it was Ashmead Nedd who impressed us most during this year's tournament.
The 19-year-old left-arm spinner bowled beautifully, mixing discipline and consistency with subtle variation.
St Lucia defending 92 against Barbados was memorable; however, a six over cover is always a majestic sight.
Add the fact that it had been struck by a tail-ender to bring the scores level in a game where Trinbago had been well behind, and you have a scene of dramatic perfection. Pollard's 72 had dragged his side back into contention, but it was left to Pierre - a left-arm spinner - to slice a wide full toss over the ropes, before sealing the deal with a scythe past point. An exceptional end to the best game of the tournament.
What a finish to a fantastic game... Googly Magic Moment Match 17 #CPL20 #BTvTKR #CricketPlayedLouder pic.twitter.com/Swwkybc75S
— CPL T20 (@CPL) August 29, 2020
The New Zealand pair of Corey Anderson and Ish Sodhi endured poor tournaments, but for the level of expectation alone, Chris Lynn takes this one.
Returns of 138 runs at an average of 17.25 represent a less than mediocre effort from a player of whom so much was expected, albeit on surfaces not suited to his game. Once he failed to fire, however, the remainder of his St Kitts & Nevis Patriots side also floundered.
The second-lowest total in CPL history was not the way to start a semi-final - nor calm any doubts about the bottle of a franchise still looking for its first title.
St Lucia knocked off the runs in 4.3 overs; they won with 93 balls remaining - a statistic that has only been surpassed on seven occasions in men's T20 history.
Once again this was a choke in a knockout game, having lost last year's final after winning all eleven games in the build-up. But this time was more embarrassing: favourites to win a semi-final but all out for 55. Unbelievable, even for Guyana. It looked amateurish.
Lendl Simmons was the top run-scorer
Both players - two consistent CPL performers - deserved more than what they were given by their teammates. We'll let them share this accolade.
Phillips was the second-highest run-scorer in this year's tournament behind Lendl Simmons despite his side winning nine fewer games across the tournament.
Likewise, Patriots skipper Rayad Emrit deserves a mention for his eleven wickets and unflinching commitment as captain. He was the only saving grace in his franchise's dreadful campaign.
'The biggest party in sport' has seen some unbelievable celebrations. And while Tahir hs dominated this category for some time, there is a new kid on the block. A huge nod to Andre 'Spiceman' Fletcher's celebrations throughout, but really it can only be Guyana spinner Kevin Sinclair...
Kevin Sinclair with some superb bowling and an unbelievable celebration takes the Googly Magic Moment of the match #CPL20 #CricketPlayedLouder #BTvGAW pic.twitter.com/Tr9BxnSKGt
— CPL T20 (@CPL) September 4, 2020
Forget bowling spin in the powerplay or promoting a pinch-hitting to the top of the order, St Lucia have found a new tactical niche in Darren Sammy's quasi-management role.
Sammy, who became Peshawar Zalmi head coach midway through this year's Pakistan Super League, has impressed with his on-field and off-field presence - and some quality catches at slip. Even though he has contributed little with the bat and ball - one wicket and high score of 14 - it was his presence that fired St Lucia into their first CPL final.
In this category, a shoutout as well for Mujeeb Ur Rahman, who out of nowhere found himself batting at No.3 in a CPL semi-final. Nope, me neither.
From Asif Ali swinging his bat at Keemo Paul to Javelle Glenn provoking Darren Bravo into hitting him out of the ground, the CPL brought some unusual moments.
However, cometh Ben Dunk. Whether showing us his express pace in between rain delays or bowling part-time off-spin while donning a majestic floppy hat, Dunk looked to be living the dream.
“If you want to know how wet it is, ask Ben Dunk...” #CPL20 #JTvSKP #BenDunk pic.twitter.com/AmejVoBnmy
— CPL T20 (@CPL) September 3, 2020
Finally, the CPL itself. All those involved in putting this competition on deserve some immense recognition.
Some average batting aside, it's important to acknowledge that we got three weeks of cricket in the middle of a pandemic - the first franchise tournament to restart. Credit where it's due.
The Cricketer's coverage of the CPL comes in collaboration with the Caribbean Cricket Podcast
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