Fans left the Daren Sammy National Cricket Ground in fine spirits on Friday night, as the Saint Lucia Kings defeated the Jamaica Kingsmen by six wickets with 10 balls remaining in the 2026 Republic Bank Caribbean Premier League (CPL).
The victory kept the Kings’ playoff chances alive, moving them to the top of the league on six points from as many matches, winning three and losing three, including two on the trot. The Kingsmen, meanwhile, were in fine fettle coming into the Friday night fixture, having won two in a row at home.
On the occasion, the Kingsmen got to 169-9 after a tough start. The visitors tallied just 55-5 in the powerplay, but they amassed 76-2 in the middle overs, finishing with a flourish at 38-2 from the final four, both wickets falling in the last six balls. They recorded 10 sixes to go with eight fours, 92 runs in total from boundaries.
They accelerated towards the end thanks to an even half-century off 45 balls from opener Keacy Carty, and late fireworks from Andre Russell (25 off 15) and Odean Smith (27 off 17).
Matthew Forde took 5-31 from his four overs, the first CPL five-fer ever at DSCG, and the youngest man to hit that landmark in the league. With 12 scalps thus far this term, the 24-year-old Barbadian is the leading wicket-taker to date in this year’s competition.
Chasing 170 to win, the Kings’ innings got off to a slow start. The first six overs produced an anaemic 39-1 for the Kings, as Rovman Powell rotated his bowlers to great effect.
But newcomer John Campbell and Kamil Pooran combined to add 66 for the second wicket, taking the hosts to 91-2. With 96-3 from the middle overs, the Kings were four runs ahead of their rivals at the end of 16.
Pooran powered on, opposite South African allrounder Obus Pienaar, who just joined the team on Friday. They smashed an unbeaten partnership of 57 from 27 balls to carry the Kings to the win, Pooran ending with 8 off 49 balls, and Pienaar with 34 from 14.
“I just want to say, ‘Thank you’ to the crowd. We owe it to them. They held up their side of the bargain, so I’m really happy to get a victory today for them,” said Forde. “For me, it’s about sticking to that six-to-eight-metre length. There are some games where it’s not going to work, but for me, if it happens three out of five games, it’s just about keeping myself in check for the other two games and staying grounded, trusting the process, trusting my abilities.
“Saint Lucia is my second home. I love it here. It’s the only place I’d rather be other than Barbados. To have my family here, my dad is in the stands as well. I just want to give a shout-out to him. He’s always here for every game. I love you, big guy. But yeah, I’m getting goosebumps now because there’s no better feeling than playing at home and playing in front of your home people.”
The Kings hit the road this weekend. They travel to Trinidad & Tobago, where they will play the defending champion Trinbago Knight Riders next Wednesday in Port of Spain.
