Matthew Forde, Kamil Pooran set up impressive win for Saint Lucia Kings

Kamil Pooran’s unbeaten 81 off 49 balls powered Saint Lucia Kings to a six-wicket win over Jamaica Kingsmen in CPL 2026 at the Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in Gros Islet on Friday. Matthew Forde helped set-up the win with a five-fer in the first innings to keep Kingsmen to 169 after a composed half-century by Keacy Carty.

Chasing 172, the Kings lost Tim Seifert early, but Pooran and John Campbell steadied the innings with a 66-run partnership that came off just 39 balls. Campbell struck 23 off 19 balls before falling to Vitel Lawes, but Pooran continued to keep the chase on track.

Pooran lost two more partners in quick succession, but found a willing partner in Obus Pienaar, who chipped in a valuable 34* off just 14 balls. He provided the decisive acceleration, smashing two sixes and four boundaries in his cameo. The unbeaten fourth-wicket stand of 57 runs propelled Kings to a comfortable victory with 10 balls to spare. Pooran hit six fours and five sixes in his match-winning knock.

The Kingsmen were put in to bat first earlier and while Carty anchored the Kingsmen innings with a 45-ball 50, they struggled to sustain partnerships. Forde struck four times inside the Powerplay to reduce them to 54/5 in the sixth over. That included the wicket of Usman Khan, who provided some impetus with 28 off 11 balls. While Carty held one end, Andre Russell chipped in a 25-run cameo in 15, including three sixes. Odean Smith provided some late flourish with an unbeaten 27 off 17 balls, three sixes included, helping Jamaica finish with 169 that seemed a bit far-fetched at one point.

Forde picked the Player of the Match award for claiming five wickets for 23 runs from his four overs. The win took Saint Lucia Kings to the top of the points table, while Jamaica Kingsmen missed the opportunity to move into the lead after both sides had entered the contest with two wins from five games.

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