Antigua and Barbuda Falcons pulled off a thrilling last-ball win against Barbados Royals by 4 wickets, despite a late stumble in their chase of 188. Brandon King’s superb unbeaten 98 gave Royals a strong platform, but their fielding woes – with Chris Green and Daniel Sams dropping six catches between them cost them badly. For Falcons, Andries Gous was the star with a brilliant 85* off 53 balls, guiding the innings and keeping the chase alive, before Shamar Springer calmly hit the winning runs off the final delivery.
The real turning point of the match, however, came with the ball through Salman Irshad’s outstanding spell. He bowled with pace and precision, finishing with figures of 2 for 13 in his four overs. Crucially, he dismissed captain Rovman Powell and Rassie van der Dussen in the death overs, just when Royals were looking to explode. His skiddy deliveries and control restricted Royals to only 38 runs in the last four overs, ensuring they couldn’t capitalize on King’s explosive start. Irshad’s impact proved decisive, as his economical and wicket-taking spell created the pressure that allowed Falcons to eventually seal the game in the final over.
