Guyana Amazon Warriors dispute outcome of CPL final

The Management of the Guyana Amazon Warriors Team has taken a decision to contest the outcome of the second Caribbean Premier League (CPL) final played between the Amazon Warriors and the Barbados Tridents on August 16 at Warner Park, St Kitts and Nevis.

This decision was taken following a review of the sequence of events that took place during the game, which started at 16:03h (4:03 p.m.) under overcast conditions.

During the Barbados Tridents innings, there were two rain interruptions – one at the end of 7 overs and the other at 11.2 overs. By the end of the Tridents innings of 20 overs, they had scored 152 runs for 6 wickets.

At the start of the Guyana Amazon Warriors innings, the Duckworth/Lewis calculation sheet was provided as per norm. During the course of the Amazon Warriors innings, rain interrupted the game at 15.5 overs with the Amazon Warriors score at 107 runs for 4 wickets.

After the rain interruption, the covers were removed, mopping up took place, and the stumps were back in position, with the field and pitch ready for play to resume. This entire process was conducted under the supervision of the Fourth Umpire, who also indicated the restart of the game.

Both Match Umpires then went on the field when the stumps were up and subsequently went back off the field without communicating anything to the Guyana Amazon Warriors Team on the position of the game.

 It was clear at that stage that the umpires did not know the new Duckworth/Lewis calculations, which caused a further delay of more than 30 minutes within the stipulated match time.

At this point, an enquiry was made by the Guyana Amazon Warriors Team Manager with regard to the restart of the game. He was told that information will be provided in two minutes.

After approximately 10 minutes, with no information forthcoming, the Guyana Amazon Warriors Team Manager again approached the umpires and was told that the game will restart at 20:40h (8:40 p.m.) with the full quota of overs to be bowled.

At that stage, CPL even went on to update the fans via social media that the game will continue in full. This update can be viewed on www.facebook.com/CarnivalT20.

Suddenly, the Match Umpires at this late stage said that they were consulting with the CPL Technical Committee, which is strange in cricket, since the sole decision makers are the Umpires and the Match Referee.

At this stage, the Barbados Tridents Captain and Coach were called and advised about the restart of the game at 20:40h (8:40 p.m.), and both the Barbados Captain and Coach objected to the decision.

Further consultations took place between the Umpires, the Match Referee and the CPL Technical Committee.

After a few minutes, the Guyana Amazon Warriors Team was informed by the Match Referee that the match was ended and Barbados were declared winners based on the Duckworth/Lewis calculations.

It is important to note that the Management of the Guyana Amazon Warriors Team had raised this important issue with CPL officials with regard to the appointment of Umpires and Match Officials for the semi-finals and final of the tournament.

Another key conflicting matter to take note of is the fact that based on the Match Referee’s Game Breakdown Report, the second innings of the match should have been completed by 19:52h (7:52 p.m.).

But when the rain came and stopped play at 19:54h (7:54 p.m.), only 15.5 overs were completed. This demonstrates that there was a slow over rate by the Barbados Tridents and this was not dealt with by the umpires.

Subsequent to the biased final match, the Management of Guyana Amazon Warriors wrote CPL specifically with regard to the decision taken at the match and intends to vigorously pursue the arguments outlined above.

Meanwhile, the Management of the Guyana Amazon Warriors has expressed deep appreciation for the support demonstrated by the fans throughout the tournament and will keep members of the public updated.