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By Neto Baptiste
Top order batter for the Antigua and Barbuda Falcons, Karima Gore, said his aim was to bat a bit longer during his team’s six-wickets loss to the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots in their Caribbean Premier League (CPL) opener on Thursday at Warner Park in St Kitts.
Gore smashed eight fours and two sixes as he compiled a match-high of 61 off just 34 deliveries, scoring just over 50 percent of Falcons total of 121 all out from 17.1 overs.
“It was kind of unexpected to bat at three and the coach actually came to me and told me to just go and play my natural game. Even the captain came and told me the same thing so I just went out and it just went my way. The coaches and management stress that if a player is having a good night, that he must take it right down to the 20th over if possible and I think that when I got out that I could have held it a bit longer for about maybe four or five overs to see where the power hitters in the back could get as much as possible,” he said.
The home team, led by Alick Athanaze’s 37 not out, reached their target at 125 for four with five overs to spare.
Meanwhile, legendary fast bowler and a member of the Antigua and Barbuda Falcons coaching staff, Sir Curtly Ambrose, said it is important the team remains focused and level-headed going into the next encounter.
“It is very important that we have a very relaxed dressing room, a relaxed atmosphere; we don’t want to put any players under unnecessary pressure where they can’t perform so we’re working hard and there are limits that we are allowed of course, but at the end of the day we want to make it as relaxed as possible so that we can get the maximum out of the players and as long as we can do that as a coaching staff, we’re going to be just fine,” he said.
“We’re not worried about the skillset of the players because they have got the skills but once we have a relaxed atmosphere, where guys enjoy what they do then we will get the results,” he added.
Falcons face Barbados at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium on Saturday night starting at 7:00 pm. Following their clash against Barbados here, the Falcons host St Lucia Kings on August 17th before hosting Trinbago Knight Riders three days later. Falcons then take on Guyana Amazon Warriors at home on August 22 before hosting neighbours St Kitts two days later on August 24.
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