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[Saba Sports News] In a surprising turn of events, the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2024 Eliminator match between Trinibago Knight Riders (TKR) and Barbados Royals was delayed for nearly two hours on October 1 due to a floodlight tower failure.
The disruption occurred during the final over of the first innings, leaving Nicholas Pooran stranded on 91* (60 balls) as TKR posted 168/3. After the lengthy delay, officials reduced the match to five overs, setting a revised target of 60 runs for the Royals.
This decision was heavily criticized on social media, especially since the game resumed at 11:01 PM, beyond the official cut-off time of 10:52 PM.
Had the match been abandoned, TKR would have advanced to Qualifier 2. Barbados Royals, however, chased down the target in just 4.2 overs, thanks to David Miller’s unbeaten 50 off 17 balls.
The aftermath saw an outpouring of frustration online, with TKR all-rounder Andre Russell voicing his anger.
In an emotional Instagram post, Russell expressed his displeasure, saying, “I feel robbed… this light situation was fuckry. Lights came on just before the cut-off time is also fuckry and then 60 off 30 balls is also a bigger fuckry… but I guess it’s just pure fuckry.”
Barbados Royals will now face the loser of Qualifier 1 between Amazon Warriors and St Lucia Kings in Qualifier 2 on October 4.