On Saturday, the Women’s Caribbean Premier League hosted another high-stakes fixture at Bridgetown’s iconic Kensington Oval, where three-time back-to-back champions Barbados Tridents pulled off a stunning late comeback to secure a three-run victory against Jamaica Empress. This dramatic turnaround comes just days after the Tridents suffered a 21-run opening-round loss to Trinbago Knight Riders, a result that left them rooted to the foot of the four-team league table. Saturday’s win has shifted the standings dramatically, lifting the defending champions up to third place while dropping Jamaica Empress to fourth, behind table-topping Trinbago Knight Riders and second-place Guyana Amazon Warriors.
Tridents skipper Hayley Matthews won the pre-match coin toss and chose to bat first, setting her side up to post a target. The defending champions got off to a steady start, reaching 41 runs for the loss of two wickets by the end of the mandatory powerplay, with opening batters Qiana Joseph (14) and Kiran Navgire (8) both back in the pavilion before the powerplay ended. The Tridents suffered another setback in the 10th over when Matthews was dismissed for 21, leaving the side struggling at 56 runs for four wickets.
It was a fifth-wicket partnership that turned the Tridents’ innings around: batter Maddy Green and former international star Suzie Bates put together a match-defining 78-run stand to drag the side to a competitive total. Green notched 39 runs from 36 deliveries before falling in the final over, which saw the Tridents lose three wickets in total. Bates finished the innings unbeaten on 39 off 28 balls, helping the side close their 20 overs at 140 runs for seven wickets. Jamaica captain Stafanie Taylor delivered the final over for her side, finishing with impressive match figures of four wickets for just 29 runs.
Jamaica’s run chase got off to a far stronger start than the Tridents’ innings, with openers Amy Hunter and Meg Lanning putting on a dominant opening display. The side cruised to 62 unbeaten runs by the end of the powerplay, and the pair extended their opening stand to 104 runs before Hunter was dismissed in the 13th over. Hunter’s 45-ball 47 included six boundary fours, and her wicket triggered a dramatic collapse for Jamaica: Rashada Williams fell shortly after for four, and the biggest blow came in the 18th over when Lanning was out for 57 off 46 balls, stripping Jamaica of their most in-form batter and bringing the Tridents back into the match.
Heading into the final two overs, Jamaica only needed 10 runs to secure a win that had looked all but guaranteed for most of the chase. Tridents pace bowler Cherry-Ann Fraser delivered the 19th over, and she produced a magical spell: she dismissed Chinelle Henry for seven runs, and conceded just three runs off the over, putting the pressure firmly back on Jamaica. With the game in the balance, Joseph was given the ball to bowl the final over, with Jamaica requiring nine runs to win. In one of the most impressive bowling displays of the tournament, Joseph conceded just a single run off each of her six deliveries, leaving Jamaica all out for 137 runs and three runs short of the target.
Bates was named Player of the Match for her all-round performance: she picked up one wicket for 18 runs with the ball in addition to her match-winning unbeaten 39 with the bat, cementing the Tridents’ first win of the 2024 Women’s Caribbean Premier League and pulling the defending champions out of the bottom of the table.