The Barbados Royals women’s cricket team kicked off their title defense in the Massy Women’s Caribbean Premier League (WCPL) with a commanding 7-wicket victory over the Guyana Amazon Warriors. The match, held at Providence Stadium, was marked by a dramatic floodlight failure, leading to the implementation of the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern (DLS) method to adjust the target. The Warriors, having won the toss, opted to bat first under sunny skies. Realeanna Grimmond shone for the Warriors, scoring her maiden WCPL half-century with a stellar 61 off 57 balls, setting a competitive total of 154/4 in their allotted 20 overs. The Royals, however, chased down the revised target of 137 from 18 overs with ease, thanks to a strong top-order performance. Chamari Athapanthtu (29 off 24), Qiana Joseph (22 off 22), and Georgia Redmayne (33 off 29) laid a solid foundation. The match reached a tense phase when Courtney Webb was dismissed for just six runs, leaving the Royals at 87-3. However, skipper Chinelle Henry’s explosive 37 off 19 balls, including two fours and four sixes, sealed the victory. This win propelled the Royals to the top of the league table on net run rate, with a game in hand. The early stages of the WCPL suggest a fiercely competitive tournament, with teams closely matched and hard to separate.