Six-hitter Sampson, under-fire TKR in focus in CPL playoffs

Romario Shepherd specialises in hitting sixes, and that's why he is in demand in franchises leagues around the world. But in CPL 2025, Shepherd has said there is actually someone else who is hitting the ball farther than him right now.

That someone else is a 25-year-old rookie, Quentin Sampson, who has smashed nine sixes across his previous two games for Guyana Amazon Warriors as a pinch-hitting opener. Sampson's back-to-back half-centuries were central to Amazon Warriors securing a top-two finish in the league phase of the tournament.

"Well definitely, Sampson right now. But hopefully in the playoffs, I can give him some challenge [with six-hitting]," Shepherd said ahead of the CPL playoffs. "But as of now he's hitting it further than me by a mile."

Sampson hails from Caria Caria village, which is located on the shore of Essequibo River and isn't too far away from Saxacalli, Keemo Paul's village. He initially played softball cricket in his village before rising through the ranks and becoming a professional player for Guyana. Shepherd is impressed with Sampson's ability to stay low and stable while meeting the ball.

"To see him [bat] like someone who has actually been playing cricket for a while now at this level and this is only his first season... The sky's the limit for him," Shepherd said.

"He is also batting in a position that he has never batted before but to see him actually go there and get back-to-back fifties in a position is fantastic and his softball stuff has helped. You can see how low he gets whenever he's batting and he can hit the ball whenever he's keeping low. So definitely it worked out well for him and I'm very happy for him."

While both Amazon Warriors and table-toppers St Lucia Kings will have two cracks for the final, there is no margin for error in the Eliminator for Trinbago Knight Riders and Antigua & Barbuda Falcons. TKR have lost three of the four games they have played against Falcons and enter the Eliminator on the back of three successive defeats, but their captain Nicholas Pooran has backed them to come good at the crunch.

"For us we just felt like it has been two different tournaments for us," Pooran said. "When we batted first, it's been quite tricky in that powerplay for us and we have been losing a lot of wickets in the powerplay and that's something we want to get better at. But when we batted second we have won the games quite convincingly. So it's just something for us to continue to fight, continue to win those periods because I still believe that even though we're batting first in tricky conditions, we're still giving ourselves our chances."

TKR have been depleted by the absence of the injured Mohammad Amir, with USA's Saurabh Netravalkar, his like-for-like replacement, set to get another game.

While Pooran said winning the title in his first season as TKR captain would be "perfect," he didn't want to get ahead of himself.

"Obviously you'll [have to] take out Antigua first and foremost; we've been in this position before where we have to take the hard road," he said. "That's our No.1 focus, so whatever happened last year with the lights cutting off... Still no answers on that, but our focus is that game on Tuesday night and we take it forward that certain things we can control and certain things we can't. What we can control is our emotions and that's what we need going into these playoff games."

TKR will have to be wary of Karima Gore, Falcons' top run-getter this season, and Jayden Seales, their highest wicket-taker. Seales has tuned up for the Eliminator against his former franchise with his best CPL figures of 4 for 15, achieved against Amazon Warriors.

"I always say to everyone that performance is not guaranteed but attitude matters," Falcons captain Imad Wasim said. "I think the attitude of these guys (Seales and Gore) is fantastic the whole tournament. Inside the rope they just give their 100%. Obviously Jayden is playing for West Indies, and doing very good.

"So, I think attitude matters. They are fantastic players and I wish them all the best in future. I hope tomorrow they stand up although like in the playoffs, whoever copes the pressure well wins the game most likely."