Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2016 is the 4th edition of CPL which has begun with much fanfare. In this article, we will discuss the defending champion Trinbago Knight Riders, who were formerly known as Trinidad and Tobago Red Steel.
Team Profile
Trinbago Knight Riders is the new name of Trinidad and Tobago Red Steel, who were the champions in last CPL.
Trinbago Knight Riders has a strong relation with India, specifically IPL (Indian Premier League). In 2015, IPL team Kolkata Knight Riders’ owners Shah Rukh Khan (Red Chillies Entertainment) and Juhi Chawla – Jay Mehta (Mehta Group) purchased stake in the Red Steel. After winning CPL 2015 as Trinidad and Tobago Red Steel, the team’s name has changed in 2016 to Trinbago Knight Riders.
Trinbago Knight Riders is one of the most consistent CPL team. They reached at least in the semi-final in the first 3 edition of CPL. In 2013 and 2014, Trinbago Knight Riders lost in both the semi-finals while they became champion in 2015 CPL after beating the Barbados Tridents in the final match of the tournament. So, Trinbago Knight Riders, going by their history, are one of the favourite teams in a six-team tournament in CPL this year.
Batting
Trinbago Knight Riders has strong and experienced batting line-up. The team has some T20I specialist batsmen like Brendon McCullum, Dwayne Bravo, Umar Akmal, Colin Munro etc. Also the team has international batsmen like Hashim Amla, Darren Bravo, Ramnaresh Sarwan etc. The team has some good all-rounders who will give a potency to their batting.
Bowling
The presence of in-form world class spinner Sunil Narine along with skipper and all-rounder Dwayne Bravo, the teams’ bowling is looking very good. Apart from these two, the team has also Sulieman Benn, Nikita Miller, both left-arm spinners and Ronsford Beaton, Kevon Cooper who will compete for pacer’s slot. However, lack of international experienced quality pacer may raise problem for the team in CPL 2016 but they have quality all-rounders to cover that place.
New players to watch out
Anderson Phillip is the youngest member of the current Trinbago Knight Riders’ squad whose current age is just 19 years. Phillip was Trinidad and Tobago’s most outstanding player in the regional Under-19 tournament. As a pace bowling all-rounder, he finished with the most wickets for the national Under-19 team and also showed his batting capability on several occasions. Despite showing good performances, Phillip was not selected in the West Indies U-19 squad for the ICC U-19 WC 2016. Phillip is very excited and desperate to get a chance and show his quality in the CPL 2016.
Full Squad of Trinbago Knight Riders: Dwayne Bravo (C), Brendon McCullum, Sunil Narine, Hashim Amla, Umar Akmal, Kevon Cooper, Suleiman Benn, Colin Munro, Anton Devcich, Ronsford Beaton, Nikita Miller, Javon Searles, William Perkins, Yannic Cariah, Darren Bravo, Ramnaresh Sarwan, Hamza Tariq, Anderson Phillip.
Past CPL performances of Trinbago Knight Riders (Trinidad and Tobago Red Steel)
| Year | Final Table Standings (Group Stage) | Final Result |
| 2014 | 4th | Semi-finalist |
| 2015 | 3rd | Semi-finalist |
| 2016 | 3rd | Champion |
Trinbago Knight Riders’ fixtures in CPL 2016
| Date | Against | Venue | Local Time (IST) |
| 29th June | St Lucia Zouks | Port of Spain, Trinidad | 21:00 (30th June 06:30) |
| 1st July | Barbados Tridents | Port of Spain, Trinidad | 21:00 (2nd July 06:30) |
| 2nd July | Guyana Amazon Warriors | Port of Spain, Trinidad | 21:00 (3rd July 06:30) |
| 4th July | Jamaica Tallawahs | Port of Spain, Trinidad | 19:00 (5th July 04:30) |
| 10th July | Guyana Amazon Warriors | Guyana | 19:00 (11th July 04:30) |
| 16th July | Barbados Tridents | Bridgetown, Barbados | 12:00 (21:30) |
| 18th July | Jamaica Tallawahs | Kingston, Jamaica | 20:00 (19th July 06:30) |
| 26th July | St Lucia Zouks | Gros Islet, St Lucia | 18:00 (27th July 03:30) |
| 29th July | St Kitts and Nevis Patriots | Lauderhill, Florida | 19:00 (30th July 04:30) |
| 31st July | St Kitts and Nevis Patriots | Lauderhill, Florida | 12:00 (21:30) |