With the end of the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024, in the co-host West Indies, the festival of the 20-over domestic cricket for the two-time champions will begin, as Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2024 will kick off on August 30. The Trinbago Knight Riders (TKR) have signed England opener, Jason Roy ahead of the 12th season of the competition.
The four-time champions have been one of the strongest sides of the league, under the leadership of Kieron Pollard, with experienced players like Sunil Narine, and Nicholas Pooran in the team.
In the last edition of the league, they ended up as the runners-up after a huge nine-wicket defeat against the Guyana Amazon Warriors, at the latter’s home ground- Providence Stadium, when they were bundled out for 94 runs and lost with six overs to spare.
Tim David joins Jason Roy in the Knight Riders family
Jason Roy has been one of the most fearless openers of the T20 circuit in recent times, and he has all the abilities to smack any bowling line-up on any surface on any given day. That’s what will be a huge bonus for the runners-up of the last season.
Along with Jason Roy, the Knight Riders have also signed dynamic lower-order batter of the Australia team Tim David, who could come and whack the ball from the very first ball as he has done for his national side, and the Mumbai Indians in the Indian Premier League (IPL).
The four-time champions have gone on to retain their core players of the competition, which also include Andre Russell and Dwayne Bravo, of which the former is fresh from winning the IPL for the very second time with the Kolkata Knight Riders.
The left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein, who became the first spinner of the West Indies team to pick up a five-wicket haul in T20Is during their T20 World Cup 2024 game against Uganda in Guyana, has also resigned from the team and could be a valuable member for Pollard with the new ball in the powerplay overs.
In the bowling line-up, they have gone with their favorable pace bowling options of Jayden Seales and Terrance Hinds, with Mark Deyal and Keacy Carty being a long-time member of the franchise. Their squad now has 15 members at the moment and has a space for two more players which they can fill up in the draft in July.
Among the overseas players, America’s Ali Khan has been a strong member of the side, as they have decided to get the services of Ireland’s left-arm pacer Joshua Little, who will come into the edition of the tournament with vast experience of playing in the IPL for the Gujarat Titans.
Jason Roy will be enjoying his first stint at the CPL, as he could open with Narine at the top. David, on the other hand, made his debut in the CPL in 2021, playing for the St. Lucia, before getting roped in as a replacement for the Knights in 2023.
Jason Roy has smashed 9244 T20 runs in 360 games at an average of 27.26, but a decent strike rate of 141.60, with 60 half-centuries and six hundred, out of which 1522 T20I runs have come for the 33-year-old at a strike rate of 137.61.
The Trinbago Knight Riders will begin their tournament on September 01, against the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots at the Warner Park in Basseterre in St Kitts. The final of the tournament will be held on October 07, at the Providence Stadium in Guyana.