131/7 (15.3)
CR : 8.45
156/6 (20.0)
CR : 7.80
Guyana Amazon Warriors won by 3 wickets (DLS METHOD) 🏆
Player of the Match
Rovman Powell
29(20)*
Over 16
Guyana Amazon Warriors 131/7
Matthew Forde6(3)
Rovman Powell29(20)
Callum Stow1-15(2.3)
GAW won by 3 wickets (DLS METHOD)
8:55 AM IST, 11:25 PM Local Time: The defending champions, Guyana Amazon Warriors, launched their GSL 2026 title defence with a hard-fought 3-wicket victory (DLS) over the San Francisco Unicorns in a rain-shortened contest. Thanks to birthday boy Rovman Powell, whose unbeaten 29 under pressure anchored the chase and ensured the Warriors opened their campaign in winning fashion.
Earlier, San Francisco Unicorns posted a competitive 156/6 after opting to bat first, thanks largely to Hammad Azam's unbeaten 61 on a slow and spin-friendly surface. The Unicorns stumbled to 13/2 early as Dwaine Pretorius struck twice, while Tim Robinson (38) and Oliver Peake (30) attempted to rebuild. However, Guyana Amazon Warriors' spin trio tightened the screws, with Mohammad Nabi leading the charge by claiming 2/33. Hammad Azam stood out with a composed knock, countering both pace and spin to guide his side to a respectable total. Pretorius also picked up 2/36, while Gudakesh Motie and Romario Shepherd chipped in with a wicket apiece.
Chasing 157, the Guyana Amazon Warriors got off to a positive start, with Rahmanullah Gurbaz taking the attack to the bowlers after being dropped off the very first ball of the chase by Saideep. Gurbaz struggled initially but soon found his rhythm, scoring a brisk 31 off 21 balls, while Mohammad Haris chipped in with 30 off 22. The pair guided the Warriors to 66/2 in 7.1 overs before rain halted play. Following the interruption, the target was revised to 131 in 16 overs under the DLS method, leaving the Warriors needing 65 runs from the remaining 8.5 overs.
The restart, however, brought a dramatic shift in momentum. The Warriors lost wickets at regular intervals, with Shimron Hetmyer, Gurbaz, Romario Shepherd, Dwaine Pretorius, and Mohammad Nabi all departing in quick succession. From a comfortable position, they suddenly found themselves struggling at 107/7.
With the pressure mounting, birthday boy Rovman Powell showcased his experience and composure. Batting through the collapse, Powell remained unbeaten on a crucial 29 off 20 balls, smashing two sixes and a four in the penultimate over to reduce the equation to 6 runs off 6 balls. Matthew Forde added an unbeaten 6 runs, and the Warriors crossed the line with 3 balls to spare.
For the San Francisco Unicorns, Hassan Khan and Ghulam Mudassar claimed two wickets each, while Peter Siddle and Callum Stow claimed one wicket each.
Stay tuned for the presentation.....
Earlier, San Francisco Unicorns posted a competitive 156/6 after opting to bat first, thanks largely to Hammad Azam's unbeaten 61 on a slow and spin-friendly surface. The Unicorns stumbled to 13/2 early as Dwaine Pretorius struck twice, while Tim Robinson (38) and Oliver Peake (30) attempted to rebuild. However, Guyana Amazon Warriors' spin trio tightened the screws, with Mohammad Nabi leading the charge by claiming 2/33. Hammad Azam stood out with a composed knock, countering both pace and spin to guide his side to a respectable total. Pretorius also picked up 2/36, while Gudakesh Motie and Romario Shepherd chipped in with a wicket apiece.
Chasing 157, the Guyana Amazon Warriors got off to a positive start, with Rahmanullah Gurbaz taking the attack to the bowlers after being dropped off the very first ball of the chase by Saideep. Gurbaz struggled initially but soon found his rhythm, scoring a brisk 31 off 21 balls, while Mohammad Haris chipped in with 30 off 22. The pair guided the Warriors to 66/2 in 7.1 overs before rain halted play. Following the interruption, the target was revised to 131 in 16 overs under the DLS method, leaving the Warriors needing 65 runs from the remaining 8.5 overs.
The restart, however, brought a dramatic shift in momentum. The Warriors lost wickets at regular intervals, with Shimron Hetmyer, Gurbaz, Romario Shepherd, Dwaine Pretorius, and Mohammad Nabi all departing in quick succession. From a comfortable position, they suddenly found themselves struggling at 107/7.
With the pressure mounting, birthday boy Rovman Powell showcased his experience and composure. Batting through the collapse, Powell remained unbeaten on a crucial 29 off 20 balls, smashing two sixes and a four in the penultimate over to reduce the equation to 6 runs off 6 balls. Matthew Forde added an unbeaten 6 runs, and the Warriors crossed the line with 3 balls to spare.
For the San Francisco Unicorns, Hassan Khan and Ghulam Mudassar claimed two wickets each, while Peter Siddle and Callum Stow claimed one wicket each.
Stay tuned for the presentation.....
Time for the post-match Presentation!
Player of the Match: Rovman Powell
Rovman Powell (Player of the Match): "[How it feels to win the match on his birthday] Obviously it feels good. When I was in the middle, I was asking myself to win it on my birthday. Amazon Warriors is a proud franchise with proud fans. It is always a good place to play. Obviously, it is a challenging place to play but the fans are so passionate.
[Plan when he walked into the middle] It was about me trying to play as deep as possible. I have had conversations with some legends like Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard to take it deep as I have the power. Batting coach, Robertson has been very good too. I have been working on my fielding too, looking to work on different areas.
I would like to donate this to the people affected by the Guyana ferry disaster. I am not Guyanese but all the people of the Caribbean feel the pain."
[Plan when he walked into the middle] It was about me trying to play as deep as possible. I have had conversations with some legends like Dwayne Bravo and Kieron Pollard to take it deep as I have the power. Batting coach, Robertson has been very good too. I have been working on my fielding too, looking to work on different areas.
I would like to donate this to the people affected by the Guyana ferry disaster. I am not Guyanese but all the people of the Caribbean feel the pain."
Hassan Khan (San Francisco Unicorns Captain): "[Do you think, in hindsight, you were just a little short?] Yes, I think so. We did well to reach 150 and had a good powerplay, but we could have finished better in the last two overs. I think that made the difference.
[Once the weather interruption ended, you brought yourself into the attack and picked up the wicket of Shimron Hetmyer. Do you think you needed another wicket or two at that stage to put the game in your favour?] Yes, we definitely needed a couple more wickets. After that, they just tried to take the game deep. Forde and Powell batted really well and finished it for them.
[Positives?] Definitely. I think it's a very positive sign for us. We batted well, bowled well, and fought hard until the end. There are plenty of positives for us to take into the next game."
[Once the weather interruption ended, you brought yourself into the attack and picked up the wicket of Shimron Hetmyer. Do you think you needed another wicket or two at that stage to put the game in your favour?] Yes, we definitely needed a couple more wickets. After that, they just tried to take the game deep. Forde and Powell batted really well and finished it for them.
[Positives?] Definitely. I think it's a very positive sign for us. We batted well, bowled well, and fought hard until the end. There are plenty of positives for us to take into the next game."
Imran Tahir (Guyana Amazon Warriors Captain): "[About the Warriors making the chase tough for themselves] Yeah, look to be honest if we didn't have rain which you can't control, we were going smoothly. But that's cricket, rain came and we got stuck but their spinners bowled well. We had the experience, Rovman (Powell) stayed calm, I mean he has done it many times. Congrats to him.
[About starting with a win] Every single game in this comp, it is a short comp, so you have to start well. For me, the first two games are important, If you win them, you can do well. We did well with the ball and then finished well with the bat."
[About starting with a win] Every single game in this comp, it is a short comp, so you have to start well. For me, the first two games are important, If you win them, you can do well. We did well with the ball and then finished well with the bat."
That's all from this rain-curtailed encounter, folks! The Guyana Amazon Warriors overcome a tense chase to begin their GSL 2026 title defence on a winning note. We'll be back soon with more cricketing action. For now, it's me, Deepak Prakash, signing off from this contest along with my colleagues, Karthik Raj, Manan Mehta, and Ghanendra Singh Thakur. CHEERS!