CPL 2026: Shimron Hetmyer joins 7,000-run club with unbeaten 111 as Amazon Warriors beat TKR

West Indies batter Shimron Hetmyer crossed 7,000 runs in T20 cricket on September 1, completing the milestone during a match-winning unbeaten 111 that carried Guyana Amazon Warriors to a nine-run victory over Trinbago Knight Riders in a rain-affected Caribbean Premier League 2026 fixture at Port of Spain, Trinidad and Tobago.

Hetmyer's knock came off just 43 balls and featured eight fours and nine sixes, making it the highest individual score of his T20 career. With the Warriors reduced to 19 for two after rain cut the contest to 16 overs per side, he walked in and immediately took the attack to the opposition. He brought up his fifty from 27 balls and reached three figures in 40 deliveries.

Romario Shepherd then accelerated the scoring further, striking 27 off seven balls with two fours and three sixes. Their combined assault produced 94 runs in the closing overs of the innings, setting the Knight Riders a revised DLS target of 182.

At 29 years of age, Hetmyer now holds 7,096 runs across 352 T20 matches, averaging 26.67 and scoring at a strike rate of 145.05. His career tally contains two centuries and 35 half-centuries, backed by 485 fours and 413 sixes across all T20 competitions. The unbeaten 111 against Trinbago Knight Riders surpasses his previous best and cements his standing as one of the most destructive middle-order batters in the global T20 circuit.

Captain Nicholas Pooran and Alex Hales gave Trinbago Knight Riders a brisk platform at the top of the order. Pooran contributed 43 off 16 balls before departing at the start of the seventh over, and Mohammad Nabi struck three balls later, trapping Jyd Goolie lbw for a duck. Imran Tahir then removed another batter in the next over, leaving TKR in trouble at 68 for five.

Hales kept the chase alive with 55 from 24 deliveries, trimming the requirement to 40 runs off the final 12 balls. Shamar Joseph ended that threat with a 144.1kph yorker that sent Hales back to the pavilion. TKR scored 30 runs across the last two overs but could only reach 172 for seven, coming up nine runs short of the revised total.

Mohammad Nabi finished as the pick of the Amazon Warriors bowlers with three wickets for 20 runs from three overs. Glenn Phillips also caught the eye in the field, holding a one-handed catch at deep midwicket after briefly losing sight of the ball to dismiss Sunil Narine for one. The win kept Amazon Warriors' unbeaten record intact in CPL 2026.