Jason Holder’s all-round brilliance guides St Kitts and Nevis Patriots to a thrilling victory over Barbados Royals in CPL 2025

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The 27th match of the Caribbean Premier League 2025 delivered an absolute thriller at the Kensington Oval in Bridgetown on September 11 as the St Kitts and Nevis Patriots edged past Barbados Royals by just one run in a heart-stopping encounter. Captain Jason Holder emerged as the undisputed hero with a remarkable all-round display that earned him the Player of the Match award and kept his team’s playoff hopes alive while simultaneously eliminating the Royals from championship contention.

After winning the toss and choosing to bowl first, the Barbados Royals seemed to have the Patriots in serious trouble when they reduced the visitors to 74 for 5 by the 11th over. The Patriots had started promisingly with Mohammad Rizwan and Andre Fletcher adding 46 runs for the opening wicket, but wickets fell in clusters as Evin Lewis departed for a golden duck and key batters failed to capitalize on their starts.

Enter Jason Holder at a critical juncture when his team desperately needed stability. The Patriots captain unleashed a batting exhibition of the highest order, smashing an unbeaten 53 off just 30 deliveries that included one four and five towering sixes. His innings featured a crucial 74-run sixth-wicket partnership with Navin Bidaisee, who contributed a valuable 30 runs to help the Patriots recover from their precarious position.

Holder reached his half-century in trademark style with a massive six over square leg and continued to find the boundaries at will. His explosive knock propelled the Patriots to a competitive total of 150 for 7 in their allotted 20 overs, with Eathan Bosch being the pick of the Royals bowlers with figures of 3 for 26.

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The Royals’ chase got off to a steady start with openers Quinton de Kock and Brandon King putting together a 42-run opening partnership. De Kock contributed 22 runs while King looked dangerous with 29 runs that included three sixes before falling to Waqar Salamkheil‘s guile.

Despite losing regular wickets, the Royals remained in contention thanks to Rassie van der Dussen‘s unbeaten 37 and useful contributions from Sherfane Rutherford (25) and captain Rovman Powell (16). The match went down to the final over with 14 runs required for victory, setting up a dramatic climax.

Holder, who had already starred with the bat, took responsibility for bowling the crucial final over. Van der Dussen launched the first delivery for a massive six to reduce the equation to seven runs needed off five balls. However, the experienced all-rounder held his nerve and executed his plans to perfection, delivering precise yorkers that restricted the scoring rate. When two runs were needed off the final delivery, Holder trapped Daniel Sams LBW with a perfect yorker to seal a nail-biting victory.

Holder finished with bowling figures of 2 for 32 from his four overs, complementing his batting heroics to complete a stellar all-round performance. The victory keeps the Patriots’ playoff aspirations alive while confirming the elimination of the Barbados Royals despite having matches remaining in the tournament.

The St Kitts and Nevis Patriots win by the barest of margins ⚡#Cricket #CPL25 #StKittsandNevisPatriots

— CricketTimes.com (@CricketTimesHQ) September 12, 2025

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