Shanaka races to fastest CPL hundred as Patriots conquer the Kings

Patriots 235 for 4 (Shanaka 121*, Fletcher 64; Forde 2-48) beat Kings 98 (Seifert 50, Campbell 11; Louis 5-10) by 137 runs

The St. Kitts & Nevis Patriots put on a complete display to crush the Saint Lucia Kings by 137 runs in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) at Warner Park on Thursday.

Dasun Shanaka lowered the previous 40-ball record for the fastest CPL century before Jeremiah Louis claimed a fifer, helping the Patriots end their home stand with back-to-back victories.

Despite losing Kyle Mayers (1) early to Matthew Forde (2/48), Andre Fletcher joined Johnson Charles to push the hosts through the powerplay at 59 for 1.

After being dropped twice in the seventh over, Fletcher punished the Kings by racing to a half-century in just 23 balls. He and Charles shared in an 81-run (48 balls) second-wicket foundational stand for the Patriots.

Then Shanaka stole the show. He and fellow Sri Lankan Wanindu Hasaranga scored at a remarkable strike rate of 300 in their 93-run unbeaten stand. 

Shanaka, who reached his half-century in just 24 balls, accelerated to rewrite the CPL record for the fastest century, getting there in only 39 deliveries. He finished unbeaten on 121* (43) in a breathtaking innings that included 12 sixes. 

With Hasaranga only scoring 9 runs, Shanaka was almost single-handedly responsible for taking 79 from the final four overs as the Patriots surged to the tournament’s highest total so far—235 for 4 from their 20 overs.

Chasing a daunting target, the Kings lost three wickets inside the powerplay with 46 runs on the board. Ashmead Nedd (2/24) and Wanindu Hasaranga (2/25) claimed two wickets apiece to dismantle the Kings' top order, while Tim Seifert, one of Nedd’s victims, provided the lone source of threat for the visitors, scoring 50 (36 balls).

Louis then stepped up and ran through the lower order with magnificent figures of 5 for 10 from 2.5 overs, as the Kings were bowled out for 98 in 13.5 overs.

The Kings will look to pick themselves up when they face the Barbados Tridents on Sunday, while the Patriots will travel to Guyana with confidence to face the Amazon Warriors.