The CPL match that Dwayne Bravo played in was his last. Bravo, who turns 41 next month, had intended to retire from the CPL after the 2024 season, but a groin injury he suffered on Tuesday when fielding against the St Lucia Kings in Tarouba has forced him to leave the league before the playoffs.
In the eighth over, Bravo hurt himself trying to grab the catch of the Kings skipper Faf du Plessis. After pulling up, he left the field right away and didn’t bowl an over in what ended up being his last CPL match. In TKR’s abortive attempt to chase 219, Bravo then came back to bat at No. 11. He was only able to face one ball, which struck his leg, and he had to retire wounded, fighting back tears.
“When he pulled up [injured], it looked pretty serious,” TKR captain Kieron Pollard said after the game. “Obviously him coming to bat [at No.11] is not just to win the game, but to know the extent of the injury. We’re not sure if this is going to be the end for him but overall from the team perspective, we just want to tell him thank you very much for all that he has done for cricket, for Trinidad & Tobago for the wider world. He’s been a charismatic person and has been inspiring throughout and just want to tell him thank you. He’s not in a good space right now but obviously, he’s given everything that he has to cricket and cricket has rewarded him as well.”
In addition, Sunil Narine, the mystery spinner who was recovering from a quad strain, was not available for TKR against the Kings. It is acknowledged that Narine’s injury is not as severe as Bravo’s, and he will soon be able to resume. Regarding Andre Russell, who began the tournament with a hamstring ailment, his workload is being controlled. After Russell contributed two overs on Tuesday, Pollard, who hadn’t bowled an entire over in the CPL since 2022, took the attack and bowled in for Russel since Bravo pulled up and Narine as well sidelined.
“I had to take the mantle with DJ [Bravo] going down and Russell isn’t 100% fit,” Pollard said. “Narine is not playing because he’s not fit through injury. Obviously, I had to manage it and it’s good that you’re in a position where you have qualified [for the playoffs]. Yes, you wanna finish in the top two and you end up in the situation where you look around who can do the job for you going into the back end of the tournament. I haven’t been bowling much, but it was a good sort of shift for me today. But having said that from the bowling perspective looking at the last couple of games, we have some work to do.”
Bravo has been an all-time great for the Caribbean nation and has been one of the most successful T20I bowlers in the world. If this is indeed his end, it is surely not the manner in which he would have expected to end a phenomenal career.
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