Fletcher’s Unbeaten 48 Powers Patriots to Five-Wicket Win Over St Lucia Kings

By Ahmed Raza | Last updated: August 13, 2026

St Kitts and Nevis Patriots picked up their first win of CPL 2026, beating defending champions St Lucia Kings by five wickets with 14 balls to spare in the tournament’s fifth match at the Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in Gros Islet on August 12.

Chasing 156 for victory, the Patriots got home in 17.4 overs, with wicketkeeper-batter Andre Fletcher anchoring the chase for an unbeaten 48 off 41 balls. Fletcher, who also took two catches in the field, was named Player of the Match.

St Lucia Kings had won the toss and chosen to bat first but could only post 155 for 8 in their 20 overs. It proved short of a competitive total on a night when the Patriots’ top order made early inroads into the chase.

Johnson Charles set the tone for the Patriots with a rapid 16 off five balls before Kyle Mayers took over, striking three sixes and two fours in an aggressive 16-ball 32. Mayers was eventually caught at deep midwicket attempting to clear Maheesh Theekshana, with the Patriots reaching 59 for 2 at the end of the powerplay.

A 45-run partnership followed before Theekshana struck again to dismiss Kevin Wickham for 19, and the Patriots slipped into a brief middle-order wobble that opened the contest up. Fletcher held firm throughout, seeing his side home despite the loss of wickets at the other end. Theekshana, Jeremy Bishop and Roston Chase were the pick of the Kings bowlers, keeping things tight and sharing the wickets between them, but there were not enough runs on the board to defend.

Roston Chase, who captained the Kings in the match, said the total fell short of what was needed on the surface. “I thought we left about 30 to 35 runs out there,” Chase said. “Having gotten the score we did, they got off to a flyer in the powerplay. It’s hard to pull batters back when they only need six or six and a half runs an over on a big field like this. I thought 180 or 190 would have been a good target.”

The result gives St Kitts and Nevis Patriots their first points of the campaign after an opening defeat to Trinbago Knight Riders, while St Lucia Kings suffer their first loss of the season having started the tournament with a four-run win over Antigua and Barbuda Falcons.