Muralitharan three-for stumps Barbados

Jamaica Tallawahs 114 for 4 (Shehzad 28, Malik 1-19) beat Barbados Tridents 113 for 4 (Smith 52, Muralitharan 3-12) by 6 wickets
Scorecard and ball-by-ball details

Muttiah Muralitharan rolled back the years with a bowling display that helped the Jamaica Tallawahs book a semi-final berth with a six-wicket win over Barbados Tridents at Sabina Park. Barbados had already qualified, but with the first and second places up for grabs, there was still plenty to play for.

Muralitharan, the Man of the Match, conceded only 12 runs in his four overs and took the crucial wickets of Shoaib Malik, Kieron Pollard and Ashley Nurse, as Jamaica restricted Barbados to just 113 in their 20 overs.

Barbados, put in to bat first, got off to an unhurried start, as Dwayne Smith and Raymon Reifer put up 33 off 38 for the first wicket. Left-arm spinner Nikita Miller got the breakthrough for the hosts, bowling Reifer for 22 in the seventh over. Smith added another 29 with Shoaib Malik, but Muralitharan turned the match around with two wickets in the 14th over.

He spun the ball sharply to uproot Malik's stumps, and four deliveries later, he tossed one up to Pollard, only for the batsman to edge straight to Chris Gayle at first slip. Nurse tried to turn the momentum with two fours off Vernon Philander in the 16th over but he was also bowled by Muralitharan two overs later, as he came down the track and failed to connect. His wicket left Barbados struggling at 89 for 4. However, Smith remained unbeaten, and struck four fours and one six during his 53-ball 52, to take Barbados to 113 for 4.

Jamaica lost Chris Gayle early in the chase, even as his partner Ahmed Shehzad gave the side a strong start. Shehzad scored a 25-ball 28 that included four fours and a six, but fell to Shakib Al Hasan in the sixth over when he made room to go over the infield and missed.

Two run-outs in quick succession seemed to give Barbados a small chance, but Jermaine Blackwood and Andre Russell put up 49 for the fifth wicket in six overs and struck four fours and two sixes between them, to ensure the victory for Jamaica with 11 balls to spare.

Jamaica are now third on the table but can take the top position with a big win against Trinidad & Tobago Red Steels on Sunday.