Falcons seize maiden CPL crown as Moqim's 4-14 and Jangoo's fifty rout Kingsmen

Antigua and Barbuda Falcons began and ended their Caribbean Premier League 2026 campaign with a win over the Jamaica Kingsmen — the latter earning them their maiden title in the tournament. The Falcons finished like they began: their bowlers tied down the Kingsmen to a sub-par total and the batters did the rest, snaring down the target of 170/9 with eight wickets and 20 balls to spare.

Sadaqat's century goes in vain

Two players from Pakistan lit up the CPL final, but only one ended up on the winning side. Just last week, Maaz Sadaqat, at 21, became the youngest centurion in CPL history with a knock of 112 in the Eliminator. In the final, he smashed another century — 114 off 58 — but the rest of the Kingsmen line-up failed to show up on the biggest night, leaving them with a sub-par total of 170/9. Three batters fell for ducks and four others returned single-digit scores.

Moqim's middle-overs masterclass

Like Sadaqat, Sufyan Moqim put in two impressive performances in the playoffs. After a 4-13 against Guyana Amazon Warriors in the first Qualifier that sent the Falcons to the final, the left-arm wrist spinner picked four again to earn his team the title. Jayden Seales and Alzarri Joseph got the Falcons going with two Powerplay wickets, but it was Moqim's exploits through the middle that dismantled the Kingsmen.

Sadaqat and Saim Ayub picked up the pieces from 30/2 in the fourth over to add a stand worth 80 runs off just 46 deliveries. Sadaqat did most of the scoring in that alliance, taking the team to 97/2 at the halfway stage. But Moqim triggered the Kingsmen's downfall with a double-wicket over where he dismissed Ayub and Rovman Powell. Shadab Khan ramped up the pressure by trapping Romaine Morris leg before, while Moqim took out Hassan Khan in his following over. A three-over frenzy saw the Kingsmen fall from 108/2 to 113/6.

Sadaqat wanted to fight on, but Moqim chipped away at the other end, dismissing Keemo Paul and finishing with figures of 4-14 in 4 overs. A quick 32-run stand between Sadaqat and Andre Russell dragged the side past the 150-run mark.

Carnage in the chase

In a big final, even a slightly sub-par total ought to have felt defendable considering the pressures of the chase. That would have been the case if the Kingsmen had not knocked off a big chunk of the target inside the Powerplay. In just the first six balls, opener Rahkeem Cornwall gave a glimpse of how the chasing side planned to deal with the pressure — he went 4 4 6 6 before falling on the last ball of a 20-run over from Ayub.

Evin Lewis then took on Russell before Amir Jangoo laid into Hunain Shah in an 18-run fourth over. Despite the carnage of the first over, Ayub was given a third over that closed out the Powerplay. Lewis took it on himself to ruin the Pakistan bowler's night further, with two sixes and a four. Ayub conceded 42 in his three overs and the Falcons raced to 76/1 in the Powerplay.

A brief lull followed immediately, with the impressive Vitel Lawes getting Lewis to play a ball onto the stumps. But at the strategic timeout after 10 overs, the Falcons already had 100 runs on the board. The asking rate had dipped to seven an over, but the Kingsmen could have told themselves that they too had tripped up from a very similar halfway position.

The Falcons, however, did not combust against spin through the middle and built the edifice of their title win on two solid stands: 64 (40) between Jangoo and Lewis followed by an even better 89 (54) between Jangoo and Hasan Nawaz. Keemo Paul and Lawes continued to be frugal, but Jangoo and Nawaz compensated by going after left-arm spinner Hassan Khan. To add to Powell's woes, Hunain hobbled off with an injury after bowling one ball in the 14th over, leaving the Kingsmen a bowler short.

Jangoo then took full control by taking on Lawes in the 15th over that left the Falcons needing just 19 from 30 deliveries. Nawaz went on to seal the game — and the season — with two sixes in the 17th over from Powell.

Brief Scores

Jamaica Kingsmen 170/9 in 20 overs (Maaz Sadaqat 114, Saim Ayub 29; Sufyan Moqim 4-14, Alzarri Joseph 2-27) lost to Antigua and Barbuda Falcons 173/2 in 16.4 overs (Amir Jangoo 57, Hasan Nawaz 47*, Evin Lewis 38; Vitel Lawes 1-32) by 8 wickets.