"I also want to thank R Ashwin" - Imran Tahir says the Indian encouraged him for CPL captaincy when others made jokes

Guyana Amazon Warriors captain Imran Tahir has thanked Ravichandran Ashwin for his support after the South African lifted the Carribean Premier League (CPL) trophy. Tahir said several people messaged him to joke about him becoming the captain when he replaced Shimron Hetmyer in the role ahead of the season.

The Amazon Warriors bowled out Trinbago Knight Riders for just 94 in the final and chased it in just 14 overs with nine wickets left on Sunday. It was the Warriors' maiden CPL title. At 44, Tahir became one of the oldest players to win a recognized T20 league as captain.

"Everyone was sending messages and joking that I became the captain," he said in the post-match presentation ceremony. "That actually motivated me, I want to say thanks to those people. Thanks to our analyst Prasanna. He worked almost 20 hours a day to give us plans. I also want to thank R Ashwin from India. Before the tournament, he said our team will do it."

Dwaine Pretorius was the star with the ball for the Amazon Warriors with his four-wicket haul. Tahir also prized the crucial wickets of Andre Russell and DJ Bravo in his spell of 2/8. Saim Ayub (52 off 41) and Shai Hope (32 off 32) brought it home in the second essay.

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Imran Tahir got emotional after the match

Talking about how it was his "dream" to win the title, the leg-spinner got a bit emotional.

"I am very happy to become the first captain to win the tournament for the Amazon Warriors," he said. "Look I said we were more hungry than ever before. Even when we lost the first Qualfiier we kept faith in our team. The team's belief was there."

"The result is never guaranteed. Look I just wanna thank everyone. I wanna tell them that since I arrived it was my dream to win the competition. I am really grateful for the support (in tears). Thank you," Tahir added.

This was the joint-biggest win in a CPL final and the second-quickest in terms of overs left.