SHENZHEN, China -- Giannis Antetokounmpo and his brother Thanasis Antetokounmpo had to be separated from members of Team USA after a controversial foul triggered emotions at the FIBA World Cup on Saturday night.

With 1:43 left and the U.S. on the way to a 69-53 victory, Harrison Barnes had a free dunk when Thanasis Antetokounmpo hit him from behind and sent Barnes sprawling onto his stomach behind the basket. A common foul was called on the play.

Moments later, when the game ended, Team USA forward Jaylen Brown and Giannis Antetokounmpo exchanged words and referees and coaches came to break up the confrontation. Brown later pointed at Thanasis Antetokounmpo, angrily making his point.

The teams didn't have the traditional postgame handshake. USA coach Gregg Popovich gathered his team on the floor to allow the Greeks to leave so the two teams wouldn't meet in the tunnel.

"Yeah, I said something to Giannis. Well, Giannis said something to me," Brown said. "But we've got bigger fish to fry. So we move on."

Giannis Antetokounmpo declined to talk to the media after the game.

The Americans were angered not just by the foul but also because Thanasis Antetokounmpo didn't initially apologize for the perceived cheap shot, which happened right in front of the U.S. bench.

"The [no apology] escalated it," Marcus Smart said. "At that moment, you've got to take it for what it is. Regardless of whether you feel like it was wrong or right, it was wrong."

Barnes, who finished with nine points and seven rebounds, was uninjured.

"The game was over; probably a frustration play," Barnes said. "Apologies only go so far. If I don't get up and something would've happened, apologies aren't going to help us in the next game. Luckily everything is all good."

SHENZHEN, China - Before each game at the FIBA World Cup the entire teams are announced to the crowd, culminating with the head coach. Without fail as Team USA has progressed from Shanghai and now to Southern China, Gregg Popovich has gotten the loudest ovation.

Popovich, for better or worse, is maybe the biggest American star here, even if he rejects the concept out of hand. But frankly, the U.S. needs him to be a star on occasion, every bit as much as they need those turns from Kemba Walker or Donovan Mitchell.

Popovich and his coaching staff put in a star performance Saturday night in Team USA's 69-53 win over Greece. This was not an attractive game but now more than a month into watching this group, it's clear that a world title is going to come ugly if it comes at all. Popovich is going to have to earn it as much as anyone.

The defensive game plan the Americans had ready for Giannis Antetokounmpo was multifaceted and complete, getting them over a dangerous hurdle. It was a team effort, from the scouting staff led by Jeff Van Gundy to assistant coach Steve Kerr working with players to explain their roles to Popovich pouring in hours between games in meetings and watching film.

Antetokounmpo had 15 points and 13 rebounds and made 7-of-11 shots, but the truth was he was defanged to the point where the Greeks waved the white flag and pulled their star in the fourth quarter to save energy. As expected, he exploded out of the gate with intensity as he scored on a spin move and nailed a 3-pointer on the game's first two possessions. But methodically he was taken out of the game and so was his team.

"Everything is always a compilation of experiences. Obviously we've seen him play and he's a great player," Popovich said. "It's a little bit of everything. Overall we did a good job of being active."

Popovich's long-term plans for dealing with the current Most Valuable Player were derailed a bit when Jayson Tatum went down with an ankle injury earlier this week. After consulting with the coaches, when it came time for a team meeting Friday afternoon Popovich told Joe Harris that he was going to open the game defending Antetokounmpo.

Then Friday night, Harris' phone rang.

"Pop called me and told me I just want you sleep a little easier," Harris said, "and he told me we're going to have Harrison (Barnes) guard him."
The coach was tinkering into the night. He's working it, holding rounds of meetings with a collection of basketball intelligence he's brought with him to China. In addition to Kerr and Van Gundy, his official staff includes Atlanta Hawks head coach Lloyd Pierce and Villanova head coach Jay Wright. His unofficial staff includes Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach Ime Udoka, San Antonio Spurs coaches Chip Engelland and Will Hardy, longtime college and NBA coach P.J. Carlesimo and others.

What it produced was a strategy that hemmed in Antetokounmpo. Barnes started on him as planned but Khris Middleton, Jaylen Brown and Marcus Smart soon followed in quick succession. Smart was especially effective denying Antetokoumpo position in the post, fighting to deny entry passes. There were even possessions when big man Mason Plumlee got the assignment, trying to keep the Greeks off balance.

"Pop wanted to throw a bunch of different looks at him," Brown said, "Keep him thinking."

Popovich played small at times, not playing Brook Lopez at all, so that he could switch pick-and-rolls no matter who Antetokounmpo wanted to run a two-man game with. He rotated players in from the weak side to bring double and sometimes even triple teams. And when Antetokounmpo played on the perimeter, the defense shaded toward him with three players shadowing him.
"We showed a crowd every time he touched it," Smart said. "We want to make it hard for him and we did."

The Americans picked which Greek players to give space, their scouting identifying some weak spots on Greece's roster. Certainly it was possible that one or two of Greece's players could've had unexpected hot shooting nights but Popovich and his staff had worked the percentages and they told the players exactly who they wanted to funnel the ball toward.

"Everyone knows Giannis obviously, you play against him in the NBA," Harris said. "But you have to be real familiar with everyone else too. That's why the scout (from the coaches) was so thorough."

Other than Antetokounmpo, the rest of the Greece team shot just 25 percent. The double teams allowed some open 3-pointers but the Greeks didn't make them, going just 7-of-27.

Indeed it was the players who executed the plan and while Antetokounmpo was motivated, the Americans wanted to make a statement too. Especially Boston Celtics Smart and Brown, who'd been dominated by Antetokounmpo while wearing a Milwaukee Bucks jersey in the playoffs in May.

But it's been Popovich who has steadily sold the need for defensive intensity to the group over the last several weeks, building that habit up and arming them with a game plan that puts them in a position to be successful.

It's only halfway toward the journey, the U.S. is 4-0 in the World Cup but has four more left. If Popovich and his staff keep up this batting average, he'll have done this often thankless job.

"It was a good test of us, it helped us get better," Popovich said. "That's what we're looking for."

ST. LOUIS -- Chris Duncan, a former outfielder who helped the St. Louis Cardinals win the 2006 World Series, died Friday. He was 38.

Duncan, the son of former St. Louis pitching coach Dave Duncan and brother of former major leaguer Shelley Duncan, died of brain cancer in his hometown of Tucson, Arizona.

"The Cardinals are deeply saddened by the passing of Chris Duncan and extend our heartfelt sympathy to his wife, Amy, the entire Duncan family, and his many friends," Cardinals Chairman and CEO Bill DeWitt Jr. said in a statement. "Chris was an integral part of our 2006 championship team and a great teammate and friend to many in the organization."

Duncan hit .257 with 55 home runs and 175 RBIs in 381 games in five seasons with the Cardinals. After his playing career, he worked as a sports radio host at 101ESPN (WXOS-FM) in St. Louis.

Information from The Associated Press was used in this report.

Minnesota Twins right-hander Michael Pineda has been suspended 60 games without pay after testing positive for Hydrochlorothiazid, in violation of MLB's joint drug prevention and treatment program.

Pineda originally was suspended for 80 games, but the ban was reduced to 60 on appeal, as a compelling case was made that the banned diuretic he used was not a masking agent for performance-enhancing drugs, a source told ESPN's Jeff Passan.

Pineda made 26 starts this season, going 11-5 with a 4.01 ERA.

MILWAUKEE -- It's the key unit of the Cubs' roster that is supposed to lead them to the postseason, but Chicago's high-priced starting rotation is as big a crapshoot as any part of its game right now. On Friday night, against the Brewers, left-hander Cole Hamels continued a disturbing trend for this rotation when he took his team out of the game way too early for anyone's liking -- especially his.

"Sometimes, it's a battle and you'd rather it be a battle against the other team as opposed to internally, against yourself," Hamels said after a 7-1 defeat.

In the first inning, Hamels walked the leadoff batter before getting in and out of a bases-loaded jam. He settled down but not for long. Things fell apart in the third, as he gave up nine hits overall in 3⅓ innings, including a three-run home run to Christian Yelich. The Brewers never looked back, as the Cubs saw a short-lived 1-0 lead evaporate.

At his best, Hamels can place his fastball where he wants it and then put hitters away with his changeup. But he is far from that pitcher right now. The Brewers went 7-for-8 against his fastball and chased almost nothing out of the zone -- only 17% of his pitches to that area Friday, Hamels' lowest number of the season. Even at less than ideal, the veteran usually keeps his team in the game. That's not happening.

"Time is ticking and this is why I'm here," a frustrated Hamels said. "It's to get the job done and to continue to put good games out there for this team to give them an opportunity to win, and I'm not doing so."

Since a months-long stay on the injured list for an oblique injury, Hamels has been throwing batting practice. That was understandable for his first few starts back off the IL, but the time to shake off the rust should be well behind him. Over his past seven starts, he has given up a whopping 47 hits in 30⅓ innings while compiling a 7.12 ERA. His manager says Hamels is healthy, so this is about execution.

"I thought he was throwing the ball well, then it all went south," Joe Maddon said. "I didn't see it coming. I thought he was in for a pretty good night."

Hamels hasn't had a good night in a long time, but the even bigger problem for the Cubs is that Hamels' rotation mates are seemingly just as inconsistent. Kyle Hendricks can't seem to pitch on the road. Jose Quintana has come back down to earth after a great stretch. Jon Lester is performing frequent escape-artist tricks; eventually, the traffic on the bases might catch up with him.

Which is why, on Saturday night, all eyes will be on Yu Darvish when he returns after skipping a start because of forearm stiffness. He has been excellent, but no one thought the Cubs would have to rely on him to lead the way at the most important time of the year. In March, a good season from Darvish was thought of as gravy. Now? He is as big a key as anyone on the team.

"We've always gathered our strength from our rotation," Maddon said. "That's been a bedrock for us."

In the past, Chicago could count on big-game pitchers such as Lester, Hamels and Hendricks -- and maybe the Cubs still can -- but time is running out and there's little margin for error. Clinching a wild-card spot is far from a done deal for them, and winning the National League Central is still an arm's length away, with September days disappearing from the calendar. Is it over? No. But it's getting late.

"I have four more starts to make a dent and help this team win," Hamels said.

Giving his team a better chance would be a start. It's not what the Cubs should be worrying about right now, not Hamels and Lester. Father Time catches up with everyone. The only question is, when is it their time? Maddon says it's not now.

"Moving forward, the starting rotation is going to be a big part of our success," he said.

Is that a prediction or hopeful thinking? The final weeks of the Cubs' season will tell us.

British veterans enjoy 100m success at European Masters Championships in Venice with three golds in 15 minutes and five overall

After the extremely hot weather of the opening day, Friday was mostly cool, wet and windy and not conducive to fast sprint times.

Nevertheless, Britain’s sprinters had a highly successful time and there were 100m gold medals for Steve Peters, John Wright, Don Brown, Jonathan Browne and Caroline Powell.

The first three golds came back to back in the space of just 15 minutes. Elsewhere, walker Ian Richards also won gold.

Doctor Stephen Peters, surely one of the greatest ever British masters with well over 20 years of domination in his age group, started it rolling with a M65 gold medal.

The well-known sports psychologist had remarkably not raced since winning a world masters sprint triple last September in Malaga.

After holding back in the heats he blasted to yet another gold in the final, winning easily in 12.95 (-2.2). Germany’s Rudolf Koenig (13.18) followed with John Browne winning bronze in 13.20.

Next on the track was the M60 race and John Wright won easily in 12.57 (-1.9), two metres up on US guest Val Barnwell (12.77) though Guner Gumgor took European silver in 12.78.

Britain’s hat-trick of titles was completed by Don Brown, who was a clear winner of the M55 race. He fought a strong 3.6m/sec headwind to win in 12.13, two metres ahead of Paolo Mazzocconi’s 12.34 as Pat Logan took bronze (12.61).

Jonathan Browne won the M35 100m in 10.94 into a strong 2.5m/sec headwind as he just edged Giovanni Tomasicchio of Italy (10.95).

Ciaran Harvey won a M45 bronze in 11.83 behind winner Ricardo Lemos of Portugal’s 11.79 and M75 Victor Novell (14.34) and M80 Anthony Treacher (16.19) won further bronzes.

Controversially, while the men ran their 100m races in the main stadium in Jesolo, where nearly all athletes are based, the women were competing 20km away in Caorle, where there were far fewer supporters and they did not get the usual support from the male sprinters.

Caroline Powell continued her long run of successes. In her first Europeans in the W65s age group she won in 15.09 (-0.4) with fellow Brit Joylyn Saunders-Mullins second in 15.30.

Malgorzata Gasowska of Poland won the W40 100m in 12.60 (2.2) but was followed home by three Brits – Susie McLoughlin (12.72), Joanne Frost (12.90) and Karen Burles (13.00).

Away from the sprints, Ian Richards continued his good form with a clear win in the M70 5000m walk in 27:08.70 to take gold by almost 25 seconds.

Peter Boszko won a further British medal in third (27:33.14) just three hundredths of a second behind Ettorino Formentin.

Also in the walks, Catherine Duhig picked up a W60 silver in 30:26.63 behind Marie Astrid Monmessin of France (27:20.00).

Iris Holder, the W75 triple jump winner on day one, showed her versatility with a 18.93 for bronze as Hannalore Venn of Germany won in 18.25.

Dorothy Fraser won W80 bronze in 22.14 in a race won by Rietje Dijkman in a European record 17.56.

In the field, David Valentine won a M60 hammer bronze with a 48.23m throw as Gottfried Gassenbauer won an Austrian gold with 54.51m.

Louise Wood won a W50 triple jump bronze in 9.86m as Kirsi Spoof-Tuomi of Finland won with 10.38m.

Marianne Berndt won W40 bronze in 10.82m behind Spanish winner Cristin Teixera Garcia’s 12.52m while Lynsey Whyke won W35 triple jump bronze (10.37m).

In the weight, M35 George Perkins (13.48m) and M40 Stuart Thurgood (15.51m) both won silver medals.

Other performances of note included W65 Romanian Mihaela Loghin’s 12.28m shot win.

At the end of day two Germany were top of the medal tables (17 gold, 15 silver, 12 bronze) from Italy (13, 12, 9), Finland (9, 4, 6) and Great Britain (8, 7, 13) and so far remarkably 24 different countries have won a gold medal with just under a 100 having already been decided with eight days of competition still to go.

Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake beats Richard Kilty at Great North CityGames but local star Kilty is still smiling after brilliant day at Stockton-on-Tees

Richard Kilty promised everyone that Stockton-on-Tees would stage a memorable Great North CityGames – and he was right. Large crowds turned out on a bright and breezy day at the Tees Valley venue to watch the local star sprinter plus athletes like the legendary Allyson Felix in a meeting that will live long in the memory.

“Everyone was shocked when it was coming to Stockton as Newcastle and Manchester are really big cities,” Kilty said. “But I told them we have an amazing high street and the fans are incredible.

“The athletes got an amazing reception and the crowd was electric. It was an amazing emotional day for me and one I’ll never forget.”

Kilty’s day began with a crowd-pleasing 100m win in 10.57 (0.2) over Sam Osewa and Sam Miller, who both clocked 10.80.

The 30-year-old later faced a tougher test in the 150m and finished a close third behind Harry Aikines-Aryeetey and winner Nethaneel Mitchell-Blake, the latter clocking 15.43 to win by seven hundredths of a second after a strong finish.

Kilty was returning from a hamstring tear sustained when winning the 200m at the European Team Championships last month. “But I was never going to miss this!” he smiled.

Richard Kilty talks proudly about today’s Great North CityGames in his home town of Stockton-on-Tees. #GNCG2019 @RKilty1 pic.twitter.com/qsWU3mRo6f

— AW (@AthleticsWeekly) September 7, 2019

Rarely has Teesside been graced by an athlete of Allyson Felix’s class and the multiple global sprints champion delivered with a 150m victory in 17.37 over Brits Ashley Nelson (17.42) and Beth Dobbin (17.49).

The 33-year-old is a six-time Olympic gold medallist and has won a record 16 medals at the IAAF World Championships and in Stockton she showed her improving form during a comeback season following a baby break.

When it came to popularity with the spectators, Jonnie Peacock almost gave Kilty a run for his money. The 26-year-old, who is preparing for the World Para Athletics Championships in Dubai in November, was also too fast for the rivals in his race as he took the IPC 100m in 11.53 (-1.9) from Felix Streng of Germany.

Similarly, Sophie Hahn showed fellow competitors in the women’s IOC 100m a clean pair of heels by building up a big lead with a lightning start which she never relinquished as she clocked a CityGames record of 13.07 (-1.8).

Abigail Irozuru was all smiles after winning the long jump with a CityGames record of 6.66m (0.4). The Briton beat Quanesha Burks of the United States by four centimetres with Olympic champion Tianna Bartoletta third.

The thumping atmosphere in Stockton was on display in the men’s pole vault as Cole Walsh of the United States beat Charlie Myers of Britain on countback after both vaulters cleared 5.45m in blustery conditions.

Earlier in the day elite mile races took place on the Newcastle-Gateshead Quayside which were won by Jordan Williamsz and Eilish McColgan.

After winning the CityGames mile in 2017 and 2018, Williamsz made it a hat-trick of victories as he pipped fellow Australian Ryan Gregson to the post in 4:10.95, while McColgan (pictured below) clocked 4:32.04 to beat Melissa Courtney by 1.7sec despite admitting she wasn’t sure exactly where the finish line was.

Back in Stockton, Tony van Diepen of the Netherlands and Jaide Stepter of the United States won two competitive 400m races that began on the road and went up a tiny ramp before finishing on the temporary synthetic track.

Van Diepen, a 400/800m specialist, was boxed in as the field reached the closing stages but he extricated himself in time to burst clear and clockd 47.40 to beat Tyrell Richard of the United States and Britain’s Martyn Rooney and Dai Greene, whereas 400m specialist Stepter clocked 54.10 to out-pace Brits Amy Allcock and Jessie Knight.

In the sprint hurdles, Queen Claye put on a great show for the crowd – during the race and in her exuberant post-race interviews – as the American clocked 13.08 (0.7) ahead of Britain’s Cindy Ofili, whose fine comeback from Achilles injury continues as she ran 13.11 in second.

The men’s 110m hurdles saw Damian Czykier of Poland run 13.93 (-1.3) to beat British champion David King by one hundredth of a second.

BUFFALO, N.Y. -- Rookie center Jack Hughes need not be too disappointed over the dud he and the New Jersey Devils produced in the No. 1 draft pick's debut in an NHL competitive setting Friday night.

Overlooking the 6-4 loss to Buffalo at the Sabres' prospects tournament, Devils minor-league coach Mark Dennehy was more impressed by how Hughes' focus never wavered when the game was essentially out of reach.

"It's 6-3 and we're on the power play, and he asked me a question that tells me not only is he locked in, but that he's a student of the game," said Dennehy, declining to share the specific question Hughes asked.

"It was a situational thing, and as a coach, for a player at his young age to sort of change gears was pretty impressive to me," said the AHL Binghamton coach, who was behind the bench.

"As skilled as he is, he's a competitor, too," Dennehy said. "I know he's not happy with the result. But I think he showed everybody especially the Devils' fans that he's got a bright future."

The 18-year-old Hughes wasn't in much of a talkative mood following a game the Devils trailed 6-0 before scoring four times over the final 23 minutes.

"We could've played better," Hughes said. "I felt OK in my game. First game of the year, so just a building block."

Though he scored a goal, Hughes was more disappointed in the several chances he missed. Turnovers were an issue, too, for Hughes, who coughed up the puck several times in the opening period.

"It was more just getting my feet wet again," said Hughes, whose last game was representing the United States at the World Championships in May. "I'm sure it's only a start."

His night got off to a bad start when Hughes fell while losing a faceoff in the Devils end, which led to the Buffalo's Kyle Olson opening the scoring 30 seconds in. On Hughes' next shift, he coughed up the puck at his own blue line.

It wasn't until midway through the opening period, when Hughes began showing off the play-making skills which led him to set the two-year USA Hockey National Developmental Program scoring record with 228 points (74 goals, 154 assists) in 110 career games.

Driving into the right corner of the Sabres end, he eluded a defender and made a no-look pass to the left point to set up a scoring chance.

Hughes' highlight came with 3:43 left in the second period. After getting knocked down by Buffalo's Casey Fitzgerald in the Sabres end, Hughes got up, raced to coral a loose puck and scored the Devils' first goal.

"It was more beat the goalie to the spot, grab the puck, spin around and shoot," Hughes said, describing the goal. "Yeah, it was nice. Good to get on the board. But, I mean, I had five or six other chances and should've scored at least one or two more."

Hughes and the Devils' prospects will get two more games in Buffalo to knock the rust off before the team opens training camp next week. And that's when most eyes will be on Hughes, the 5-foot-10 play-making center from Orlando, Florida, who was the eighth American to be selected with the No. 1 pick.

Hughes was part of a Devils lineup that featured two other first-round picks: center Michael McLeod (selected 12th overall in 2016) and defenseman Ty Smith (17th in 2018). And then there's newly signed forward Jesper Boqvist, a 2017 second-round selection, whose 35 points tied him for second among players 21 and younger in the Swedish Hockey League last season.

The Devils are counting on Hughes to immediately contribute to a roster that's been restocked after New Jersey finished last in the Metropolitan Division. A day after drafting Hughes, New Jersey turned heads by acquiring defenseman P.K. Subban in a trade with Nashville, and also signed power forward Wayne Simmonds in free agency.

Though they've yet to meet in person, Subban is already looking forward to assisting in Hughes' development.

"I think the focus needs to be on his development as a player. He's got a lot of time, and there's going to be a learning curve," Subban told The Associated Press. "But he's a tremendous talent, and you're going to see when the puck drops. I'm just excited to be able to try to help someone like that in any way I can."

Devils head coach John Hynes watched from the stands and liked what he saw in Hughes' first game.

"I liked his speed. I liked his competitiveness. I think all in all for him, it's a pretty good first game," Hynes said.

Neymar's second half goal gave Brazil a 2-2 draw against South American rivals Colombia in an international friendly on Friday night.

The match at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens marked the competitive return of Paris Saint-Germain's Neymar, who has not played for club or country since injuring his right foot in a June friendly against Qatar.

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Brazil took the lead in the 20th minute when Casemiro headed home a corner from Neymar, who was making his return to the national side after missing their victorious Copa America campaign.

Luis Muriel equalised from the penalty spot six minutes later after Alec Sandro was penalised for a clumsy challenge, and he gave Colombia the lead 11 minutes before half time when he rifled high into the net from 10 meters out to finish off a superb team move.

Brazil improved in the second half and Neymar got them level after 58 minutes when he tapped in from close range after Philippe Coutinho had split the Colombian defence with a long pass.

Neymar had a strong penalty claim turned away with a quarter of an hour remaining when Davison Sanchez forced him face first into pitch-side advertising but the referee waved the claim away and neither side could get the winner.

"It was a difficult game, but I think that we had more chances and we could have won," said Brazil captain Dani Alves after the match.

"But I think that a game at this level really could have gone either way. It's left a bitter taste in our mouth."

Brazil will now go to Los Angeles where they face Peru on Tuesday, while Colombia play Venezuela in Tampa the same night.

Trinbago Knight Riders 191 for 4 (Webster 66*, Narine 46, Jacobs 1-14) beat Jamaica Tallawahs 169 for 6 (Worker 46, Russell 44, Narine 2-23, Neesham 2-27) by 22 runs

An all-round show by Sunil Narine and Tion Webster's maiden T20 half-century spoiled Chris Gayle's homecoming as Trinbago Knight Riders beat Jamaica Tallawahs by 22 runs for their second straight win.

After being asked to bat, Webster's unbeaten 66 off 49 balls helped Knight Riders to 191 for 4. While Webster was played the anchor's role, Narine smashed 46 off 22 and Kieron Pollard contributed 33 not out off 21 towards the end to take Knight Riders to a formidable total.

In response, Tallawahs could never get going as the Knight Riders spinners made the run-scoring difficult right from the start. Narine, Khary Pierre and Seekkuge Prasanna bowled ten overs combined, conceding only 61 and sharing three wickets.

When Andre Russell made his way to the middle, Tallawahs needed 99 from 42 balls. Despite not looking at his best, Russell struck four fours and as many sixes in his 24-ball 44 but even for him, it proved too much in the end.

Narine leads the attack

Lendl Simmons started the Knight Riders innings with a four over covers and struck a six three balls later. But his stay was cut short by Christopher Lamont's left-arm spin. In comes Narine, out goes Lamont's next three balls for four, six, four. Oshane Thomas wasn't spared either. The pacer's two near-yorkers were squeezed out to the extra-cover and deep midwicket boundaries. When he bowled short and wide, Narine carved him over covers for a six and took Knight Riders to 53 in just four overs. With Webster going at almost a run a ball at the other end, Narine's innings ensured the scoring rate didn't suffer. Narine eventually fell in the ninth over when he mistimed a slower one from Shamar Springer to long-on but Knight Riders had already posted 85 by then.

Webster's maiden half-century, Pollard's umpteenth onslaught

Webster had opened his account with a first-ball four off Jerome Taylor. He had also struck a four and a six in one Russell over to move to 18 off 12. But the next 12 deliveries brought him only seven runs. With just three down at the half-way mark and Pollard still to come in, Webster realised he needed to go big. And then as if a switch was flipped. The first ball of the 11th over - bowled by Springer - was slog-swept for six. The next two balls were steered for two off-side boundaries. Three overs later, Webster brought up his half-century, off 37 balls.

Pollard came to the crease in the 15th over, after Russell bowled Ramdin with a dipping full-toss, and warmed himself up with seven singles off the first seven balls he faced. But his late onslaught meant Knight Riders took 34 from the last three overs, with Pollard accounting for 26 of those with the help of four boundaries.

Knight Riders spinners strangle Tallawahs

After just 12 from the first two overs, Pollard brought in Narine who straightaway found the turn. After hitting Glenn Phillips on the pads a couple of time, Narine managed to sneak one through the gate and uproot the leg stump.

Gayle hit the 19-year-old Mohammad Hasnain for back-to-back sixes but he too struggles against Narine's spin. Trying to collect as many runs possible from the other end, he smashed Ali Khan over the bowler's head for a six but while trying to repeat the act next ball, he holed out to deep midwicket, leaving Tallawahs 39 for 2 in the sixth over.

Pierre and Prasanna kept up the pressure and conceded just 19 from the next four overs. As a result, Tallawahs could manage only 58 in the first ten overs at the loss of three wickets.

Go big or go home

With 134 needed from 60 balls, Tallawahs had to find boundaries and find them soon. One such attempt from Chadwick Walton - off Narine - ended up straight into the hands of James Neesham at long-on. Russell slog-swept Pierre over wide long-on for a six but the next ball was hit towards long-on, to the left of Neesham who overran it and could only see the ball bursting through his fingers for four.

With 72 needed off 25, Russell got another life when he failed to middle a slog sweep off Narine but Prasanna at short third man spilled the chance. Russell was dropped once more - off Hasnain - but even all those chances and the Russellmania couldn't take Tallawahs to victory.