It has been an incredibly consistent run for St Lucia Kings in CPL 2024. After winning seven of their ten league games and bagging 14 points for the first time, Kings became the first team to make the playoffs this season. At different stages in the tournament, different people have put their hands up for Kings. While Johnson Charles and Faf du Plessis have led the way with the bat, it is Noor Ahmad, the Afghanistan wristspinner, who has made the biggest impact with the ball, in his maiden CPL season.
All of 19, he has already played in the IPL, PSL, BBL, the Hundred, MLC, LPL and SA20. So, it was no surprise that when he arrived at the CPL, he looked like a seasoned campaigner almost from the get-go. And he's bowled that way.
Noor is comfortably the leading wicket-taker so far in the tournament with 19 wickets in 11 games, averaging 14.31 at an economy rate of 6.32. He has taken at least a wicket in all but two matches, which includes three three-wicket hauls. Having a gun wristspinner is something that Kings lacked last season with Sikandar Raza, who can now turn the ball both ways, and Peter Hatzoglou not as effective. But getting Noor on board has changed the narrative for Kings.
"Playing CPL is a wonderful experience," Noor tells ESPNcricinfo. "It is very competitive, [has] beautiful stadiums, a beautiful crowd. The atmosphere to play cricket in the Caribbean is absolutely great.
"The belief and trust that I have got from the management and captain, that is something that gives me the feeling that I can do well for my team in any situation of the game. Reading the situation, reading the conditions, then I know how to bowl in that particular situation. That is something that has helped me a lot throughout this CPL."
The conditions in the Caribbean aren't always the easiest for an overseas spinner. The winds can often disrupt lengths, and adjusting to the surfaces is also a challenge, but Noor has adapted quickly. Sixteen of the 19 wickets that he has picked in CPL 2024 have been of right-handers. He's used the wind to his advantage and got the wrong'uns to pitch on the right areas. And against left-handers, he has been tight, conceding just 5.34 runs against them.
It helped that Noor was part of the Afghanistan T20 World Cup squad in the West Indies and USA earlier in the year and while he just managed a wicket in seven outings, the experience of the Caribbean conditions has kept him in good stead.
"Yeah, I already played in the T20 World Cup in the Caribbean," Noor says. "So it wasn't much to think about all these things as to how the conditions will be because I had already played here recently, and I know the situations and the conditions very well. I had three training sessions before the start of the tournament, and I got the idea what to do and it's been great since then."
His proudest moment was certainly being part of the Afghanistan team that had qualified for the T20 World Cup semi-final for the very first time.
"It was an unforgettable journey. Going to the semi-final among the best teams in the world was not easy," Noor said. "Before the start of the tournament, we as a group, as a team believed that we can go to the semi-final and final because of the skills and talent we had in our team. All these things made the difference for us."
Kings have made it to the Eliminator three times and the final twice but have not been able to lay their hands on the trophy even once. With Noor going the way he is, and the top order firing, Kings will be hopeful of going all the way. They will have four days to rest and reboot and will hope they get third time lucky as far as CPL finals go.