West Indies came up with another all-round show as they continued to pile up the agony on Jos Buttler’s England in the ongoing white-ball series at home. After winning the ODI series 2-1, West Indies have now taken an unbeatable 2-0 lead in the 5-match T20I series. Rovman Powell’s side successfully defended 176 by 10 runs to win the 2nd T20i at the National Cricket Stadium in Grenada on Thursday, December 14.
| WI vs ENG, 2nd T20I Highlights |
2-time T20 World Cup champions West Indies may have shockingly missed out on qualifying for the ODI World Cup earlier in the year, but Rovman’s men are looking good to challenge for the ultimate prize in T20I cricket in June next year, slowly but surely building momentum towards the major tournament.
West Indies were pushed to the backfoot but they showed character, especially with the bat throught Brandon King’s sensational 52-ball 82 and captain Rovman Powell’s rapid fifty.
After chasing down 172 in the first T20I in Barbados, West Indies defended a par total in the 2nd match on Thursday. Their spin-bowling was looked as a concern but the performances of Akeal Hosein and Gudakesh Motie in Grenada must have given the Darren Sammy-led team management a lot of confidence.
Chasing 177, England got off to a poor start as captain Jos Buttler departed for just 5 with Akeal Hosein striking as early as the 3rd over. Buttler’s poor form in white-ball cricket in the recent past coinciding with England’s poor results has led to alarms bell ringing back home with only 5 months to go for their title defence in the T20 World Cup.
Philip Salt and Will Jacks played aggressively and kept England in the hunt despite Jos Buttler’s early exit. However, Alzarri Joseph stepped up and removed both the batters in his successive overs to leave West Indies in a spot of bother at 65 for 3.
Sam Curran, who walked in at No. 4, showcased his potential with the bat, hitting 50 off 32 balls. Liam Livingstone hit 17 from just 9 balls but he was not able to continue as he became Gudakesh Motie’s maiden T20I victim.
Moeen Ali threw his bat after walking in at No. 7, hitting 22 off 13 balls but it was not enough for England on Thursday.
Akeal Hosein picked up 3 wickets and Alzarri Joseph two, but the pick of the bowlers was Motie, who gave away just 9 runs and bowled 15 dot balls in his 4-over quota.
ROVMAN, KING FIRE FOR WI
Earlier in the day, West Indies were a in huge spot of bother as they were reduced to 54 for 4 in the 9th over. Big names, including Kyle Mayers (17), Nicolas Pooran (5), Shai Hope (1) and Shimron Hetmyer (2) fell cheaply.
However, Brandon King kept going after the England attack and the opener ended up with 82 from just 52 balls, hitting 5 sixes and 8 boundaries. He stitched an 80-run stand with captain Rovman Powell, who hit a 28-ball 50, smashing 5 sixes and 3 boundaries.
“The way we came back from 54 for 4 really pleased us,” captain Powell said.
Andre Russsell, who won the Player of the Match award on his return to the T20I side earlier in the week, shone with a 10-ball 14.
The two teams will meet in the 3rd T20I in Grenada on December 16 and England will be keen on winning it and keeping the series alive.