West Indies vs England
England’s white-ball woes continued as they lost the first T20I against the West Indies by four wickets at Kensington Oval. England made an explosive start after being put into bat, reaching 77-0 after the PowerPlay and 112-2 after 10 overs. However, England collapsed in the middle overs and were all out for 171 in the 20th over. Andre Russell, in his first T20I in two years, took 3-19 to lead the West Indies fightback.
England’s Explosive Start Fades:
England’s openers, Phil Salt and Jos Buttler, got them off to a flying start. Salt struck three boundaries in the first over and England raced to 50 in just 4.5 overs. The scoring rate continued to climb, with 26 runs coming from the 6th over, bowled by Alzarri Joseph, which included 10 extras.
However, the West Indies fought back in the middle overs. Russell broke the opening partnership in the 7th over when he dismissed Salt for 22. He then dismissed Liam Livingstone for 27 and Sam Curran for 13 to leave England struggling on 129-5.
West Indies Respond in Kind:
The West Indies also started their chase brightly, with Brandon King hitting two sixes and a four in the first over. They reached 50 in just 4.5 overs, but they lost King for 22 soon after. Kyle Myers then made 31 from 21 balls to help them reach 78 before he was dismissed at the start of the 8th over.
The West Indies continued to score at a good pace, and they reached 100 in 10.1 overs. However, they lost Nicholas Pooran for 13 and Shimron Hetmeyer for 14 in quick succession. This brought the West Indies captain, Rovman Powell, to the crease.
Record-Breaking Chase:
Powell played a captain’s knock, hitting six sixes to help the West Indies reach their target with 11 balls to spare. He was unbeaten on 31 from 15 balls, and Russell was not out on 29 from 14 balls. Their partnership of 51 from 23 balls sealed the victory for the West Indies.
The win was a good one for the West Indies, who are looking to build on their recent success in the T20 format. They will be looking to continue their good form in the next match of the series.
