Shai Hope’s belligerent ton went in vain as New Zealand won the rain-hit thriller against West Indies in Napier to clinch the ODI series with a game left to play. In a match reduced to 34 overs per side, Hope’s 109 not out off 69, which included 13 fours and 4 sixes, powered West Indies to 247/9. Devon Conway (90) and Rachin Ravindra (56) set the tone for the chase before Mitchell Santner’s 34* off 15 and Tom Latham’s 39 not out helped the hosts win with three deliveries to spare.
Asked to bat, West Indies lost a couple of wickets early and made a slow start, getting only 40 in the first 10 overs. Hope then upped the tempo with regular boundaries and sixes, while Sherfane Rutherford also got into the act with a couple of maximums in Nathan Smith’s over. Although Smith hit back with the wickets of Rutherford and Roston Chase, Hope kept the throttle on, getting to a 42-ball fifty. Justin Greaves fell to Smith on 22 before Romario Shepherd struck a quick-fire 22 off 14, which included three sixes.
Shepherd’s dismissal left West Indies at 177/7 after 28 overs, with the visitors in danger of being bowled out early. But Hope not only ensured that West Indies batted their full quota of 34 overs, he also maximised their returns. Three fours off Matt Henry in the 29th over was followed by two fours off Blair Tickner. Matthew Forde then hit three fours and a six off Kyle Jamieson before becoming Smith’s fourth wicket. Hope moved to 98 with two fours off Henry and got to his hundred – in 66 balls – with a six off Jamieson in the final over, followed by a boundary as West Indies finished close to 250.
New Zealand began their chase rather quietly, getting only 13 in the first five overs before Conway struck a four off Jayden Seales and Ravindra hit a six in the same over. They built a steady partnership, getting boundaries and sixes from time to time, along with strike rotation, to keep the chase on track. Ravindra was slightly slower of the two openers before he hit two sixes off Shamar Springer, and one more maximum off Chase helped him bring up a 42-ball fifty. The century stand was raised in the 16th over before Ravindra fell to Greaves in the 17th.
Conway then brought up his fifty and kept the boundaries coming, even as Will Young and Mark Chapman fell in quick succession. But his dismissal in the 26th over, getting caught at point off Springer, left New Zealand at 166/4, with the hosts needing 82 more in 51 balls. Latham and Michael Bracewell brought it down to 54 off 30 before the latter was dismissed by Forde. New Zealand needed 40 in the last three overs when Santner eased the pressure with two fours and a six off Forde in the 32nd over which yielded 18. The New Zealand skipper followed it up with a four and a six off Springer, bringing it down to 8 off 6, which the hosts got without much fuss to go 2-0 up in the three-match series.
Brief scores: West Indies 247/9 in 34 overs (Shai Hope 109*; Nathan Smith 4-42, Kyle Jamieson 3-44) lost to New Zealand 248/5 in 33.3 overs (Devon Conway 90, Rachin Ravindra 56; Matthew Forde 1-42) by 5 wickets.
