West Indies survived a late-order hitting spree from opposing skipper Mitchell Santner (55 not out off 28 balls) as they got an exciting seven-run win over New Zealand at Eden Park in Auckland on November 5 in the first T20 of a five-match series.
Sent to have first strike by the Kiwis, West Indies made a competitive total of 164 for six – a score former skipper Rovman Powell felt was about 20 runs short given the dimension of the field and the batting surface. Current West Indies white-ball skipper Shai Hope carried over his fine from from the Bangladesh tour and top-scored with 53 off 39, with Powell (33 off 23) and Test skipper Roston Chase (28 off 27) also making solid contributions. Hope and Chase put on 54 for the fourth wicket, with the latter player then adding 49 for the fifth wicket with Powell.
West Indies were crawling along at 66 for three at the halfway stage, with 98 runs coming in the next ten overs as they gave their bowling group something to work with.
In reply, the Kiwis were reeling on 107 for nine in the 17th over as the pair of pacer Jayden Seales (three for 32) and Man of the Match Chase (three for 26) dismantled the home team’s batting order. With the Windies seemingly cruising to a comfortable win, Santner had other ideas as he blazed eight fours and two sixes at the death and nearly pulled off an improbable comeback for the New Zealand team which eventually finished on 157 for nine in their allotted 20 overs. Santner launched Matthew Forde (one for 32) for four fours and a six in the 18th over, before mustering 13 more runs in the penultimate over off former West Indies captain Jason Holder to leave his team needing 20 in the final over which was bowled by Romario Shepherd (one for 26).
Shepherd delivered two dot balls to start the last over, although he escaped a wide call with a rising bouncer off the second ball. Santner then dispatched the third ball of the over for six, but he couldn’t quite clear the boundary again as his team fell just short in the end.
For West Indies, it was their first victory away to the Kiwis since 2008, while their total of 164 was the lowest defended at Eden Park in T20 internationals. The second T20 will bowl off from 2.15 am TT time on November 6 at the same venue.
Summarised Scores:
WEST INDIES: 164/6 from 20 overs (Shai Hope 53, Rovman Powell 33, Roston Chase 28, Alick Athanaze 16; Jacob Duffy 2/19, Zakary Foulkes 2/35) vs NEW ZEALAND: 157/9 from 20 overs (Mitchell Santner 55 not out, Tim Robinson 27, Rachin Ravindra 21; R Chase 3/26, Jayden Seales 3/32). West Indies won by seven runs.
Newsday
