T20 World Cup 2024: England's All-Round Game Defeats West Indies

T20 World Cup 2024: England's All-Round Game Defeats West Indies

England’s bowlers Adil Rashid and Jofra Archer halted them by grabbing crucial wickets and preventing boundaries including Nicholas Pooran and Andre Russell.

England, the defending champions, proved their strength by defeating West Indies in St. Lucia. They kept West Indies to 180 runs and then quickly chased the target, winning by eight wickets. Phil Salt shined with an unbeaten 87 runs, including 30 runs in one over.

When did the game come in favor of England?

They were right on course to post about 200 runs in the last few overs of the West Indies innings. However, they were able to score only 180 after setting 137 runs on board in 15 overs. England’s bowlers Adil Rashid and Jofra Archer halted them by grabbing crucial wickets and preventing boundaries including Nicholas Pooran and Andre Russell.

West Indies:

Initial Overs : 54/0 (RR: 9.00, 4s/6s: 8/1)

England's bowlers started strong, giving up only 13 runs in the first two overs. Then, Brandon King switched bats and hit a big shot off Reece Topley for a six. Johnson Charles also hit a boundary, making it two in that over. The next three overs each had two boundaries, and the West Indies quickly scored over 50 runs in the PowerPlay. However, Brandon King got hurt and had to leave the game after trying to hit a ball from Sam Curran.

Middle Overs :  83/2 (RR: 9.22, 4s/6s: 2/7)

Nicholas Pooran started strong after the PowerPlay, hitting a four off Topley and a six off Mark Wood. However, England fought back with their spin bowlers, Adil Rashid and Moeen Ali, who gave away only 10 runs in two overs. Charles, who was scoring slowly, tried to hit a six off Rashid but got caught trying to do the same against Moeen, getting out for 36. England did well during this part with Rashid giving away just 19 runs in three overs. But then Rovman Powell changed the game with powerful hits. He hit a six off Moeen Ali and another big six off Sam Curran. When Liam Livingstone came to bowl in the 15th over, Powell hit him for three sixes. However, Powell got out by edging a ball to a short third man, ending his exciting 36-run innings.

Final Overs : 43/2 (RR: 8.60, 4s/6s: 3/2)

England got a crucial wicket when Jofra Archer made Pooran hit the ball to the wicketkeeper. Then, Rashid ended his great spell by getting Andre Russell out. Romario Shepherd tried to help West Indies with a quick 28 runs, but Sam Curran bowled a tight over, stopping any more boundaries. At the halfway point, England was in control, keeping West Indies to just 180 runs.

England:

Initial Overs : 58/0 (RR: 9.67, 4s/6s: 5/2)

West Indies were trying to defend a score of 180, hoping to stop runs or get early wickets. But Phil Salt and Jos Buttler made it hard for them. Powell had Akeal Hosein bowling from one end and other bowlers from the other, trying to bowl straight. But sometimes they bowled too straight and got hit for fours. Salt hit Andre Russell for a six and pulled Alzarri Joseph's short ball for another six. Meanwhile, Akeal bowled well, giving only 19 runs in three overs. He could have got Salt out when he was on 7, but Pooran missed a tough catch.

Middle Overs : 83/2 (RR: 9.22, 4s/6s: 7/2)

Like England, the West Indies also started well in the middle overs. Gudakesh Motie bowled tightly in the seventh over. Then, Powell surprised everyone by letting Roston Chase, an off-spinner, bowl against two right-handed batsmen. Chase did a great job and even made the ball move away from the batsmen. He got Buttler out by trapping him in front of the stumps with a full ball. Moeen Ali came in next and hit two fours off Motie before Andre Russell got him out. Jonny Bairstow hit some boundaries off Chase and Motie, then hit a six and a four off Joseph in a 14-run over. Bairstow quickly scored 46 runs off 21 balls and almost caught up with Salt after hitting 16 runs in Akeal's last over. This included a strong sweep for four and a lucky top edge that went past midwicket with the help of the wind.

Final Overs : 40/0 (RR: 16, 4s/6s: 4/3)

Salt scored 30 runs in the 16th over bowled by Shepherd. He hit a big shot over extra cover to reach his fifty and then smashed a six straight over the bowler. Salt also hit a short ball over the 'keeper and sent another one over long-off for six. He pulled a slower ball for six and ended the over with a four off a full toss. The match ended soon after.

Summary of Scores:

The West Indies scored 180 runs for 4 wickets in 20 overs. Rovman Powell and Nicholas Pooran both made 36 runs. Adil Rashid took one wicket for 21 runs. England scored 181 runs for 2 wickets in 17.3 overs. Phil Salt made 87 runs not out, and Jonny Bairstow made 48 runs not out. Roston Chase took one wicket for 19 runs. England won by eight wickets.