For the seventh consecutive match in the two white-ball series, it was a match-winner, a match-winner in the Caribbean, as the West Indies shone in a runfest in St Lucia, chasing down England’s total of 218 with an over to spare.
In perfect conditions for batting, a combination of playing on the same wicket as Thursday, blazing afternoon sun and a sometimes fierce crosswind led to 32 sixes being hit throughout the match.
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“I thought it was a very good game of cricket,” Jos Buttler said. “It was a fantastic batting wicket. I thought we put up a very good total, and West Indies played very well to chase them down.
West Indies’ ball-striking was breathtaking, as Evin Lewis and Shai Hope added 136 for the first wicket in 9.1 overs. Lewis finished with 68 of 31; I’m hoping for 54 out of 24.
It was an attack that came out of nowhere after both men scored just five runs in the first two overs of the innings. Saqib Mahmood had even managed a maiden. But once debutant John Turner’s second over – the third of the innings – lasted 25, the ball stopped swinging and West Indies began.
In the next seven overs, 131 runs were scored in a flurry of hitting which was capped by a remarkable 15-ball spell of play comprising 53 runs and three wickets. Liam Livingstone came on in the eighth over only for him to disappear for 30, before Sam Curran’s second over moved to 23. The two overs looked to have sealed the match for the West Indies, only for three wickets to fall in three balls during Rehan. Ahmed is finished and threatens to turn the match around.
First, Lewis was caught by Jacob Bethell running from the boundary, before a mix-up with new batter Nicholas Pooran led to Hope’s runout. Then Pooran himself was clean. Everything was happening at the same time in Saint Lucia.
At the toss, West Indies captain Rovman Powell smiled as the coin fell in his favor for the first time in the T20i series. The 4 p.m. start times gave the teams batting first a double disadvantage, as the wicket was at its worst in the afternoon sun, before the dew set in in the evening, making the pitch good for batting and slipping ball for bowling. No team has won a match on this tour after losing the toss.
But for the first half of this match, England seemed to have flipped that script, as thanks to half-centuries from Phil Salt (55) and Bethell (62 not out), England had reached what appeared to be an imposing total of 218.
For Salt it was a continuation of his fine form against the West Indies, while with Bethell it was further confirmation that England had a special talent on their hands.
“It’s the first time I’ve seen in the Caribbean that once you win the toss, you win the match,” Powell said. “It’s too biased. We fought hard, it’s just a shame the series is already over when we get a win.
With the series already in the bag for England, the Saturday crowd was smaller than expected in St Lucia, but the atmosphere remained special as the hosts relished the spectacle of their team sending sixes in all directions.
A late swing from the home side threatened to make the match interesting, but the match ended in fitting style as Sherfane Rutherford hit consecutive sixes into the crowd to seal a five-wicket victory. The final game of the series will take place on Sunday.