England vs West Indies : West Indies now lead the five-match series 1-0 as leg-spinner Adil Rashid became the first player in the history of the England men’s team to take 100 wickets in the IT20; There will be games in Grenada on Thursday and Saturday, both beginning at 5:30 p.m. GMT.
In the opening T20 match of the series in Bridgetown, Andre Russell grabbed three wickets and shared an unbroken stand with skipper Rovman Powell to help the West Indies defeat England by four wickets.
After losing the toss and being ordered to bat first, Phil Salt (40) gave England a great start with a 77-run partnership with Jos Buttler (39), but the West Indies struck back, bowling the visitors out for 171 in 19.3 overs.
After a brief weather delay, Rehan Ahmed (3-39) got two wickets in a row to leave the West Indies floundering at 123-6 in reply. Adil Rashid (2-14) also impressed, becoming the first England men’s player to reach 100 T20I wickets on his 100th T20I appearance.
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West Indies win first game of the series
England vs West Indies : During his innings, Salt hit six boundaries and one six, but England was unable to build on their quick start, losing at 112-2 halfway through their innings. Shimron Hetmyer’s stunning diving catch at deep midwicket also saw captain Buttler caught at cow corner.
Alzarri Joseph (3-54) removed Will Jacks (17) after he hit two sixes in his fast-paced innings. Joseph gave up 25 runs in his first over, the most expensive of his career, but he was able to finish with more respectable totals after mopping up the tail.
The crowd at Kensington Oval cheered when Joseph made a fantastic leaping catch at long off, but Romario Shepherd (2-22) ended Ben Duckett’s (14) cameo in the 14th over with a slower ball that was ramped to third. He struck again in the 18th over to dismiss Sam Curran (13).
Following a strong finish, Joseph removed Rashid (0) from the game in the final over. Tymal Mills (0) was then caught behind the next ball, leaving England all out for 171.
The West Indies scored 78 runs thanks to a solid 32-run partnership between Brandon King (22) and Kyle Mayers (35), the latter of whom hammered a short ball at Duckett, who finished with an amazing leaping catch.
within the initial six overs.
England vs West Indies : Just before a 40-minute rain delay, Rashid claimed his historic wicket in the next over when he had Hetmyer (one) caught at mid-wicket by Duckett. Ahmed (3-39) had Nicholas Pooran (13) out caught and bowled to turn the tide of the match back towards England.
The hosts still needed 49 after Ahmed dismissed Shepherd (0) for a golden duck after having Shai Hope (36) caught at wide long-on and used the slip that Butter had offered him. However, the West Indies added 32 runs in two overs thanks to costly overs from Livingstone and Mills, which turned the tide in their favor.
After hitting Rashid for a six and then four to reduce the number of needed runs to four, Russell sliced Sam Curran (0-23) to the backward point boundary to round up a successful opening to the series.
Buttler: "We want to continue pushing the envelope."
England vs West Indies : “With the pitch set up, there was only going to be more difficulty.. Although we were looking for a score of 200 from where we were, I thought the West Indies had adjusted by slowing down the pace of the ball.We want to continue pushing the envelope and doing our best to stay optimistic. But the key is to figure out how to continue scoring in that manner.
“Today, finding techniques to minimize dot balls and pick out specific places has become more and more difficult. We can consider and do well in that area as well as getting those extra 20, 25, and runs in an unconventional manner.”
What comes next?
England vs West Indies : The five-game T20 international series is currently scheduled to
Grenada for two consecutive games commencing at 5.30 p.m. GMT on Thursday and Saturday. The final two matches, which begin at 10 p.m. on December 19 and December 21, will subsequently be played in Trinidad and Tobago.