The West Indies beat New Zealand by 13 runs in a thrilling match at the Brian Lara Cricket Stadium. Powerful batting of Sherfane Rutherford helped the Windies reach a strong total. Alzarri Joseph and Gudakesh Motie then took centre stage by using tight bowling and taking key wickets to keep New Zealand in check.
1. Home Ground Advantage
West Indies benefited from playing in familiar conditions at Brian Lara Stadium in Trinidad. They are already used to the surface and the atmosphere which is a huge advantage in T20 cricket. Playing in foreign conditions against a home side proved costly for New Zealand. The atmosphere at Trinidad was quite electric where the crowd backed the team to defend 150 runs which wasn’t a bowling friendly track.
Head coach Darren Sammy was seen constantly interacting with skipper Rovman Powell throughout defending the target and a lot of inputs were sent to the players through the 12th player. It won’t be wrong to say that a two time T20 World Cup Winning captain is on the verge of becoming a T20 World Cup winning coach as the team showed never to say die attitude throughout the match.
2. Sherfane Rutherford’s Ruthless Batting
West Indies boasts a powerful batting line-up with players like Brandon King, Johnson Charles, and Rovman Powell, who are all capable of scoring big runs quickly. But in today’s match against NZ Rutherford stole the show with an impressive 68 runs off 39 balls along with the help of Hosein, Russell and Shepherd. With a strong performance West Indies put up a fighting total of 149/9.
3. Bowling Attack with Variety
West Indies has a well-rounded bowling attack with a mix of pace and spin. Alzarri Joseph and Romario Shepherd usually provide early breakthroughs, while Akeal Hosein and Gudakesh Motie are effective on spin-friendly wickets typically seen in the Caribbean. There was no exception in today’s match. Joseph’s extraordinary spell of 4 wickets with an impressive economy rate 4.75 with strong contribution from Motie with a 3 wicket spell helped WI bind New Zealand in the chase.
The victory of the Windies over the Black Caps was a display of their firepower and tactical nous. Capitalising on a supportive home crowd at the Brian Lara Stadium they posted a competitive total. This win strengthens their position in Group C and puts them on the verge of a Super 8s berth.