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West Indies beat Afghanistan by 30 runs in first T20I
The Caribbean side’s victory, after a clean sweep in the three-match ODI series earlier this month, was scripted by opener Evin Lewis’s blistering half-century and Kesrick Williams’ three-wicket haul.
West Indies crushed Afghanistan by 30 runs to take a 1-0 lead in the opening game of the three-match Twenty20 series at the Atal Bihari Vajpayee Ekana cricket stadium on Thursday. The Caribbean side’s victory, after a clean sweep in the three-match ODI series earlier this month, was scripted by opener Evin Lewis’s blistering half-century and Kesrick Williams’ three-wicket haul. Put in to bat, the West Indies posted 164/5 off 20 overs on a placid pitch, but the Afghan batsmen failed to hold their nerve and succumbed to some fine bowling and fielding by the Caribbean side before an enthusiastic and appreciative crowd.
Afghanistan lost opener Rahmanullah Gurbaz in the second over when Brandon King took a skier off Sheldon Cottrell. Wickets fell at regular intervals as the Afghan batsmen struggled to find gaps for fours or go for the big hits, especially against pacer Williams, who bowled a controlled line, intelligently mixing the slower ones to keep the batsmen guessing.
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Although opener Hazratullah Zazai (23, 29b, 2x4) and Asghar Afghan (25, 21b, 2x4, 1x6) put on 48 runs for the third wicket and raised hopes of a comeback, their effort went in vain as Williams edged Zazai into the safe hands of keeper Denesh Ramdin, whereas substitute Keemo Paul took a straight-forward catch offered by Afghan off Pollard.
Najibullah Zadran’s 22-ball 27, which contained three hits to the boundary and a six, and later Fareed Ahmed’s unbeaten 24 off 15 balls with the help of four boundaries too couldn’t do much for the side, which finished their 20 overs at 134/9. Pollard and leggie Hayden Walsh too chipped in with two wickets each to put the brakes on the Afghan batting.
The ease with which the West Indies won was unexpected as Rashid Khan was all smiles while choosing to bowl first after winning the toss on a fresh wicket.
His bowlers, especially Mujeeb Ur Rehman, who remained the most successful bowler for the side in the ODI series, responded well, and didn’t allow West Indies batsmen to free their arms, besides shattering the middle stump of debutant Brandon King with a carom ball in the very first over.
At the other end, the other opener Evin Lewis went on the offensive to score his fifth T20 half-century, hitting a 41-ball 68 with four fours and six sixes.
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His 87-run second-wicket stand with Shimron Hetmyer (21, 21b, 1x6) baffled the Afghan bowlers, who tried their best to break the partnership. They heaved a sigh of relief when Lewis was caught by Mohammad Nabi off Gulbadin Naib in the 12th over. But Ramdin (20, 19b, 1x6) and Pollard (32*, 22b, 2x4, 1x6) helped the side post a challenging total in the end. Naib was the most successful bowler for Afghanistan, bagging 2/24.
Rashid Khan didn’t sound disappointed even after team’s fourth successive loss under his leadership, but hoped to stage a comeback in the next two games.
“We always wanted to win the toss as the conditions were suitable to our playing style. We didn’t get the ideal start, but we still have two more games in the series to stage a comeback,” he said after the match.
“We have the plans for the kind of team we want in the coming five years, so we are giving chances to youngsters. Hopefully, we will have a good team for the Asia Cup and the World Cup. Hopefully, our fans will keep us in their prayers and we will try to come back stronger,” he said.
Pollard was all praise for the partnership between Lewis and Hetmyer. “In fact, these two set it up as it wasn’t one of the easiest wickets to bat on. The ball was coming slow off the wicket. We were a bowler short but the boys stepped up,” he said, adding, “We have another game shortly, so we need to look at the areas to improve upon.”
The two sides play their next game at the same venue on Saturday.
BRIEF SCORES:
West Indies 164/5 in 20 overs (E Leiws 68, K Pollard 32*, S Hetmyer 21, D Ramdin 20, G Naib 2/24) beat Afghanistan 134/9 in 20 overs (N Zadran 27, A Afghan 25, F Ahmad 24*, H Zazai 23, K Williams 3/17, K Pollard 2/17, H walsh 2/34) MoM: K Pollard (West Indies).
