West Indies vs Ireland: First time ever in ODIs - No. 11 Sheldon Cottrell scripts history in Barbados

WI vs IRE: Sheldon Cottrell blasted a six off the penultimate ball to give the West Indies a thrilling one-wicket victory in the second ODI.

Windies cricketer Sheldon Cottrell is known for his bowling prowess but against Ireland in the second T20I in Barbados, he helped the team get over the line with his batting efforts. Cottrell blasted a six off the penultimate ball to give the West Indies a thrilling one-wicket victory. Cottrell hit Mark Adair over cover for the winning runs as the home side held their nerves in the thrilling encounter.

File image of Windies cricketer Sheldon Cottrell. (Getty Images)

Courtesy of his penultimate ball six, Cottrell entered history books as he became the first number 11 batsman to finish the match with a six in ODIs. This incredible stat was shared by Cottrell’s Indian Premier League (IPL) side Kings XI Punjab.

KXIP’s twitter post read: “Stat Alert: @SaluteCotterell is the first No.11 batsman in the history of ODI cricket to finish a chase by hitting a SIX.”

Victory gave the West Indies a 2-0 lead in the three-game series after winning the opener at the same ground on Tuesday by five wickets.

Despite Cottrell’s headline-stealing flourish, it was fellow tail-ender Hayden Walsh who was his team’s saviour. In just his seventh one-dayer, Walsh, who started his international career last year playing for the United States, finished undefeated on 46.

“We are relieved about the win, we all put in the effort,” said West Indies man of the match Alzarri Joseph who took four wickets for the second game in a row as well as hitting a valuable 16 runs in a ninth-wicket stand with Walsh.

“We wanted to bat sensibly and get to the score.

“The win means a lot to everyone, but it’s not finished, we have one game to go.”

((With PTI Inputs))