West Indies defeated New Zealand to register a come-from-behind victory in the T20 World Cup. The defeat means that New Zealand now needs a miracle to qualify for the Super Eight stage of the T20 World Cup.
T20 World Cup: West Indies vs New Zealand
West Indies
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Powerplay: A terrible beginning
In the opening over of the innings, Trent Boult struck once more. He had done it numerous times in his career, but this time Johnson didn’t need anything exceptional. When the ball struck the stumps, Charles took a heavy cut. Nicholas Pooran made an effort to field the entire constraints, but Tim Southee, returning to the starting lineup, took him out with a short ball and increased the damage by dismissing captain Rovman Powell. The game began well for the under-pressure NZ team as Roston Chase mistimed one off Lockie Ferguson in between these two dismissals.
Middle overs: New Zealand keeps the lead
The West Indies were reduced to 30/5 as James Neesham, who was returning, struck for New Zealand. At the halfway point, West Indies could generate just 49 runs, despite Akeal Hosein’s attempt to break the chains with a six. Not that it helped that Andre Russell made a fleeting appearance; New Zealand summoned in Boult to get rid of the big man Even though Rutherford was only hitting sixes at that point, the home team needed a particularly strong performance from him in the last five overs to secure a good total.
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Death Overs: A Solo Performance
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Because of one man, the West Indies were able to set a difficult goal for New Zealand of 150 from 30/5. At the last moment, Rutherford took matters into his own hands, farming the most of the strike and pushing boundaries. Kane Williamson went to Mitchell Santner and Daryl Mitchell to close out the batting after Boult, Southee, and Ferguson bowled out before the 18th over. Rutherford took full advantage of the situation, smashing 37 runs.
New Zealand
Powerplay: A faltering opening
Any start on the night would appear better than the one the West Indies made. But after that Rutherford assault, New Zealand would have preferred a better performance up front. With a four and a six to start, Finn Allen was on his way, but Devon Conway lost his wicket when he chose to sweep the rough ground. To the relief of the home crowd, Alzarri Joseph then entered the attack in the last over of the powerplay and removed Allen with a short ball.
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The Middle Overs and The Formalities
Following the powerplay, Gudakesh Motie entered and struck three times, leaving New Zealand in ruins. Rachin Ravindra played a straight shot to deep midwicket after Kane Williamson attempted a cut and received a thick outside edge. With one delivery wide of the crease that turned away from the hitter after pitching to crash into stumps, Motie made it three wickets in three overs. New Zealand’s effort was collapsing at 63/5.
Death overs: Insufficient reserves
To the very end, New Zealand needed to find their own Rutherford to pursue this. While Phillips was undoubtedly the man they were counting on, Neesham’s departure was the final nail in the coffin for New Zwaland’s chances in the T20 World Cup and now the blackcaps need a miracle to qualify to the next round of the T20 World Cup.
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