As favourites India and South Africa battle for the title in the ICC men’s T20 World Cup at Kensington Oval tomorrow, many fans are still discussing the failure of West Indies to at least reach the semi-finals.
But let’s acknowledge that the final features the two most deserving teams, as they played unbeaten. And the victorious team will be the first to capture a men’s T20 World Cup unbeaten.
In relation to West Indies, needing to beat South Africa in a virtual knockout at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua last Sunday, Rovman Powell’s team lost by three wickets with five balls remaining (DLS method).
The West Indies batting was disappointing, scoring 135 for eight after they were sent in. All-rounder Roston Chase hit the top-score of 52 off 42 balls with three fours and two sixes and Kyle Mayers made 35 off 34 balls at the top.
Mayers and Chase, both dropped early in their innings, added 81 in 10.5 overs for the third wicket.
But once they were parted, the innings lacked momentum with six wickets tumbling for 32 runs off 35 balls.
Let’s be realistic. Losing Shai Hope and Nicholas Pooran inside the first two overs would have given South Africa a psychological boost.
There have been arguments that arrogance played a part in both dismissals. Hope, fresh from a career-best T20I 82 not out off 39 balls including four fours and eight sixes against United States of America at Kensington, drove left-arm pacer Marco Jansen into the hands of cover before he had scored.
Then off the first ball from captain Aiden Markram, left-hander Pooran (one) attempted a big hit and was caught at long-off.
Jansen should have also removed Chase in his second over but Anrich Nortje dropped an easy catch at mid-on.
And in the sixth over, Mayers was let off at square-leg by Keshav Maharaj off Markram.
But that is the nature of the game and both Mayers and Chase must be credited for their effort in rebuilding the innings.
Tactically, the decision by Markram to bowl his four overs of off-spin on the trot was commendable. In fact, the pacers bowled only three overs in the first half of the innings and key pacer Kagiso Rabada sent down only two overs all told – at the death.
At a stage when they were hoping to accelerate, West Indies lost vital wickets including Powell (one), Sherfane Rutherford (0) and Andre Russell, who was run out for 15 off the first ball of the 17th over, having clobbered two sixes off the first two balls from the previous over by Nortje.
Some observers have also contended that West Indies did not help their cause by facing 57 dot balls – the most in an innings at the current World Cup.
Powell conceded that the batting was a disappointment.
“As a batting group, this is one batting performance we’ll try our best to forget. I think we didn’t bat well in the middle overs especially,” he said. “I think obviously you see both teams bat on the wicket. Obviously it wasn’t an easy wicket, especially to get started.
“I think [in] the middle overs, we lost wickets in clusters. The first time in this competition we have lost wickets in clusters. That always breaks the back of a batting team.”
Left-arm spinner Tabraiz Shamsi played a vital role, taking three for 27 off four overs after he was introduced into the attack in the tenth over.
“Fortunately, I’ve been able to play CPL for the last five or six years,” Shamsi said. “And one thing you know, with the West Indian boys, you don’t have to guess what their intent is going to be. It helps you formulate a plan or expect what you’re going to be coming up against, and then it’s about trying to utilise the different variations you have.
“Everything sort of goes into slow motion with the outcome in the middle. It’s just about doing the job for the team, and at times, the captain will ask me to strike – or at times he’s asking to bowl it tight, so it’s about trying to do that as best as I could.”
Despite the below par total, West Indies soon struck back with pacer Russell grabbing two wickets to leave the score 15 for two after two overs before rain stopped play.
On resumption, the target was revised to 123 for seven off 17 overs.
South Africa managed to maintain a fairly healthy scoring rate despite losing a couple more wickets and by the end of the eighth over, they were 77 for four.
Chase, again impressive with his off-spin, kept West Indies hopes alive by removing David Miller for four and topscorer Tristan Stubbs (29 off 27 balls) in consecutive overs. He also added the scalp of Maharaj (2) to leave the score 110 for seven by the 16th over.
But Jansen, with 21 not out off 14 balls and Rabada, unbeaten on five, carried South Africa to victory.
Chase took three for 12 off three overs after coming on as the last of six bowlers.
Russell picked up two for 19 and Alzarri Joseph, two for 25 – both off four overs.
Disappointingly, Akeal Hosein and fellow left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie were expensive. Hosein conceded 31 runs from three overs and Motie 20 from his only over – the seventh of the innings.
A look at the averages shows Pooran as the leading West Indies run-scorer with 228 (Ave: 38.00). The others with more than 75 runs were Johnson Charles 140 (Ave: 23.33); Rutherford 121 (Ave: 40.33); Hope 107 (Ave: 53.50); Powell 102 (Ave: 17.00); Chase 94 (Ave: 47.00); Brandon King 86 (Ave: 21.50) and Russell 78 (Ave: 26.00).
Joseph was their top wicket-taker with 13 (Ave: 13.61; Econ: 7.22). Russell picked up 11 (Ave: 12.81; Econ: 6.99); Hosein 9 (Ave: 15.66; Econ: 5.64; Motie 8 (Ave: 18.62; Econ: 7.09) and Chase 7 (Ave: 11.42; Econ: 5.33).
Keith Holder is a veteran, award-winning freelance sports journalist, who has been covering local, regional and International cricket since 1980 as a writer and commentator. He has compiled statistics on the Barbados Cricket Association (BCA) Division 1 (rebranded Elite in 2012) Championship for over four decades and provides statistics and stories for the BCA website (www.barbadoscricket.org).
Email: Keithfholder@gmail.com
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