Chasing a target of 298, the West Indies were bowled out for 177 in 44.2 overs in yet another embarrassing display of batting when the team once again failed to surpass 200 runs.
Rovman Powell was the leading scorer with 47 while Nkrumah Bonner (31) and Raymon Reifer (27) offering next best efforts in the losing cause.
Mohammad Saifuddin took 3 for 51 and there were two wickets each for Mustafizur Rahman and Mehidy Hasan, who between them gave up 42 runs from 16 overs.
"I think we were a bit far off in all three games,” said a frustrated Mohammed. “We bowled pretty ok, maybe 30 too much. And then our batting didn't come up trumps. It was a bit challenging for us, the spinners were really challenging for us, especially in the first two games. I think that's where we faltered a lot.
“It's something that can be rectified, with our full-strength team, it's a pretty good batting lineup. Once our main players are back, we can do pretty well at putting scores and chasing them.”
Anything over 200, however, would have been good enough for Bangladesh but identical scores of 64 from Captain Tamim Iqbal, Man-of-the-Match Mushfiqur Rahim and Mahmudullah, who was unbeaten at the end, and 51 from Shakib al Hasan set Bangladesh on track to 297 for 6 from their 50 overs.
The home side lost two early wickets and was 38 for 2 after 8.4 overs but rebounded to post the match-winning total despite the best efforts of Alzarri Joseph (2 for 48), Reifer (2 for 61) and Kyle Mayers (1 for 34).
“Alzarri was very good, at the top and with the death. Akeal was also very good. I think the bowlers were very good,” said Mohammed, obviously wishing he could say the same for his batsmen.
Nicholas Pooran's side fell to a 2-1 series defeat on home soil with a narrow six-run loss in Sunday's decisive third meeting, as Kyle Mayer hit 105 – the second highest ODI score of his career – in vain.
West Indies will also be deducted two points from their Super League tally after being adjudged to have fallen two overs short of the target by the on-field umpires.
An ICC statement read: "West Indies have been fined 40 per cent of their match fee for maintaining a slow over-rate against New Zealand in the third and final ODI in Barbados on Sunday.
"In accordance with Article 2.22 of the ICC Code of Conduct for Players and Player Support Personnel, which relates to minimum over-rate offences, players are fined 20 per cent of their match fees for every over their side fails to bowl in the allotted time.
"In addition, as per Article 16.12.2 of the ICC Men's Cricket World Cup Super League Playing Conditions, a side is penalized one point for each over short. Consequently, West Indies will lose two points from their points tally during the Super League.
"Pooran pleaded guilty to the offence and accepted the proposed sanction, so there was no need for a formal hearing."
West Indies are currently seventh in the Super League standings, having posted just nine wins from their 24 games after New Zealand recorded successive wins over Pooran's side.
This tour will be the first-ever ODI Series between the two teams featuring three ODIs from May 31 to June 4 at the VRA Cricket Ground, Amstelveen.
The three matches form part of the ICC ODI Super League, where West Indies and the Netherlands will have the opportunity to secure points to try and secure one of the top seven places, excluding hosts India, to gain automatic qualification for the 2023 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup.
“We have been working closely with our colleagues at KNCB to put together this series immediately after the IPL and we are happy to now be able to announce the match schedule,” said CWI CEO Johnny Grave.
“It’s going to be exciting to tour the Netherlands for the first time. It is a short tour, but we expect great entertainment during what promises to be a wonderful week of quality cricket for the fans in The Netherlands.”
High-Performance Manager of KNCB, Roland Lefebvre, said they are eagerly anticipating the historic tour.
“The KNCB is very excited to welcome the West Indies cricket team back to the Netherlands. The last time the team visited our country was in 1991, for two 55-over friendly matches, with the likes of Richards, Haynes, Ambrose, and Marshall present. These matches will be the second Cricket World Cup Super League home series for the Dutch team and we look forward to a great Caribbean style contest,” he said.
Below is the match schedule:)
Tuesday, May 31: 1st ODI
Thursday, June 2: 2nd ODI
Saturday, June 4: 3rd ODI
The ODI Series will be West Indies fourth series of 12 in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup Super League in which the top seven teams can secure automatic qualification for the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup 2023 in India. West Indies currently lie in eighth position out of 13 teams and have the opportunity to move above Pakistan into seventh position.
This will be the West Indies’ first tour of Pakistan since April 2018 when three T20Is were contested. The two-time former World Champions will be playing ODIs in Pakistan for the first time since December 2006.
“Today we have confirmed the details for the West Indies Men’s white-ball tour of Pakistan in December. CWI would like to thank the Pakistan Cricket Board (PCB) and our own cricket operations, medical and security teams for the work that has gone into the organization of this tour,” said CWI CEO Johnny Grave.
“West Indies and Pakistan have always delivered exciting series and we’re looking forward to visiting Pakistan to complete what has been a hectic and momentous year of cricket in the light of the ongoing challenges of the COVID-19 pandemic.
“The tour starts a new cycle of T20i cricket, building towards next year’s ICC T20 World Cup in Australia. The ODIs also have great significance as West Indies looks to earn more points towards securing qualification for the ICC Men’s ODI Cricket World Cup in India in 2023.”
According to CWI, independent security advisors, Eastern Star International (ESI) will continue to monitor the security situation in Pakistan, and will also have a representative assigned to the team for the duration of the tour.
Meanwhile, the West Indies Women’s Team is presently in Karachi, Pakistan for three ODIs as part of their final preparations for the upcoming Women’s Cricket World Cup Qualifiers.
Tour Schedule
December 9 – West Indies arrive in Karachi
December 13 – 1st T20I, Karachi
December 14 – 2nd T20I, Karachi
December 16 – 3rd T20I, Karachi
December 18 – 1st ODI, Karachi
December 20 – 2nd ODI, Karachi
December 22 – 3rd ODI, Karachi
The 40-year-old Barbadian only took nine wickets in the five Tests he played for the West Indies between March and June 2006.
He made his debut against New Zealand in Auckland in March 2006 and played his final Test against India at Gros Islet in June that year but during his short time with the team, his passion and commitment to the team was never in question.
He is best remembered for scoring an unbeaten 34 in fading light at the Oval as he and wicketkeeper Courtney Browne mounted an unbeaten ninth-wicket partnership of 71 that lifted the West Indies from certain defeat to an unlikely victory in the 2004 Champions Cup.
Speaking on the Mason and Guest radio show in Barbados on Tuesday, Bradshaw expressed his frustration at the West Indies performance in New Zealand where they lost both Test matches by an innings and were swept by the hosts.
“Like every cricket fan I am really disappointed with the performance. We have not stood up and gave a good account of ourselves and I think that that is the most critical thing and it’s worrying the manner in which we lost the series,” he said.
“We would have seen in recent times there have been some positive steps taken in terms of our attitude and in terms of doing some of the small things better.
“I mean, you take a team like New Zealand, if we had to look at their team, maybe (they’re) not a bunch of world beaters, not the Kohli’s and the Steve Smiths that you would see dominate the headlines on other teams, but what this team has done and what we can learn so much from is that they’re doing the little things well, often and that is what we have to improve on, doing the little things well often.”
It bears noting that the West Indies only bowled New Zealand out once during the two Tests and took 17 wickets overall. Meanwhile, New Zealand’s bowlers took 38 wickets. Tim Southee was the best of the hosts’ bowlers with 12 wickets twice as many as the West Indies’ leading bowler Shannon Gabriel.
“It is not good enough that after 50 Tests or so our bowlers are not consistent enough on the first morning of a Test to be consistently putting the ball in front of the batsman,” he said.
He was equally critical of the batsmen, who failed to make any impact on the tour save for a few notable exceptions. In the second Test they also dropped seven catches, three of them off Henry Nicholls whose 174 took the match away from the visitors.
“It is not good enough that you go to New Zealand and the excuse for the batsman is that the ball is swinging. It is difficult conditions but we have been going to New Zealand for over 50 years and the conditions have not changed.
“And I appreciate the fact that New Zealand played well but I am more concerned that our performances as a professional unit was not consistent enough to merit the representation of West Indies cricket which we must hold dear.”
Chasing the hosts' 416, the tourists endured a difficult start with Mikyle Louis (21), Kraigg Brathwaite (48) and Kirk McKenzie (11) all falling to leave them at 84-3.
However, the Windies eventually settled with Hodge and Alick Athanaze putting on an impressive stand of 175, with the latter eventually going for 82.
Hodge continued and jumped for joy when a four completed a maiden century in only his fourth Test.
The 31-year-old, who should have been caught by Joe Root early on, reached 120 off 171 balls, before falling lbw to Chris Woakes.
Jason Holder and Joshua da Silva took West Indies to 351-5 at the close of play, putting them in a strong position to claim a first-innings lead on day three.
"It was important we put our heads down and took some info from the England first innings," Hodge told Sky Sports. "We made use of a good batting track.
"It feels amazing [to make a century], it is always good to contribute to the team, especially coming off the first Test when we didn't do so well as a batting unit.
On the partnership with Athanaze, he added: "Facing [Mark] Wood, it is not every day you face a guy who bowls every single ball over 90 miles per hour.
"It was really important we got through that period as it would have been really difficult for a new batter to start against that."
Data Debrief: History-making Hodge takes centre stage with century
Not only did Hodge help his side's surge, but he also made history with his first three-figure contribution in Test cricket.
The 31-year-old became the first player from Dominica to score a Test ton, and is the first West Indies batter to achieve the feat against England since 2017.
The hosts posted a subpar 149-6 from their 20 overs after winning the toss and batting first.
Captain Rovman Powell hit a 32-ball 48 to lead the West Indies while Nicholas Pooran, fresh off a brilliant 137* to lead MI New York to the Major League cricket title on Sunday, continued his good form with 41 off 34 balls.
Powell hit three fours and as many sixes while Pooran hit two fours and two maximums.
Brandon King had earlier hit 28 as Yuzvendra Chahal and Arshdeep Singh each took two wickets.
India’s chase didn’t start well losing openers Shubman Gill and Ishan Kishan in the first powerplay with just 28 runs on the board.
A 39-run third wicket partnership between Suryakumar Yadav and debutant Tilak Varma provided some stability for the Indians before they fell in quick succession leaving India 77-4 after 11 overs.
Varma made a top score of 39 while Yadav made 21.
Hardik Pandya (19), Sanju Samson (12) and Axar Patel (13) were next to go.
India eventually found themselves 140-8 needing 10 to win off the last over with Kuldeep Yadav and Arshdeep Singh at the crease facing Romario Shepherd.
The first ball of the last over saw Shepherd bowl a brilliant Yorker to dismiss Yadav. India lost a second wicket in the over when Singh was run out by Shimron Hetmyer for 11 leaving India needing six runs of the last ball with one wicket in hand.
In the end, Shepherd’s last ball was hit for just a single by Mukesh Kumar meaning India ended up 145-9, securing the win and a 1-0 series lead for the hosts.
Jason Holder was excellent with the ball with 2-19 from his four overs while Shepherd and Obed McCoy also took a pair of wickets, each.
The second T20I will take place on Sunday at the Providence Stadium in Guyana.
The West Indies lost too many wickets early with Brandon King (1), Nicholas Pooran (18) and Devon Thomas (2) all back in the hutch within the first six overs. It would only get worse for the visitors, who slumped to 60-5 after losing Shai Hope for 31 and Shamarh Brooks for five within three balls of the 10th over bowled by Shabad Khan.
Not even the in-form Rovman Powell could rescue the West Indies. Powell hit a four and two sixes before he, too, fell to Khan for 23 off 15 balls.
His was the seventh-wicket to fall after Dominic Drakes had been dismissed by Haris Rauf for five.
Romario Shepherd and Odean Smith provided some rearguard resistance with a partnership of 46 that was eventually broken when Shaheen Shah Afridi bowled Smith for 24 with the West Indies still needing 67 from the last two overs.
Romario Shepherd went next ball, bowled for 21 by Mohammad Wasim, who would later bowl Oshane Thomas for one, to finish with 4-40.
Shabad Khan took 3-17 from his four overs.
Earlier, half-centuries from Mohammad Rizwan and Man-of-the-Match Haider Ali had steered Pakistan to 200-6 off their 20 overs after Nicholas Pooran won the toss and sent the home team to bat.
The visitors had immediate success when Babar Azam was dismissed in the first over bowled by Akeal Hosein, who got the Pakistan captain to nick one into the gloves of Shai Hope behind the stumps.
The West Indies had further success in the fifth over when Fahkar Azam skied a Romario Shepherd delivery and was caught by Shamarh Brooks for 10 to have Pakistan at 35-2.
Despite the loss of those two wickets, Pakistan maintained a healthy strike rate with Rizwan and Ali putting together a stand of 105 in 62 balls before Rizwan was caught in the deep by Odean Smith, who gifted Shepherd with his second wicket of the match.
Rizwan ran well between the wickets and hit 10 fours in his score of 78 from 52 balls.
The West Indies fought back with the wickets of Asif Ali removed by Oshane Thomas for 1 and Iftikhar Ahmed dismissed by Smith for seven as Pakistan slipped from 140-3 to 161-5.
However, Ali and Mohammad Nawaz, kept Pakistan above nine an over, the latter being rather brutal hitting three fours and two sixes in his unbeaten 10-ball 30.
Between them, they scored 30 from 11 balls before Ali was the last man out for 68 in the 20th over bowled by Dominic Drakes.
Drakes ended with figures of 1-43 from his four overs. Smith proved expensive with 1-52 from his four while Shepherd was the best of the bowlers with 2-43. Twenty-one of those runs came off his last over, the 19th of the innings.
West Indian captain Nicholas Pooran won the toss and elected to field first.
India’s opening pair of returning captain Rohit Sharma and Suryakumar Yadav got the ball rolling, putting on a partnership of 44 before Yadav was dismissed by Jason Holder for a quick 16-ball 24.
Captain Sharma provided a steady head for the Indians throughout the majority of the innings as he lost partners Shreyas Iyer (0), Rishabh Pant (14) and Hardik Pandya (1) before eventually being dismissed in the 15th over for a top score of 64 to leave the tourists 127-5.
They eventually got up to 190-6 off their 20 overs thanks to cameos from Ravindra Jadeja (16) and Ravichandran Ashwin (13) as well as a brilliant closing effort of 41 from just 19 balls including four fours and two sixes from Dinesh Karthik.
Left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein was brilliant for the hosts with an economical 1-14 from his four overs while opening pacer Obed McCoy took 1-30 from his four.
The West Indian reply got off to a fast start thanks to openers Kyle Mayers and Shamarh Brooks as the pair sped to 22-0 in the second over before Mayers fell for 15 to pacer Arshdeep Singh.
The Windies then tried to gamble, sending Jason Holder up the order to bat at three but this move fell flat as he was next to go, bowled by Ravindra Jadeja for a duck.
The innings then ground to a virtual halt as Brooks (20), Nicholas Pooran (18), Rovman Powell (14), Shimron Hetmyer (14), Akeal Hosein (11) and Odean Smith (0) all perished to, eventually, leave the Windies needing 90 off 21 balls for victory.
Keemo Paul and Alzarri Joseph then finished not out on 19 and 5, respectively, to end the innings on 122-8, 68 runs short.
It was a balanced bowling effort by the Indians with Ravichandran Ashwin (2-22 off four overs), Arshdeep Singh (2-24 off four overs) and Ravi Bishnoi (2-26 off four overs) all contributing well.
Gus Atkinson finished with figures of 4-67, while Chris Woakes took 3-69 for England, as only a fine sixth-wicket stand from Jason Holder and Joshua Da Silva saved West Indies from being bowled out for a much lower total.
But England, chasing a 3-0 series whitewash, let their dominant position slip when taking up the bat for the final 35 minutes, Zak Crawley (18), Ben Duckett (3) and Mark Wood (0) being dispatched as bowler Jayden Seales dropped them to 38-3.
Windies skipper Kraigg Brathwaite won the toss and chose to bat, leading his side to a solid start before a spell of three wickets in five overs before lunch put England on top.
Atkinson accounted for Mikyle Louis (26) and Alick Athanaze (2) on either side of Wood sending stumps flying with a full delivery to dismiss Kirk McKenize for 12.
Brathwaite's knock of 61 was brought to a halt shortly after the action resumed, the captain gloving Wood's leg-side ball to Jamie Smith as the tourists slid from 76-0 to 115-5 in 45 balls.
Holder (59) and Da Silva (49) then shared 108 to drag the Windies towards a respectable total, but things looked bleak for them when the latter feathered Woakes' ball through to Smith.
Having gone 30 overs without a wicket, England needed just 14 more to polish off the tail, the highlight being a terrific diving catch from Joe Root to send Gudakesh Motie (8) packing.
England were given just over half an hour with the bat to cap Friday's action, but any hopes of a serene finish were soon dashed.
Holder made two terrific catches off Seales' bowling, the first from Crawley's thick outside edge and the second to dismiss Wood for a duck, either side of Alzarri Joseph's cracking delivery accounting for Duckett.
That spell ensured what had been a good day for the hosts ended on a sour note, with the Windies sure to target quick wickets when the action resumes on Saturday.
Data Debrief: Atkinson and Seales dominate
This series began with all the focus on James Anderson as England's greatest-ever bowler bowed out at Lord's, but Atkinson has taken centre-stage since making his Test debut in the opening match and now has 20 wickets through five innings.
That is eight more than West Indies' Jayden Seales, the next-most prolific bowler in this series, has managed.
Seales was determined to have an impact on day one, though, and his two wickets at the death have set the stage for a far more competitive match than those England won at Lord's and Trent Bridge.
Pollard featured in 123 ODIs for West Indies and scored 2706 runs at a strike rate of 94.41. He also scored three centuries and 13 fifties. In the T20I format, the all-rounder scored 1569 runs at a strike rate of 135.14. He also picked 55 ODI and 42 T20I wickets.
He was a part of the West Indies side that lifted the 2012 ICC Men's T20 World Cup and has also come through the ranks, playing the U19 World Cup in 2006.
Youngster Jordan Johnson thanked Pollard for his encouragement, "We'd like to thank you guys for coming up, and giving us your words of encouragement and motivation. And I hope that they'll use it to the best of their abilities. To help us throughout the World Cup. Thank you!"
West Indies begin their campaign on the opening day of the tournament, taking against hosts South Africa in Potchefstroom. Apart from the Proteas, they'll go up against England and Scotland in their group.
The West Indies, holders of the Wisden Trophy, are locked at 1-1 with the hosts who are trying to regain the trophy they relinquished when they went down to the West Indies in the Caribbean in early 2019.
This, Estwick believes, makes the occasion one of significant magnitude.
“Obviously this a big, big Test match not only for the people who are here in England, there are a lot of people tuned and we’ve got to be really up for it, Estwick said.
He believes the West Indies are more than capable of winning the series.
“The key thing is if you look at the first innings [of the first Test] we got early wickets. When we won in Southampton we got off to a decent start in the first innings with the bat so for me those are two key areas,” he said.
“If we can blunt that new ball and stop England from getting early wickets and also get early wickets ourselves, that could put us in a position to control the game and try and put them under some added pressure.”
Estwick said the coaching staff has been trying to get the players to be aware of the piece of history that can write if they win. West Indies last won a Test series in 1988 before any member of the present team was born.
“We’re constantly reminding them they have the chance to change something that hasn’t happened in 32 years,” he said.
“We played them over the last two or three years and we’ve won the odd Test matches. We’ve obviously won in the Caribbean – we want to go one step better here in England. We really want to win that Test match.
“We have to be up for it. Obviously England is going to be up for it because it’s a final – when you look at this game it is a final for both teams and whoever puts in a big performance also will win the game.”
West Indies last won a Test series in 1988 before any member of the present team was born.
Led by Captain Kraigg Brathwaite's patient 72 and propped up Kyle Mayers' crucial unbeaten 36, the West Indies scored 253 all out in reply to the home side’s first-innings score of 204.
The visitors had resumed from their overnight score of 69-1 with Brathwaite on 22 and Nkrumah Bonner on one. The pair extended their overnight partnership of seven runs to 75 when Ramesh Mendis claimed the first of his six wickets trapping Bonner lbw for 35.
The visitors went to lunch at 145-2, still 59 runs behind the hosts but they failed to build a commanding lead having lost wickets at regular intervals on the resumption after Brathwaite was bowled by Lasith Embuldeniya.
Shai Hope’s miserable Test form continued as he made only 10 while Roston Chase made 22 as the West Indies slipped from 166-3 to 197-7 as Mendis inflicted further damage on the West Indies batting order.
However, Mayers' late innings heroics proved instrumental in giving the West Indies a 49-run lead with his unbeaten knock that guided the West Indies to a small but important advantage.
Mendis’s six wickets cost 70 runs while Embuldeniya took 2-94 and Praveen Jayawickrama 2-59.
Trailing on first innings for the first time in the series, Sri Lanka got off to a bad start losing their leading run-scorer for the series, Dimuth Karunaratne, who was run out for six with only seven runs on the board. Oshado Fernando was also run out, for 14, as the home team crawled to 39-2 as close of play approached.
However, at stumps, Pathum Nissanka remained unbeaten on 21 with debutant Charith Asalanka at the other end on 4.
The West Indies trail 0-1 in the two-Test series.
Ramesh Mendis, who took 3-23 and Praveen Jayawickrama 2-25 were the main destroyers for the hosts as the West Indies collapsed from a solid start from Captain Kraigg Brathwaite, who made 41 and Jermaine Blackwood (20).
Brathwaite and Blackwood were hardly troubled by the Sri Lankan bowling as both took few risks while making effort to rotate the strike as best they could against tight-bowling and a close field. They ran singles and pierced the field for the occasional boundary steadily building a foundation for the chase.
However, the promising start would eventually unravel in the most disappointing fashion.
At 46-0, Blackwood was trapped lbw playing down the wrong line to a Lasith Embuldeniya delivery that was going on to hit leg stump. Nkrumah Bonner was out soon after as after having faced 11 balls, Jayawickrama had him caught at slip for one.
His dismissal triggered a slide that saw the West Indies lose four wickets for 53 runs. Among the wickets to fall was that of Brathwaite, who was caught at leg slip off Mendis for 41 as close of play approached.
The wickets of Shai Hope (10), Roston Chase (2) and night watchman Jomel Warrican followed in quick succession as the West Indies slipped further from 80-3 to 100-6.
Kyle Mayers 22* and Jason Holder 1* are the batsmen at the crease when play ended for the day.
Earlier, Chase took 5-83 to restrict Sri Lanka, resuming from their overnight total of 267-3 were bowled out for 386.
The hosts lost their last seven wickets for 119 runs after overnight batsman Dhananjaya de Silva, who resumed from his overnight score of 56, added five runs to his score before he was first out, hit wicket to the bowling of Shannon Gabriel for 61.
The big wicket of Dimuth Karunaratne, 132 overnight, followed soon after when he was caught at slip for 147.
Chase also removed Dinesh Chandimal for 45 as he and Jomel Warrican (3-87) ran through the remainder of the Sri Lanka batting.
Having erased a first-innings deficit of 114, the hosts appeared to be gaining the upper hand as they reached 249-3, Zak Crawley combining with stand-in captain Ben Stokes to put on a partnership of 98 for the fourth wicket.
The pair built on the good work done by openers Dom Sibley (50) and Rory Burns (42) but West Indies fought back impressively in the final session, Shannon Gabriel and Alzarri Joseph each taking two of the five wickets to go down.
Stokes (46), however, fell for a second time in the match to opposite number Jason Holder when seemingly going well, steering the West Indies skipper to one of two catchers positioned in the gully region.
As for Crawley, the right-hander's impressive innings came to an end on 76 when he chipped a return catch back to Joseph, who then followed up by bowling Jos Buttler for nine.
Gabriel produced a fine spell in fading light to bowl both Dom Bess and Ollie Pope, the latter via an inside edge, and though England avoided being dismissed prior to stumps, they had undoubtedly let slip a glorious opportunity after battling so hard to forge their way in front.
Burns and Sibley continued on from the overnight total of 15 without loss in the early stages of Saturday's play, pushing their opening stand on to 72.
Spinner Roston Chase finally claimed the initial breakthrough for West Indies, aided by Burns hitting a long hop to point, while he also tempted Joe Denly to chip a simple catch to mid-wicket. Having reached 29, England's number three once again failed to capitalise on a promising start.
Sibley did carry on to register his first half-century on home soil in Tests, though departed soon after reaching the landmark.
Reprieved when bowled off a no ball earlier in the same over, he was caught down leg by wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich off the bowling of Gabriel, whose closing burst saw him finish with figures of 3-62.
WINDIES ON TOP BUT WORK STILL TO DO
West Indies will be pleased by the way they hit back with the ball after tea, though a wearing Rose Bowl pitch showing signs of uneven bounce means a fourth-innings chase is by no means straightforward. Still, considering how well England were going with Crawley and Stokes together, the tourists should now be considered favourites.
ROOT'S RETURN CREATES SELECTION ISSUE
With Joe Root set to come back into the XI for the second Test, one of England's batting line-up will have to make way for the returning skipper. It seems a straight fight between Denly and Crawley, with the latter surely now ahead on points after making his highest score in the format.
MOMENT OF THE DAY – GABRIEL GETS HIS MAN... AGAIN
Sibley appeared to have perished straight after reaching 50, bowled off an inside edge. A tight no-ball call initially offered him a second chance, yet the opening batsman failed to capitalise, lasting only two further deliveries before he was dismissed by the same bowler.
Speaking at the event in Antigua and Barbuda, Richardson, 60, urged Caribbean people from “small islands” to never look at themselves as being small, because they all had big hearts and could compete with anyone in the world.
Richardson told the graduating class of 2022 that he was proud to be an ambassador for Antigua and Barbuda, and proud to represent the region as a cricketer.
He said he, Sir Vivian Richards, Sir Curtly Ambrose, and Sir Andy Roberts were committed to developing the Four Knights Cricket Academy, which opened in 2015 in Antigua and Barbuda, to identify and support emerging cricket talent. He believed once the people of the WI remained focused and disciplined, it could keep producing outstanding cricketers.
“I remain optimistic and hopeful that the WI will return to being the best cricketing team in the world someday, hopefully pretty soon.”
Richardson encouraged the audience to remember where they came from and the opportunities they got because of their people and country. He added that having received higher education, they were the beginning of a cultural change in their families, communities and countries. They now had to find their niche and excel at it.
“It is important that you know your history and identity and use it to cultivate your present and your future. We are all from small island developing states and the harsh reality is that many persons in other parts of the world are not even aware of what our respective Caribbean islands are called or what ethnicities and cultures make up our people.
“But you can change this as you utilise your knowledge to strengthen sectors and create awareness of our existing cultures.”
He recalled, as a young man, wanting to be like great West Indian batsmen of the past, and wanting to make an impact on the world stage, which “lit a fire” in him for the game and to succeed.
Richardson represented the West Indies in 86 Tests from 1983-1995, scoring 5949 runs at an average of 44.39 with 16 centuries and 27 half centuries.
He also represented the region in 224 ODIs from 1984-1996, scoring 6248 runs at an average of 33.41 with five hundreds and 44 fifties.
After having New Zealand on the verge of elimination of 153 for 8, needing 239 to win, Joey Field and Kristian Clarke, number nine and 10, respectively, the West Indies were upended by an unbeaten 86-run ninth-wicket stand that knocked them out of the tournament.
Opting to bat, the West Indies lost two wickets inside the first 10 overs for 32 runs. However, Kevlon Anderson (33) and Kirk McKenzie posted a stand of 78 runs. That was followed by a 73-run fourth-wicket stand between McKenzie and Antonio Morris (31) set up the West Indies total.
The West Indies were in line to score much more but Clarke and left-arm spinner and Jesse Tashkoff, the New Zealand skipper, combined to trigger a West Indies collapse that saw the Caribbean side plunge from 183 for 3 to 205 for 8 in just 45 balls. The innings closed at 238 all out in 48 overs.
McKenzie, who had retired hurt, returned to be the last West Indies batsman out for a well-played 99.
The West Indies bowlers then set about the New Zealand batting setting the team up for a comprehensive victory.
Opener Ollie White was out for a duck early and Rhys Mariu soon followed for 26.
It was soon 67 for 4, after Fergus Lellman and Tashkoff fell within four balls.
Quinn Sunde (32) and Simon Keene staged a brief recovery to take New Zealand to 118 but Ashmead Nedd triggered a collapse taking three wickets in a space of 15 deliveries.
With New Zealand struggling at 153 for 8, Field and Clarke gradually rescued their team and eventually got them over the line with two balls to spare.
Clarke's 46 was the highest score by a No. 10 in the Under-19 World Cup history while their partnership was the highest for the ninth wicket in a chase.
In what was another embarrassing display of batting, the West Indies, who won the toss and opted to bat, were bowled out for 148 in 43.4 overs. The visitors lost their first five wickets for 41 runs midway the 18th over and only managed to cross the hundred-run mark thanks to a 32-run ninth-wicket stand between Rovman Powell and Alzarri Joseph, who took the score from 88 for 8 to 120 for 9.
Powell, who also put on 28 for the last wicket with Akeal Hosein who made 12, fought hard for his top-score of 41 from 66 balls before being the last man out.
Meanwhile, amid the disaster of the top order batting, debutant Kjorn Ottley looked good during his brief stay at the crease scoring 24 of the West Indies 36 runs before becoming the second wicket to fall. Nkrumah Bonner scored 20 in a vain attempt to hold the middle order together as the West Indies were powerless in their efforts to keep the Bangladeshi bowling at bay.
“Obviously, it was a little disappointing for us. A much better wicket for us, and we needed to put a lot more runs on the board. I think the spinners were always going to be challenging. We keep losing wickets in clusters, and we can't have partnerships going. That's been our downfall,” said Captain Jason Mohammed following the carnage.
Mehidy Hasan took 4 for 25 with his right-arm off-breaks and there were two wickets each for Shakib al Hasan and Mustafizur Rahman.
Bangladesh made light work of the chase easing to 149 for 3 from just 33.2 overs.
Captain Tamim Iqbal scored an even 50 while Shakib remained unbeaten on 43 at the end.
Raymon Reifer was the best of the Windies bowlers with 1 for 18 from the five overs he bowled. Akeal Hosein and Jason Mohammed shared the other two wickets between them.
Mohammed tried to take some positives from the humiliation.
“There's a little bit of positives -- Ottley played well in his debut game. Rovman did well to get us a decent total. Akeal bowled well again."
Australia, batting first, set the tone for an exhilarating encounter with Warner smashing a blistering half-century in his 100th T20I, scoring 70 off 36 deliveries. Tim David's explosive 17-ball 37 further fueled Australia's innings, propelling them to a formidable total of 213 for 7.
Andre Russell took two wickets off consecutive deliveries in the final over of the Australian innings to finish with 3-42. Alzarri Joseph took 2-46.
Chasing 214 for victory, West Indies displayed early promise with openers Brandon King (53) and Johnson Charles (42) forming a dynamic partnership. King, in particular, played a stellar innings, reaching a half-century off 36 deliveries. However, legspinner Adam Zampa's brilliant performance in the middle overs proved crucial for Australia as they successfully defended their total.
Zampa, with figures of 3-26, outfoxed the aggressive West Indies batsmen, preventing them from achieving the challenging target. Despite a late onslaught from Jason Holder, who scored an unbeaten 34, West Indies ultimately fell short, finishing at 202 for 8.
The match served as a platform for auditions and milestones, with Josh Inglis getting an opportunity to partner Warner as the opening batsman. In his 16th T20I, Inglis showcased his 360-degree range, contributing 39 off 25 balls.
While Warner starred in his milestone 100th T20I, reaching the elite company of players with 100 internationals in each format, West Indies' big-hitters, including King and Charles, went for broke in their pursuit of victory.
Australia's left-arm quick, Jason Behrendorff, faced early challenges in the windy conditions but managed to claim a late wicket, finishing with figures of 1 for 38 off 3 overs. The pivotal moment in the match came in the 16th over when Zampa's brilliance dismissed Andre Russell and Nicholas Pooran, tilting the scales in Australia's favor.
Chasing a target of 348, the West Indies were bowled out for 160 after lunch mere minutes before the rains came.
Bonner remained unbeaten on 68 that was made over the course of 220 balls while da Silva made a solid 54.
The pair came together on Wednesday evening with the West Indies tottering on 18-6 and resumed from their overnight total of 52-6, hoping to bat through the final day and perhaps some match-saving rainfall.
Riding their luck, the pair put on exactly 100 runs in 286 balls for the seventh wicket when Lasith Embuldeniya got one to spin across the Trinidadian, who was caught at slip.
The West Indies went to lunch at 125-7 with Bonner on 42 and Rahkeem Cornwall, who replaced da Silva, on five. On the resumption, the pair took the score to 149, a partnership of 31, when Cornwall, inexplicably tried to go down the ground to a Praveen Jayawickrama delivery that was in the slot but only managed to hole out to long-off.
Bonner and Gabriel added 11 more runs before the latter lost his wicket to Embuldeniya without scoring, sealing the victory for the hosts.
Embuldeniya finished with figures of 5-46 while Ramesh Mendis, who did the damage on Wednesday returned 4-64.
Captain Kraigg Brathwaite praised Bonner and da Silva for their efforts but lamented that the remainder of the batsmen let the team down.
“I thought Joshua and Bonner, the way they fought from yesterday evening, was tremendous,” he said while indicating that there were some positives to take away from the match.
“I always believe first innings total is important, and then build pressure. (The) Sri Lanka skipper played well. It was important for us to get close to their score.”
I thought Joshua and Bonner, the way they fought from yesterday evening, was tremendous. I always believe first innings total is important, and then build pressure. Sri Lanka skipper played well. Gabriel getting two wickets, Roston getting five, we were decent, they batted well but our batting let us down."
