A five-for from pace bowler Keemo Paul pushed the Trinidad and Tobago Red Force to a late evening collapse and handed the momentum to the Guyana Harpy Eagles, on day one of the West Indies Championship, at Port of Spain.
At the close of play, the Red Force were left on 203 for 9, after winning the toss and choosing to bat first. Midway through the innings, things had, however, looked far more promising for the Trinidad and Tobago franchise.
The batting pair of Jason Mohammed and Jeremy Solozano had come together to put a 116-run partnership on the board for the third wicket, largely repairing the damage the team suffered from the early losses of Keagan Simmons (3) and Isaiah Rajah (26).
With the team coasting at 178 for 3, however, things took a turn for the worse when Mohammed went for 68. The batsman was caught at slip after edging to Leon Johnson, off the bowling of Demetri Cameron. Solozano, who was on 72, did not last long after that as he was out caught and bowled by Gudakesh Motie five overs later.
Yannic Cariah (3), Joshua Da Silva (2), Imran Khan (2), Bryan Charles (0), and Uthman Muhammad (0) all failed to reach five runs in subsequent stints at the crease, with the combination of Motie and Paul causing a devastating collapse. In total, the team lost its last five wickets for just seven runs.
Paul ended with figures of 5 for 41, while Motie took 2 for 35. At the close of play, Terrance Hinds (9) and Shannon Gabriel (4) were the not-out batsmen at the crease for the Red Force.
De Kock-inspired South Africa mount record T20I run chase after record-breaking Charles century
Quinton de Kock's sensational century propelled South Africa to a remarkable six-wicket victory over West Indies in a thrilling T20I after a record-breaking knock from Johnson Charles at Centurion.
Charles' astonishing 118 from 46 balls and an excellent 51 from Kyle Mayers got the Windies to what looked to be a series-winning total of 258-5 on Sunday.
Yet De Kock (100 off 44) had other ideas, with South Africa's former captain leading the Proteas to a sensational triumph and the highest successful run chase in T20Is.
By the end of the third over the hosts had scored 62 without loss, and they added an additional 20 runs from the next 18 deliveries. South Africa's total of 102-0 from the first six overs is the highest powerplay score in a T20I involving Test-playing nations, and the fastest first hundred runs scored in a T20I involving a full ICC member.
In the process, De Kock struck South Africa's quickest 50, from just 15 balls – the fifth-fastest half-century in the shortest format.
De Kock should have been caught in the deep shortly after, but did not let up as he cruised to his maiden T20I century, taking just 42 deliveries to get there, before falling to Raymon Reifer soon after.
Reeza Hendricks (68 from 28 balls) picked up the slack, though he followed Rilee Rossouw (16) in heading back to the pavilion when the Windies claimed wickets in swift succession in the 12th and 13th overs.
Romario Shepherd caught David Miller to hand West Indies a further flash of hope, yet three big hits from new captain Aiden Markram (38) put the Proteas back in control as they cantered to victory and levelled the series.
Charles' record ton overshadowed
If it was not for De Kock's sparkling knock, Charles would have been the story.
His century, which came from 39 deliveries and included 11 sixes and 10 fours, was the fastest T20I hundred by a West Indies player, surpassing a record set by Chris Gayle in 2016 (47 balls). Unfortunately for the tourists, it was not enough.
Bad day for the bowlers
It was certainly a day for the batters at SuperSport Park. South Africa's bowlers set the tone for what was to come as they struggled to keep the Windies under wraps, despite Wayne Parnell (2-42) dismissing Brandon King in the first over.
The Windies attack then suffered as De Kock, Hendricks and then Markram put them to the sword in a stunning display.
Dr Kishore Shallow elected president of Cricket West Indies at AGM in Antigua, T&T's Bassarath is new vice president
Dr Kishore Shallow was elected unopposed as the new president of Cricket West Indies at the organisation’s Annual General Meeting in Antigua on Saturday. He will have Trinidad and Tobago Cricket Board President Asim Bassarath as his vice president.
Dr. Shallow succeeds Ricky Skerritt, who decided not to seek a third term. Skerritt became president in 2019 after defeating three-term president Dave Cameron in Kingston.
The new president, who also leads the Windward Islands Cricket Board, has promised significant changes to the way the CWI operates going forward. Those changes will manifest atop four key pillars that include cricket development; human capital, commercial and marketing as well as governance.
In a recent interview, Dr Shallow said he intends to invest in the development of young cricketers from the grassroots to the senior level while establishing a culture of pride and passion for West Indies cricket.
The new president also plans to incorporate modern-day best practices that align with Caribbean culture as well as implementing a viable and lucrative commercial model to enhance revenue streams for Cricket West Indies.
McSween grabs 5-39 as Windward Islands Volcanoes beat Leeward Islands Hurricanes by six wickets at Brian Lara Stadium
Preston McSween starred with his fifth first-class five wicket haul as the Windward Islands Volcanoes completed a comfortable six-wicket win over the Leeward Islands Hurricanes on day four of their fourth-round fixture at the Brian Lara Stadium in Tarouba on Saturday.
The Hurricanes started the day 99-5 off 39 overs with a lead of 128 runs in their second innings with Montcin Hodge on 45 and Kofi James yet to get off the mark.
Hodge ended up making a top score of 59 as the Leewards eventually folded for 144 off 55 overs.
McSween led the charge with the ball for the Volcanoes with 5-39 off 13 overs while Larry Edward took 3-9 from eight in support.
Chasing 174 for victory, the Volcanoes reached 32-0 at lunch with Teddy Bishop on 15 and Keron Cottoy on 12.
They lost three wickets after the resumption, including first innings centurion Kavem Hodge, but Alick Athanaze, who also got a century in the first innings, and Sunil Ambris steadied the ship.
At tea, the Volcanoes were 151-3 off 34 overs, needing only 23 more runs to win with Athanaze on 31 and Ambris on 28.
Shortly after tea, Athanaze was dismissed for 38 before Ambris and Tevyn Walcott guided the Volcanoes to 174-4 off 38 overs. Ambris finished 40*.
Rakheem Cornwall took 2-53 off 13 overs for the Hurricanes.
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