Florida [US]: Nicholas Pooran and Brandon King’s blistering batting display at Lauderhill helped West Indies clinch a five-match T20I series 3-2 against India here at Central Broward Regional Park Stadium Turf Ground on Sunday.
Brandon King scored the highest for West Indies with an unbeaten 85 off 55 deliveries while Pooran played a fine knock of 47 runs in 35 balls. West Indies defeated India in the fifth match by 8 wickets to clinch a five-match T20I series.
With this victory, West Indies won their first T20I series against india since 2017.
The opening pair of Brandon King and Kyle Mayers started the chasing on fire, however, Arshdeep Singh stop the flying start with a back-of-length delivery. Mayers went back to Pavellion after scoring 10 off 5 balls.
The left-handed batter Nicholas Pooran then came out to bat and joined hands with Brandon King while whacking the loose balls on offer. India had no answer to an impressive West Indies chase. West Indies were on course for a series win before rain interrupted play.
Pooran lost his wicket in the 14th over of the game. Brandon King kept the scoreboard ticking and guided his team home with an 8-wicket victory in the fifth match and clinched a five-match T20I series against India.
Earlier, Romario Shepherd’s fiery four-wicket haul and Akeal Hosein’s early blows helped West Indies restrict India to 165/9 in the fifth and final T20I.
Suryakumar Yadav played a vital 61 runs off 45 balls while most of the other batters struggled in the series decider against West Indies.
For the West Indies, Shepherd was the wrecker-in-chief with four wickets while Akeal Hosein and Jason Holder scalped two wickets apiece.
Asked to bowl first, West Indies got off to a great start with Akeal Hosein removing India’s top guns from the last game, the opening pair of Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill, inside the first three overs.
The early blows saw India reeling at 17-2 after 3 overs.
The right-handed Suryakumar Yadav and southpaw Tilak Varma kept the scoreboard ticking for India thereafter, even as the scoring rate dipped.
However, Tilak single-handedly destroyed Alzarri Joseph in his 6th over of the innings as he hammered the Caribbean quick for three boundaries and a six, plundering 19 runs from the over.
The young gun, Tilak, carried the momentum with a solid six off Jason Holder. However, his blistering knock of 27 off 18 balls came to an early close as he was sent packing by Roston Chase.
The right-handed Sanju Samson then came out to bat. After slamming quick boundaries, a cavalier Samson fell prey to Romario Shepherd as the Windies’ bowler lured the batter out of his crease with a good length ball outside off stump.
However, the ball took the edge of Samson’s bat and wicketkeeper Nicholas Pooran took the catch comfortably, sending the dasher from Kerala back for a breezy 13.
India captain Hardik Pandya then came out to bat. After 10 overs, West Indies seemed to have the upper hand.
However, Suryakumar kept the Indian scoreboard ticking over and, in the company of the India skipper, sent the loose balls to the fence.
Suryakumar brought up his fifty in style, sending Alzarri Joseph over the ropes in the 16th over of the Indian innings.
However, in the 16th over, rain interrupted proceedings halting play briefly.
After a halt, lasting less than 15 minutes, play resumed. Shepherd demonstrated his happy knack for taking wickets as he scalped Pandya in the 17th over of the game.
Even as Axar Patel arrived at the crease at the fall of the skipper’s wicket, Suryakumar’s show at Lauderhill came to an end as he was dismissed by Jason Holder for a typically dazzling 61 runs off only 45 balls.
Arshdeep Singh, who joined Axar at the crease, slammed a six. However, he fell off the very next ball to Shepherd.
Arshdeep’s wicket brought left-handed Kuldeep Yadav to the crease. Axar shifted gears in the last over, gathering 16 runs in the company of Mukesh Kumar.
The last-over dash lifted India to a challenging 165/9 in 20 overs.
Brief score: India 165/9 (Suryakumar Yadav 61, Tilak Varma 27; Romario Shepherd 4-31) vs West Indies 171/2 (Brandon King 85*, Nicholas Pooran 47; Tilak Varma 1-17).
