Chase’s MoM showing takes Windies to 5-wicket win

WHILE the sun was present yesterday at Providence after a few days of rain in Guyana, there were many empty seats in stands as the West Indies commenced their 2024 ICC T20 World Cup campaign with a hard-fought five-wicket win against Papua New Guinea.

West Indies, with T20 titles in 2012 and 2016, were led by a Man-of-the-Match (MoM) performance from Bajan all-rounder Roston Chase who followed up his tidy spell of off-spin with a well-calculated unbeaten 42 from 27 balls with four fours and two sixes.

There was talk before what many expected to one-sided contest was West Indies would dismiss PNG for a low total and race to a ‘big’ win to enhance their net run rate for future group games.
But a very good bowling performance for the ICC Associate team put a ‘spoke’ in the wheels of that plan as they took the game to the nineteenth over.

PNG scored 42 in their last five overs to reach 136-8, about 15 more than West Indies would have hoped for and in contrast, the hosts lost five wickets in their chase which took them much longer than they had envisioned.
It was not a clinical victory but as Skipper Rovman Powell said “We have work on few areas but we got two points from this match and that’s important.”

West Indies won the toss and invited PNG to bat on a green track a lush outfield, the former of which was resurfaced for this World Cup.

Fast bowling all-rounder, Guyanese Romario Shepherd induced Tony Ura (2) to edge a delivery that shaping away from him to the Keeper at 5-1 before Lega Siaka (1) was bowled by left-arm spinner Akeil Hosien two runs later.

Skipper Assad Vala hit a couple of fours and a six to take the score to 34 before Vala was stupendously taken at point by Chase off Alzarri Joseph; three wickets falling inside the power play.
Hiri Hiri (2) was removed by left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie to leave the visitors on 50-4 in the ninth over.

Sese Bau was looking well set and along with Charles Amini, they carried the score to 94 before Andre Russell had Amini (12) caught behind to claim his 50th scalp in T20 Internationals.
Four runs later Bau, who reached the boundary six times and cleared it once in his 40-ball 50 was bowled by Joseph.

Kiplin Doriga blasted 27 with three fours and Chad Soper who hit one four in 10 balls ensured the PNG scored 42 in the last five overs.
Russell had 2-19 while Joseph took 2-4.

When the hosts began their run-chase Brandon King started with a couple of boundaries in the first over before Johnson Charles fell to Alei Nao for a first-ball duck.

West Indies should have been 8-2 as Nicholas Pooran was struck plum in front but Nao surprisingly decided not to take the review as he delivered a rare wicket maiden in this format.
West Indies were 8-1 when rain stopped play and when the action resumed after a 20-minute delay, King spanked both Kabua Morea and Nao for two more.

While Pooran struggled to get the ball away; scoring just five runs off his first 15 balls King kept dealing in boundaries with all of his first 28 runs coming in fours.
Pooran broke the shackles with consecutive boundaries which included two sixes in an expensive first over from Bau to end the power play at 50-1.

The fans in the Grass mound, the most populated area in the Stadium, were dancing and waving Guyana flags.
Pooran departed for a run-a-ball 27 with four and two sixes to leave West Indies 63-2 in the ninth over.

King departed two runs later for 34 from 29 balls with seven fours and when Powell (15 with two fours) and Sherfane Rutherford (2) were dismissed in the space of 12 runs.
The the host had slipped to 97-5.

However, the level-headed Chase, with an important unbeaten 42 and Russell not out on 15 which included a massive six saw their team to victory.

The West Indies, hoping to become the first team to win the title at home, face Uganda in their next match on Saturday in their last match in Guyana.
They then play New Zealand in T&T (June 9) and Afghanistan in St Lucia (June 18) in their final group game.