England took a giant step towards the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup last night when they thrashed hosts West Indies by eight wickets, silencing a passionate crowd of around 10,000 at the Daren Sammy Stadium in St Lucia.
Set a challenging 181, they were hurried home with 15 balls to spare by a punishing partnership of 97 in 7.2 overs between Phil Salt and Jonny Bairstow, giving their Super Eight net run-rate a large shot in the arm.
Victory over South Africa here on Friday will all but take them through to the last four, even before they meet the USA in Barbados on Sunday.
As an impressive chase went through the gears, Salt hammered 30 off an over from Romario Shepherd – who had just returned from paternity leave – and finished with 87 off 47. He now has 353 runs in his last four T20 innings against these opponents at a strike-rate of 194, and looks as destructive as anyone in the competition.
‘Credit to Salt,’ said West Indies captain Rovman Powell. ‘He always hurts us.’
Phil Salt and Jonny Bairstow led England to a brilliant win over West Indies in St Lucia
Salt led the way, finishing with a sensational 87 not out from 47 deliveries for England
Bairstow assisted him valiantly, scoring an unbeaten 48 at the T20 World Cup
Bairstow, meanwhile, added an unbeaten 48 off 26 to the 31 off 18 he had made to help set up victory against Namibia in Antigua, after which he had taken one of his periodic potshots at the press. England will be hoping he bristles all the way to the final.
The game had been billed as a battle of the big hitters on the truest surface in the Caribbean.
In the event, West Indies out-slugged England by 10 sixes to seven, but it was England who played the smarter cricket – strangling their opponents during crucial phases of their innings, with Adil Rashid to the fore, then skilfully neutering the threat of left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein.
These teams are each vying to become the first to win this trophy three times, but on this evidence England look the likelier to make history. Australia may now be wishing they hadn’t marshalled their run-chase against Scotland here last Saturday quite so expertly.
If any evidence were needed that T20 can be a fickle format, England’s fortunes at this World Cup have provided it. Head coach Matthew Mott, who last week was 45 minutes away from Antiguan rain perhaps condemning him to the sack, will be feeling a lot happier with life.
The pursuit had been given an ideal start by an opening stand of 67 inside eight overs between Salt and Buttler. It ended when Buttler on 25, advanced at the off-spin of Roston Chase, and got his bat trapped behind his pad as he aimed to leg. He reviewed the lbw decision in vain.
Promoted to No 3, perhaps in a bid to tackle Hosein and his fellow slow left-armer Gudakesh Motie, Moeen Ali made a quick 13 before pulling Andre Rusell to deep midwicket, leaving England 84 for two in the 11th. Crucially, they were up with the rate.
It helped, too, that Bairstow was in one of his moods, nearly overhauling Salt, who had a 43-run headstart, and contributing 42 to a rapid half-century stand. Hosein and Motie went wicketless, conceding 67 in the process, while the chatty wicketkeeper Nicholas Pooran dropped two chances – including, crucially, Salt on seven off Hosein.
Salt later worked his way through some quiet overs as Bairstow took strain, then set about Shepherd in a remarkable over that went 464664. By now, Pooran had gone as quiet as a crowd that expected a lot more from one of the three unbeaten teams in the group stage.
Jofra Archer was among the wickets for England as they limited West Indies to 180-4
Johnson Charles was the top scorer for the hosts but his 38 was at a steady pace
‘That was great fun,’ said Salt. ‘To come here against a very strong side who are riding that wave of momentum in their own conditions, to play an innings like that alongside Jonny and come away with a win, was a great feeling. They had such good spinners, I feel like the first sniff I got [against seam], I had to take the chance.’
The West Indian innings had been a curious affair, with five players reaching 23 but none making more than local boy Johnson Charles’s 38. But even that used up 34 balls, while Pooran, so destructive in making 98 off 53 on the same pitch two nights earlier against Afghanistan, had to settle for 36 off 32.
The surface seemed to have slowed a touch, though that did not prevent Powell – having promoted himself to No 4 – from wallopping five sixes in 17 balls, including three in an over from Liam Livingstone which ended with Powell edging to Mark Wood at short third man.
And there was a late flurry from Sherfane Rutherford, who had masterminded West Indies’ crucial group-stage win against New Zealand, and now slashed Jofra Archer over backward point for six in the last over of the innings. Even so, West Indies’ total felt around 20 light.
Archer had a mixed night, conceding 21 in his first two overs, but producing a world-class 16th, in which Pooran couldn’t score off four of the first five deliveries, before edging the last through to Buttler, and trudging off furious with himself.
But the pick of England’s attack was Rashid, still ranked No 1 by the ICC in T20 cricket. His eighth ball was hammered down the ground for six by Charles, but otherwise he conceded more than a single only once, and robbed West Indies of late acceleration when he had the dangerous Russell caught at long-on for a single.
Rashid’s fellow spinner Moeen played his part too, taking the first wicket of the evening when Charles mistimed him to Harry Brook at long-on.
Speaking after the game, Salt said that England’s win over the West Indies ‘was great fun’
The rest of the attack didn’t quite come off, though Sam Curran bowled an important 19th over that cost only six. Reece Topley speared two of the game’s first four balls down the leg side, setting a trend: England ended up conceding a wasteful 10 in wides.
And on the ground where he took his first Test five-for back in February 2019, Wood – who had replaced Chris Jordan from the team who beat Namibia – sent down three overs for 36.
Earlier, West Indies opener Brandon King retired hurt for a promising 23 from 13 balls, having pulled up after hitting Curran towards mid-off. Given his rate of scoring, his departure felt as good as a wicket, costing vital momentum.
For England, it might just have been the night their tournament got going.
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