Phil Salt’s maiden T20 century and Harry Brook’s nerveless batting at the death helped England reel in a mammoth 223, as they breathed fresh life into their five-match series against West Indies.
The hosts put on a six-hitting masterclass, as they cleared the rope 16 times and collected 79 runs in the last four overs, but they were upstaged as Salt underpinned England’s successful chase in Grenada.
On a hot and humid day, Salt belted half of England’s 18 sixes – a ground record in this format – as he recorded 109 not out off 56 deliveries, before Brook completed the seven-wicket win with a ball to spare.
Salt’s efforts left England needing 21 off the final over, and Brook followed up a four with three sixes in four balls off Andre Russell as the tourists narrowed the deficit to 2-1 in the five-match series.
Jos Buttler made 51 in a 115-run opening stand with Salt, who became just the fifth male from his country to record a T20 international hundred, while Liam Livingstone contributed a breezy 30 as England equalled their joint second highest chase in this format.
Scores: West Indies 222-6 (20 overs); England 226-3 (19.5 overs)
Earlier, Nicholas Pooran cracked six sixes and as many fours in a brilliant 82 off 45 balls to lead West Indies to what initially seemed a daunting total.
Holding a 2-0 lead at that point, the Windies were full of confidence and cleared the rope on 16 occasions, taking their tally across the three matches to 43 sixes.
Captain Rovman Powell belted 39 off 21 deliveries, while Sherfane Rutherford marked his first appearance of the series with 29 off 17.
Not even Adil Rashid was exempt from the carnage as he leaked 15 in his final offering, albeit having Pooran caught in the deep to finish with two for 32.
Reece Topley was magnificent up top in his first match back since a broken finger ended his World Cup early, taking one for 14 in three overs in the powerplay but he conceded 18 after being given the 20th.
Topley and Gus Atkinson were given their first outings as England shuffled their bowlers, with Chris Woakes and Rehan Ahmed left out, but it was a mixed bag from the tourists after winning the toss.
Rashid, Topley and Moeen Ali escaped most of the damage, but Tymal Mills went for 25 in the 17th over and Sam Curran 21 in the 19th – although he did claim a couple of wickets two days on from being belted for 30 in five legal deliveries.
Pooran steadied the Windies, after they lost both openers by the second over, then upped the ante after reaching a 37-ball fifty, taking 29 off his next eight deliveries before holing out off Rashid.
Russell defends CPL's contribution to regional cricket but open to suggestions on improvements
With their long-term agreement with Cricket West Indies (CWI) heavily scrutinised by government leaders and cricket stalwarts, chief executive, Pete Russell of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) defended the product’s positive contribution to cricket in the region.
Addressing the gathering on Friday’s final day of the CARICOM conference on West Indies cricket themed ‘Reinvigorating West Indies Cricket’, Russell said the CPL is one of CWI’s largest domestic commercial partners.
While noting that CPL contributed significantly to player economic welfare, with nearly US$28 million spent on salaries since the start of the tournament in 2013, Russell, also revealed that cumulative losses, across both the league and franchises for the past 11 years, stand at US$40 million.
“Dennis O’Brien and Digicel have been the principal investors, not only investing in the league from day one but they also spent money on sponsorship and media rights. The franchises have also pumped in significant money, money that helps pay players and coaches, as well as investing in local businesses around the region that help make the games happen. All the franchises have made losses.
“So, on the positive side, Cricket West Indies has been paid close to US$17 million in sanction fees, so over the past 12 years CPL would be one of CWI’s largest domestic, commercial partners. Caribbean players have taken home US$27.7 million in player salaries since the tournament’s inception, all paid for by the franchises,” Russell declared during the event held in Trinidad and Tobago.
“Each year, it takes US$25 million to run this tournament over five weeks. CPL and the franchises bear all these costs. There is no financial burden on CWI or the territorial boards, so the risk is 100 per cent ours.
“So that is our starting point each and every year. So as you can imagine, the commercial challenges are considerable just to break even,” he added.
Russell’s response came as government leaders and West Indies legend Sir Clive Lloyd, suggested that the 50-year contract between CPL and CWI be re-negotiated.
The issue of the league’s ownership was also called into question, as they view was largely expressed that there would potentially be more development and earnings for players, if CWI controlled the tournament.
But, Russell, a member of the CPL management team rebutted.
“What is interesting is that other leagues around the world are following the lead of CWI. They are also looking for third-party investors to help fund their leagues. The English Cricket Board are in the process of selling The Hundred, the Australian Cricket Board are courting outside investors for the Big Bash, Cricket South Africa sold all their rights to host broadcaster Supersport, and the new American Major League Cricket is 100 per cent privately owned,” Russell shared.
“In time, only the IPL will end up being 100 per cent owned by its domestic board and that is simply because they can afford to do so. So, trust me when I say, ownership isn’t everything, and smart stewardship and partnership can yield better results. But of course, we’re always happy to listen to any suggestions on how we can improve things,” he ended.
IPL: Royals extend lead at the top after Samson and Jurel see off LSG
Sanju Samson and Dhruv Jurel combined for an unbeaten partnership of 121 as Indian Premier League leaders Rajasthan Royals defeated Lucknow Super Giants on Saturday.
The Royals have now won eight of their nine matches in the 2024 campaign and are almost certain to be involved in the playoffs after chasing down their victory target of 197 with an over to spare in a seven-wicket triumph.
Another Royals win had looked unlikely when they fell to 78-3 in their run chase after Jos Buttler (34), Yashasvi Jaiswal (24) and Riyan Parag (14) all fell in quick succession shortly before the halfway mark.
But Rajasthan captain Samson fought back as he blasted 71 runs from 33 balls including seven fours and four maximums, while Jurel bounced back from a poor period of form to finish unbeaten on 52 from 34.
LSG reached 196-5 from their innings courtesy of a fine knock from their own skipper, KL Rahul. He reached 76 from 48 before eventually falling to Avesh Khan (1-42) in the 18th over.
Deepak Hooda made it to 50 as LSG rallied from 11-2, but ultimately their competitive total was within reach of the visiting Royals.
Data Debrief
This is the second time in as many home games Rahul has passed fifty, after he scored 82 against Chennai Super Kings last week.
Samson (385) and Rahul (378) are second and third respectively in the race to win this season’s orange cap, although RCB’s Virat Kohli continues to set the pace with 430 runs.
They also narrowly trail Kohli (40) when it comes to the most fours hit in this season’s competition, with Samson on 36 and Rahul just behind with 34.
Babar's captain's innings leads Pakistan to victory as series drawn with New Zealand
Babar Azam top scored as he led his Pakistan team to a nine-run victory over New Zealand in Lahore that saw the five-game T20I series end in a draw.
Babar hit 69 runs off 44 balls before being bowled by Ben Sears, smashing six fours and two sixes to take his team to 123/3 at the time of his dismissal.
Fakhar Zaman (43 from 33) and Usman Khan (31 off 24) also chipped in with important innings as Pakistan ended on 178/5.
With a target of 179 to secure a 3-1 series victory, New Zealand's run chase faltered almost immediately as opener Tom Blundell was removed within the first over with his team having managed just five runs on the board.
Blundell's fellow opener Tim Seifert steadied the ship with a vital 52-run innings off 33 deliveries before being bowled by Usama Mir, but Shaheen Shah Afridi led the way for Pakistan, finishing with figures of 4-30 to stem the New Zealand run chase
Josh Clarkson's 38 off 26 set up a nervy conclusion, but Pakistan held on to avoid defeat in the T20 series as the teams share the spoils at two wins apiece after the first game was abandoned.
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