West Indies T20 Captain, Rovman Powell, lauded his team's display of courage in their high-scoring encounter against Australia in the second T20 match at Adelaide on Sunday, despite succumbing to a 34-run defeat.

Powell acknowledged the team's fighting spirit but acknowledged that the chase for Australia's formidable total of 242 runs was marred by the loss of crucial wickets.

In his post-match comments, Powell reflected on the team's performance, stating, "The boys showed courage, but we kept losing wickets at key intervals and failed to get big partnerships. But credit to Australia, they bowled well. We knew if we were going to get close, we had to have wickets. Those things do happen when chasing 240. It's very difficult."

While Powell praised the resilience of his team, he also highlighted the challenge of chasing down such a mammoth target and emphasized the importance of building substantial partnerships. The West Indies skipper acknowledged the effectiveness of the Australian bowling attack, recognizing that they played a crucial role in defending their imposing total.

Powell, who led from the front with an impressive 63 runs from 36 balls, got key contributions from Andre Russell's explosive innings of 37 from 16 balls and Jason Holder's valuable 28 from 16 in the team's 207-9 in pursuit of the massive target.

The West Indies captain singled out Glen Maxwell, whose exceptional innings of 120 runs from 55 balls proved to be the decisive factor in Australia's commanding total. “He tends to have a shot (for anything they bowled at him) it, but we strayed from our plans a little."

Despite the loss, Powell maintained hope and confidence in the team's abilities, expressing optimism about their chances in the upcoming third and final match of the series. He conveyed the team's determination to secure a consolation win, stating, "A 2-1 series [is] better than 3-0. The guys are still confident."

As the West Indies prepare for the concluding match of the series, Powell and his team are focused on regrouping, learning from their experiences, and aiming for a positive outcome to conclude their series against Australia.

 

 

In a display of unparalleled brilliance, all-rounder Glenn Maxwell played a spectacular unbeaten innings, scoring an extraordinary century to lead Australia to victory in the second T20 International against West Indies at the Adelaide Oval. Maxwell's unbeaten 120 from just 55 balls proved to be the game-changer as Australia secured the series with a 34-run win.

Australia's total of 241 for 4, their highest on home soil, set a challenging target for West Indies. Despite a valiant effort from West Indies captain Rovman Powell, Andre Russell, and Jason Holder, Australia's bowling attack, led by Marcus Stoinis with figures of 3-36, proved too strong for the Caribbean side.

The match featured late controversy when Alzarri Joseph was short of his ground attempting a tight single. However, umpire Gerard Abood ruled there had been no appeal, leading to heated scenes on the field. Despite the late drama, it did not affect the match's outcome.

Maxwell's innings, featuring eight sixes, was the second-highest T20I score for a batter at number or lower, equaling Rohit Sharma's record with a fifth T20I century. His dominating performance left West Indies with a challenging target, and despite Powell's attractive 63 off 36 balls, they fell short, finishing at 207 for 9.

The series victory for Australia, following their 11-run win in the first game at Bellerive Oval, marks a successful start to their T20 World Cup preparations. The third and final game of the series is scheduled to be played in Perth on Tuesday.

West Indies, facing an imposing total, came out swinging with aggressive batting early on. However, Australia's left-arm quick, Spencer Johnson, making his first appearance in a home international, showcased his talent with figures of 2 for 39. Johnson, who debuted for Australia late last year and starred for Brisbane Heat in the BBL, is emerging as a bowler of considerable interest across formats.

Despite West Indies' big-hitters like Andre Russell providing some fireworks, the team fell away in the face of Maxwell's relentless assault. Russell's entertaining 37 off 16 balls and Powell's glimmer of hope were not enough to overcome Australia's commanding performance.

 

Australia all-rounder Glenn Maxwell has been ruled out of his side’s World Cup match against England after falling off a golf cart and sustaining a concussion.

Maxwell, who hit a tournament record 40-ball century against the Netherlands last week and also offers a handy second spin option, will miss Saturday’s clash in Ahmedabad after a bizarre sequence of events.

Maxwell had finished a round at Gujarat’s Kalhaar Blues and Greens club on Monday evening and was riding on the back of a cart with team-mates when he lost his grip, fell and hit his head.

Head coach Andrew McDonald told cricket.com.au: “In transporting him back from the clubhouse to the team bus, Glenn Maxwell came off the back of a car and has suffered a small concussion.

“He’ll go into six to eight days concussion protocol, so they said that takes into account the England game. It was just a clearcut accident. He’s an important player for us, hopefully it’s just the one game he misses.

“The guys were ferried off on carts. Glenn and a few other players jumped on the back of carts and unfortunately he lost his grip on the way back to the team bus and sustained that injury. Over the last couple of days he’s been assessed. We feel as though it’ll be a relatively straightforward return to play protocol with where he’s at at the moment.”

England’s Jonny Bairstow missed 10 months of cricket after badly breaking his leg playing golf near Harrogate in August 2022, while Maxwell also suffered an unlikely injury last November when breaking his leg at a birthday party in Melbourne.

Australia have two all-round options available to step in for Maxwell, with Cameron Green and Marcus Stoinis vying for a spot.

Royal Challengers Bangalore subjected Rajasthan Royals to a humiliating 112-run thrashing in Jaipur on Sunday, despite brief resistance from Shimron Hetmyer.

The Guyanese batsman made a 19-ball 35 that included a four and four sixes as he tried to get Royals back into the game after crashing to 31-6 after seven overs, chasing RCB’s 171-5. Former England captain Joe Root, who made 10 was the only other batter in double figures for Royals, who were skittled out for 59 in 10.3 overs.

Wayne Parnell was responsible for much of the destruction taking 3-10 from three overs. Michael Bracewell, 2-16, Karn Sharma 2-19 and Glen Maxwell 1-3 provided useful support in the rout.

Earlier, Maxwell scored 54 and Faf du Plessis 55 and Anuj Rawat provided the bulk of the scoring for RCB, who were recording their second win in their last five matches to be fifth in the league table.

Adam Zampa 2-25 and KM Asif 2-42 were the primary wicket-takers for Royals, who were losing their fourth in their last five matches.

Man of the Match Andre Russell came to the rescue of the Melbourne Stars when he scored 42 from just 21 balls to spur his side to a six-wicket victory over the Sydney Thunder in the Big Bash League on Sunday.

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