By Chanakya Ch
West Indies showcased a great fight against New Zealand but couldn’t end on the winning side. The all-too familiar collapse and no=one staying long enough has hurt the West Indies. Jacob Duffy and Ish Sodhi were the standout duo for the kiwis as they did the damage to leave West Indies at 68/6 and 88/8 in the 3rd T20I. Two games have been washed out in rain.
The West Indies had a great strength in their squad in the form of Romario Shepherd who created great impact in the Indian Premier League.
Additionally, Shamar Springer added 78 for the 9th wicket. When they were ahead, a sharp catch from fast bowler Kyle Jameson held his nerve to win it for New Zealand against the rampaging Shepard.
West Indies would feel that with a little bit more sensible batting from the top order and the middle order, they should already be winning this series but the tides turned around for the West Indies squad. Instead they should trail the series 1-2.
Skipper Mitchel Santner in the post match press conference said. ‘That was the most pleasing thing. Different guys stepping up at different times, which is pretty key over a five-match series. It was a very scrappy win, but it’s nice to be on the right side of one. It’s always a challenge when you come up against a team that bats so deep, and we know they’ve got power all the way through. I thought we probably should have gotten 190 at least. But after the collapse, their partnership from 88-8 showed they have power all the way through. Our main goal is to try and keep taking wickets. The way the boys started when the ball was swinging was nice, and when it wasn’t, Ish Sodhi was outstanding again.’