- By Namrata Vijay
- Thu, 20 Jun 2024 11:35 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
ENG vs WI, 2024 T20 World Cup: England opener Phil Salt and Jonny Bairstow helped the team begin their Super 8 campaign on a high after defeating West Indies by eight wickets. England, who qualified for Super 8s by a bare margin, looked in sublime form and dominated the Caribbean side both with the bat and ball and won the match with two overs remaining.
Jos Buttler won the toss and chose to bowl first. West Indies had a shaky start in the first two overs but then Brendon King helped the team bounce back by going all guns blazing. He smashed a huge 106m six and then hit three consecutive boundaries. After having scored 23 runs, it looked like King had sustained a groin injury and was seen limping off the field. Nicholas Pooran and Johnson Charles then tried to stabilize the innings but then Charles was dismissed.
Although the English bowlers did give a hard time to these batters and bounced back during the middle overs, Charles was dismissed for 38 runs and skipper Rovman Powell batted up the [position and played a gritty knock. Although Pooran struggled from the other end, Powell had smashed five sixes in his knockoff 36 runs, out of which, three sixes he had hit in Liam Livingstone’s over. At one point it looked like the West Indies might post a target of more than 200 runs, but England bounced back.
Liam then dismissed Powell in the same over and then Jofra Archer took the wicket of Pooran, who had scored 34 runs. England then had the game under control as Adil Rashid shocked Andre Rusell as the ball had hit the off-stump and Rusell then smashed the ball directly towards the fielder.
Sherfane Rutherford then helped the team bounce back by scoring a gritty knock of 28 runs off 15 balls and helped them post a respectable target of 180 runs.
The Jos Buttler-led side began the chase to score as many runs as possible during the powerplay. Phil Salt had smashed two consecutive centuries, the last time he played in the West Indies and began his assault from the first ball and smashed his fellow KKR teammate Andre Rusell for a huge 106m six. England were 58/0 inside the powerplay.
Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali’s early dismissal gave West Indies some respite, but Bairstow made sure that they chased the target quickly. Salt and Bairstow helped the team bounce back quickly. Salt did slow down for a while but then hit Romario Shepherd for 30 runs and helped the team win the match.
Salt scored an unbeaten match-winning knock of 87 runs whereas Bairstow was unbeaten on 48.
England eyeing 2022 revival in 2024
Just like the 2022 edition of the T20 World Cup, the Jos Buttler-led side was once again struggling during the group stages. They lost their rain-induced group stage match against Ireland and after that were almost on the cusp of getting eliminated. But then they bounced back and qualified for the summit clash by beating India in the semifinals and then defeating Pakistan in the finals.
If there is any similarity between their first Super 8 match against West Indies, they have rectified all their weaknesses, and are looking like a much-improved side. They were brilliant with the ball and rattled the West Indies batting lineup.
This is how a champion team plays. They faltered in the ODI World Cup last year but won’t repeat those mistakes in the ongoing tournament.
Salt’s love for the Caribbean continues
Just before this tournament began, Salt revealed that he has a special connection with the West Indies. He grew up in Barbados and even played for the West Indies. Last year Salt went from the fringes to be the first-choice opener for England.
His love for the Caribbean began when he smashed two consecutive hundreds in the T20I series against West Indies and then continued his sublime form for KKR in IPL 2024. He once again gave West Indies a hard time by playing a match-winning knock. He began his knock aggressively but slowed down in the middle.
Just when West Indies thought that they could bounce back, Salt launched his assault and finished the game for England. He is expected to play a huge role in helping his team defend the title. England will lock horns with South Africa in their next match on June 21, Friday.