England claimed the T20I series against West Indies by going 2-0 up in the three-match series. England Jos Buttler led from the front in 2nd T20 against West Indies once again. He got strong support from the middle order including Harry Brook, Jacob Bethell and Tom Banton. Their efforts helped England chase down a target of 197 with four wickets in hand and nine balls remaining.
West Indies showed improvement with the bat. Their finish was better than the previous game. However, their total of 196/6 wasn’t enough to stop England’s confident chase.
England got a good start through Ben Duckett and Buttler. Duckett attacked Akeal Hosein and Romario Shepherd early. Buttler targeted Alzarri Joseph and Jason Holder. By the end of the PowerPlay England were 58/1, keeping pace with the chase.
Shepherd broke the stand in the eighth over by dismissing Duckett. After that, the scoring rate slowed down a bit. Buttler and Brook carried the team to 87/2 by the halfway mark.
Motie bowled a tight over next conceding only five runs. But Brook responded aggressively in the following over. He smashed Shepherd for 20 runs, including two fours and a six.
Hosein and Roston Chase gave West Indies some hope in the 2nd T20 against England. They removed Buttler and Brook in quick succession. But Bethell and Banton came out swinging. They both hit sixes soon after Brook’s dismissal. That brought the equation down to 62 needed from 36 balls.
Motie’s next over cost 14 runs. Banton smashed the last two balls for a four and a six. Joseph returned but Banton welcomed him with three sixes in the same over, over square leg, straight down the ground and extra cover. He scored a blazing 26 off just 10 balls before falling while trying another big shot.
Holder bowled well in the 17th over, giving just seven runs from the first five balls. But Banton spoiled it with a reverse sweep for four off the final delivery.
Joseph continued to miss his lengths. A high full toss led to four byes. Though he dismissed Will Jacks, he gave away 15 runs in the over. That left England needing only two runs from the last two overs. Brydon Carse hit a boundary to finish the game in the 19th over.
Earlier, West Indies posted a competitive score in 2nd T20 vs England, thanks to solid top and middle-order contributions. Luke Wood playing his first T20I since September 2023, struck early by trapping Evin Lewis LBW on the very first ball.
Shai Hope (49) and Johnson Charles (47) added a steady partnership. But after Hope was stumped off Adil Rashid in the 11th over, the scoring slowed down again. Rutherford fell to Bethell and West Indies reached 116/3 at the end of 15th overs.
Wood returned to dismiss Charles, but Rovman Powell then sparked a late surge. He smashed Liam Dawson for two sixes and two fours in a 20-run over. Powell hit another six off Carse before getting out.
Then came the most explosive over Adil Rashid was hit for five sixes. Holder smashed the first three balls for sixes, then handed over to Shepherd, who hit the last two.
In the final over of England vs West Indies 2nd T20, Luke Wood was taken for 16 runs. Holder struck two fours before Shepherd was run out on the second-last ball. Roston Chase finished the innings with a six taking West Indies to 196. But in the end that total fell short against a determined England batting lineup.
