West Indies Win by 5 Wickets Thrilling 1st T20I: Sri Lanka Vs West Indies

West Indies ended a thrilling encounter with a 5-wicket win over Sri Lanka in the 1st T20I of their tour in 2024. Chasing a challenging 180, West Indies batsmen showed exceptional brilliance, with Brandon King, Evin Lewis, and Shai Hope really setting up the game for them to come out victorious as the hosts held off the fight from Sri Lanka.

This article takes the reader through the crux of the match, whose notable performances, and how West Indies emerged victorious in this high-scoring thriller.

Sri Lanka’s Innings: Asalanka Leverages his Strength
Sri Lanka, sent in by their counterparts West Indies to bat first, started with Pathum Nissanka and Kusal Mendis. In fact, the beginning was not smooth for them as they saw Nissanka edge to Shai Hope off Romario Shepherd’s bowling after just 10 runs. The wicketkeeper-batsman Mendis also did not take much time, being bowled out by Gudakesh Motie for 19.

Kusal Perera, who walked in at No. 3, could do nothing and fell to the debutant Shamar Joseph to a duck. Sri Lanka was still struggling at 27-2. Now it was up to the middle order of Sri Lanka to take things inside, which came from Kamindu Mendis and skipper Charith Asalanka to steady things around.

Asalanka hits six out of the ascendent to leave Sri Lanka headed for comeback. He has played a nicely crafted 59 off 35 balls with as many boundaries as six hits and taken the team forward despite losing the other end frequently. Kamindu Mendis batted sensibly with 51 off 40 balls while playing a support role to Asalanka.

At the end, Bhanuka Rajapaksa made some useful contribution with some swift 17 off 11 balls, while the other youngster Chamindu Wickramasinghe remained unbeaten with a handy 4 off 3 deliveries. Sri Lanka could post a competitive total of 179/7 in 20 overs that offered West Indies a testing run at stumping them off.

West Indies Bowlers : Romario Shepherd and Shamar Joseph Shine
West Indies bowlers did well by pegging back Sri Lanka, considering the big partnership Asalanka and Kamindu built up. The bowling of Romario Shepherd was excellent as he captured 2 wickets for 39 runs. Also, Shamar Joseph took some excellent figures of 3 for 27 runs. He contributed to breaking the back of Sri Lanka’s top order by taking the wickets of Kusal Perera and Kamindu.

Alzarri Joseph and Gudakesh Motie were very useful, the former conceding only 1 for 40, while the latter picked up 1 for 16 in his two overs.

West Indies’ Chase: A Steady Start And A Steady Finish
West Indies started well, chasing 180, with Brandon King and Evin Lewis putting together a 107-run opening partnership that pegged them in a commanding position early on. King was particularly aggressive, smashing 63 off 33 balls, with 11 boundaries and 1 six; while Lewis played an innings by the book, scoring 50 off 28 deliveries, which included five fours and four sixes.

Still, there was a faint hope for Sri Lanka when Lewis fell to the ninth over, caught by Chamindu Wickramasinghe off Matheesha Pathirana. Chasing hard, Shai Hope, who had looked dangerous with a brisk 7-ball 10, was caught and bowled by Wanindu Hasaranga, which left West Indies at 114-2.

Pathirana and Hasaranga Deliver Sri Lanka’s Fightback
As West Indies felt that victory was almost certain, Sri Lanka tried to make a desperate comeback by jolting out quick wickets. The young pace sensation, Pathirana, removed King in the 12th over, which proved crucial for Sri Lanka. The next two batsmen, Roston Chase (19 off 16) and Rovman Powell (13 off 18), tried to calm their ship but were jolted out consecutively by Pathirana and Maheesh Theekshana, and West Indies were reduced to 160-4 in the 16th over.

With the game hanging like a thread, Sri Lanka sensed an opening to pin them back and build pressure, but cool heads prevailed in the form of Sherfane Rutherford and Romario Shepherd. Composed 14 off 12 balls by Rutherford and 1* off 2 balls by Shepherd took West Indies closer to the target.

The Final Over: West Indies Seal the Win
Hasaranga bowled a tight spell of the 19th over in which he did not allow more than 8 runs and West Indies had to face another final over which required 10 runs to win. Shepherd and Rutherford did not lose their nerves; Shepherd finished off the game for West Indies in the very first ball of the 20th over by hitting Asitha Fernando to the boundary as West Indies won the match with 5 wickets and 5 balls remaining.

Conclusion: A Well-Fought Victory for West Indies
West Indies were quite clear winners of the 1st T20I by five wickets, courtesy to their own batting depth and solidity while chasing arduous totals as well. Sri Lanka’s bowlers fought valiantly, but West Indies had already set the tone for a comfortable victory since King and Lewis laid a solid opening partnership for themselves.

The series is likely to test the both teams further as they continue to be stiffer with competition as Sri Lanka will look to bounce back with a win in the next game while West Indies will look to win as many games as possible to retain their winning momentum.

2nd T20I promises to be an interesting game where Sri Lanka will look to redeem themselves and West Indies to seal the series.

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