With a fighting knock by West Indies, Sherfane Rutherford worked hard to produce a match-defining fifty with six maximums and two boundaries that turned the game for his side by taking his team 76 for 7 to 149 for 9 against New Zealand in the T20 World Cup Group C. His brilliance paved the way for West Indies to get to the Super Eight stage following a good bowling display to keep their opponents to a tame total.
Consequently, New Zealand could not cope with the West Indies’ bowlers, and they only managed to put up 136 for the loss of 9 wickets. Finally, the Guyanese spinner Gudakesh Motie bowled the best innings of 3/25, and the pacer Alzarri Joseph also played a great role, taking 4/19 to take his team to a decisive victory in the Caribbean.
This triumph established West Indies’ winning streak in the tournament at the 3rd straight triumph, and they moved to the Super Eight. New Zealand is now on the brink of elimination since they lost 2 matches consecutively.
New Zealand, who boasts of great World Cup experiences, especially reaching the semifinals in the previous editions of the World Cup, did not show the form they can display. They lost rather embarrassingly to Afghanistan and are now denied a victory against West Indies again.
The triumph was joyously followed in Trinidad as the fans cheered for the qualification of their team to Super Eight, disregarding the miseries that had earlier occurred in other large-scale championships.
Despite the previous experience of champions, West Indies had slip-ups in previous World Cup editions; they got eliminated in the initial round in UAE 2021 and didn’t qualify for the knock-out stage in Australia 2022.
After the match, West Indies skipper Rovman Powell hailed Rutherford for their individual brilliance in the game, stating that it created confidence and belief in the side. On the other hand, Rutherford treated their teammates as if it was important for them to sustain the momentum necessary for the next phase of the competition.
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