KINGSTON, Jamaica (CMC):
Twenty20 World Cup co-hosts West Indies drew first blood in their warm-up series against South Africa with a 28-run win yesterday at Sabina Park after Player of the Match batting from interim captain Brandon King and steady bowling from left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie set them up.
King, leading the Caribbean side because fellow Jamaican and regular captain Rovman Powell is involved in the knockout stages of the Indian Premier League, hit six sixes and six fours in an electrifying 79 from 45 balls, and the hosts reached 175 for eight after they were put in to bat in the first T20I of the three-match series at Sabina Park.
Motie then defied a career-best 87 off 51 balls from South African opener Reeza Hendricks and bagged three for three for 25 from his allotted four overs before the visitors were dismissed for 147 in 19.5 overs.
Pacer Matthew Forde ended with three for 27 from 2.5 overs, and lanky left-arm pacer Obed McCoy finished with two for 15 from three overs to complete the demolition of the Proteas batting and ensure no batsman other than Hendricks reached 20.
With at least half of their World Cup squad missing either due to IPL commitments or resting after their involvement in the lucrative franchise T20 tournament, the result was a step in the right direction for the Caribbean side, whose aim is to clinch a third T20 world title and become the first to win the global showpiece on home soil.
There are still a few areas of concern for the home team to tidy up in the remaining two matches tomorrow and Sunday at the same venue, but King, erasing concerns about his fitness, and Motie, proving his usefulness in the middle of the innings, were satisfying.
“We are heading into a World Cup, so we want to be playing good cricket going into that,” King said during a post-play interview on TV. “We got the win, so we are happy about that, and I think all-round we played well.”
King got into stride with a drive through cover for four off left-arm spinner Bjorn Fortuin in the first over and was dominant from early, reducing typically aggressive opening partner Johnson Charles to a mere spectator.
Charles faced only five balls before he was caught at deep square leg off pace newcomer Ottneil Baartman for one in the fourth over, and he was the only batsman to fall during the Power Play, which ended with West Indies on 64 for one.
Scores: West Indies 175 for eight off 20 overs (Brandon King 79, Roston Chase 34 not out, Kyle Mayers 32; Ottneil Baartman 3-26, Andile Phehlukwayo 3-28).
South Africa 147 for eight off 19.5 overs (Reeza Hendricks 87; Gudakesh Motie 3-25, Matthew Forde 3-27, Obed McCoy 2-15).
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