USA vs WI 2nd Match, WCQ 2023

Chasing a stiff target of 298, Steven Taylor and Sushant Modani shepherded the USA innings on an unhurried note. The left-right opening pair of Taylor and Modani batted in a precise manner and took control of the chase. The Windies’ pace attack rarely dished out any looseners but the USA opening duo was able to survive a tricky period inside the powerplay. Modani 14(29) attempted to push the pedal but the right-hander perished in the process. Taylor smashed Kyle Mayers for back-to-back boundaries but Mayers exacted retribution and outfoxed the southpaw for 18(21). 

The skipper Monank Patel and the vice-captain Aaron Jones joined forces to provide some respite but it was the golden arm of Mayers that clicked again for the Windies. The right-arm pacer got the better of Monank Patel 6(10) courtesy of some brilliant athleticism by Roston Chase. Alzarri Joseph also joined the wickets tally and dismissed Saiteja Reddy Mukkamalla for a duck. The Windies pacers bowled in tandem inside the 20 overs and kept the batters under control. Gajanand Singh and Aaron Jones played with discipline and notched up a 42-run stand for the 5th wicket before Jones 23(30) was involved in an unfortunate mix-up.

Shayan Jahangir, the next batter in, also displayed some resilience but the Windies were able to tighten the screws once again. Little partnerships kept developing for the USA but they were always behind on the asking run rate. Gajanand Singh 101*(109) was able to withstand the heavy Windies’ bowling attack and accumulated his maiden century in ODI cricket but the absence of enough support deteriorated USA’s chances to bounce back. 

Earlier in the day, after being invited to bat first, the USA pacers exploited the sideways movement and some extra zip on offer and unnerved the West Indies openers. The left-arm pacer Saurabh Netravalkar gave the Windies a huge setback early on in the innings as Brandon King 0(7) chipped one straight to the square leg. Netravalkar and Kyle Phillip bowled with control and accuracy in the powerplay that kept vexing the Windies batters. Johnson Charles cut loose immediately and helped the Windies to open their account in the 18th delivery of the contest. However, the right-pacer Phillip cleaned up Kyle Mayers 2(15) in the 6th over with a nip backer. 

Johnson Charles pulled through a few close calls in the powerplay, not to mention he was dropped by Steven Taylor on 12 runs. Tottering at 14/2. the Windies skipper Shai Hope paired up with Charles and kept pegging away by playing some single-minded cricket. The surface started to flatten in the middle overs and the Windies batters were quick to shift gears and bat with calculated aggression. Both Charles and Hope took the aerial route on the spinners and played some ferocious shots. The left-arm spinner Nosthush Kenjige broke the threatening 115-run partnership for the 3rd wicket by outwitting Hope 54(60) and that was soon followed by another massive scalp of well-set Johnson Charles 66(80) as the right-hander holed out in the deep.

Two wickets in quick succession again pushed the Windies on the backfoot but it was Nicholas Pooran who counterattacked and swung the pendulum in favor of his side once again. Roston Chase was promoted up the order and maneuvered the ball nicely into the gaps. Pooran and Chase added 55 runs for the 5th wicket before a double-strike Steven Taylor once again allowed the USA to bounce back. Taylor bagged two huge wickets of Pooran 43(38) and Rovman Powell 0(1). However, another partnership flourished for Windies as the USA dropped as many as 4 catches. Crucial contributions from Holder 56(40) and Chase 55(55) took the Windies closer to the 300-run mark.