Vintage Samuels sees Windies to clean sweep
BASSETERRE, St Kitts, CMC – Veteran Marlon Samuels dominated with a classy career-best half-century as West Indies brushed aside minnows Afghanistan by seven wickets in the final Twenty20 International to sweep the three-match series here Monday night.
Chasing an uncomplicated 147 for victory at Warner Park, the hosts reached their target with four balls to spare, with the right-handed Samuels finishing unbeaten on a superb 89 from 66 deliveries to earn Man-of-theMatch and Man-of-theSeries honours.
Jason Mohammed ended on 23 not out, adding 65 with Samuels in unbroken fourth wicket stand which required 39 balls.
Outstanding rookie seamer Kesrick Williams had earlier grabbed three for 34 to help restrict Afghanistan to 146 for six off their 20 overs, after the Asian side threatened a large total following a frenetic start.
Mohammad Nabi blasted 38 off 30 deliveries while opener Noor Ali’s exciting cameo 35 required all of 19 balls. Wicketkeeper Shafiqullah chimed in with an entertaining 25 off 15 balls.
Williams finished the series with eight wickets following a similar threewicket haul in Saturday’s second T20 and two wickets in the opener last Friday.
Afghanistan were in early trouble after opting to bat when opener Javed Ahmadi perished without scoring to the second ball he faced, plumb lbw to legspinner Samuel Badree in the second over with the score on 14.
Noor Ali counterattacked, hammering five fours and two sixes – including three consecutive boundaries off wayward seamer Jerome Taylor in the third over which leaked 13 runs.
In the following over, the right-hander cleared the ropes at long-off with Badree and then swept him square for four as Afghanistan raced to 40 for one after just four overs.
But Williams struck in his first over, bowling Noor Ali with his final delivery as the batsman improvised too far across his stumps and medium pacer Rovman Powell also got lucky in his first over, having captain Asghar Stanikzai caught at midwicket
E Lewis lbw b Mohammad Nabi 19 35 M Samuels not out 89 L Simmons c Zadran b Rashid Khan 15 J Mohammed not out 23 Extras (w1) 1 TOTAL (3 wkts, 19.2 overs) 147 Did not bat: R Powell, *C Brathwaite, J Taylor, S Narine, S Badree, K Williams. Fall of wickets: 1-0 (Walton), 2-61 (Lewis), 3-82 (Simmons) Bowling: Shapoor Zadran 3.2-0-27-1 (w1), Mohammad Nabi 4-0-31-1, Amir Hamza 4-0-24-0, Karim Janat 4-0-41-0, Rashid Khan 4-0-22-1. Result: West Indies won by seven wickets. Series: West Indies won three-match series 3-0. Man-of-the-Match: Marlon Samuels. Man-of-the-Series: Marlon Samuels. Toss: Afghanistan. Umpires: Joel Wilson, Leslie Reifer Jr; TV – Nigel Duguid. AFGHANISTAN Noor Ali Zadran b Williams Javed Ahmadi lbw b Badree 0 *Asghar Stanikzai c Williams b Powell 13 Mohammad Nabi c Powell b Williams 38 Karim Janat c Lewis b Taylor 8 +Shafiqullah b Williams 25 Najibullah Zadran not out 10 Gulbadin Naib not out 7 Extras (lb3, w7) 10 TOTAL (6 wkts, 20 overs) 146 Did not bat: Rashid Khan, Shapoor Zadran, Amir Hamza Fall of wickets: 1-14 (Javed Ahmadi), 245 (Noor Ali Zadran), 3-57 (Asghar Stanikzai), 4-96 (Mohammad Nabi), 5108 (Karim Janat), 6-138 (Shafiqullah) Bowling: Taylor 4-0-33-1 (w1), Badree 40-26-1 (w1), Williams 4-0-34-3, Brathwaite 1-0-3-0, Powell 3-0-20-1, Narine 4-0-27-0 (w1).
WEST INDIES +C Walton c sub ( Shenwari) b Zadran 0 by Williams for 13. win.
Stumbling at 57 for Playing with gay abandon three in the ninth over, and with his trademark Afghanistan were propelled power and timing on full by two key partnerships. display, the Jamaican Nabi thumped a pair struck nine fours and three of four and sixes in adding sixes, while adding 61 for 39 with Karim Janat (8) for the second wicket with the fourth wicket while Evin Lewis (19) and another Shafiqullah carved out precious half-century three fours and a six in with Mohammed. putting on 30 for the sixth Dropped on 40 off a wicket with Najibullah stinging caught and Zadran (10 not out). bowled chance off offspinner
West Indies’ run chase Nabi at 60 for one began disastrously when in the 10th over, Samuels Chadwick Walton drove went on to raise his the second ball of the 10th T20I half-century off innings from left-arm 46 balls with a pulled four speedster Shapoor Zadran through mid-wicket off to extra cover to depart seamer Janat in the without scoring. 14th over.
Samuels arrived, however, He lost Lewis also in the to destroy any hopes 10th, lbw to one speared the Afghans harboured of into leg stump from Nabi pulling off a consolation and saw the back of Lendl
Simmons for 15 in the 13th over, holing out to long-off off leg-spinner Rashid Khan.
With his half-century out of the way, Samuels upped the tempo, lashing consecutive sixes off Nabi in the 16th over which cost 16 runs and his third six a couple overs later off Janat, saw him tie his previous career-best of 85, as West Indies cruised towards victory.
The hosts won the opener last Friday by six wickets and the second match on Saturday by 29 runs under Duckworth/Lewis in a rain-hit affair.
They face Afghanistan again on Friday in St Lucia in the first One-Day International of a threematch series.