Thomas, Simmons fire Windies to opening win
KANDY, SRI LANKA (CMC):
SPEEDSTER OSHANE Thomas conjured up a stunning maiden five-wicket haul while opener Lendl Simmons hit a measured unbeaten half-century as West Indies celebrated captain Kieron Pollard’s 500th Twenty20 with a clinical 25-run victory over Sri Lanka yesterday.
Managing to shake off any lingering lethargy from the 3-0 whitewash in the preceding one-day series, the Caribbean side rallied to 196 for four off their 20 overs after opting to bat first at the Pallekele International Cricket Stadium, with Simmons top-scoring with 67 not out off 51 balls.
All-rounder André Russell, in his first T20 International in nearly two years, clobbered a feisty 14-ball 35 and Pollard matched him with an equally brutal 15-ball 34, while opener Brandon King chipped in with 33 off 25 deliveries.
West Indies were 90 for one at the half-way mark but the assault from Russell and Pollard saw the visitors gather 106 from the last 10 overs.
BOWLING BLITZ
In reply, Sri Lanka were rocked by Thomas’s opening burst, the right-armer taking the first five wickets to fall to reduce the hosts to 56 for five at the end of the sixth over.
Opener Kusal Perera engineered a recovery with a high-class 66 from 38 balls while Wanindu Hasaranga belted 44 from 34 balls, but Man-of-the-Match Thomas (5-28) had already done the damage, and Sri Lanka were dismissed for 171 at the start of the final over.
Desperate to shake off the disappointment of the ODI series, the reigning world champions were handed an excellent start by Simmons and King as the pair posted 74 off 50 balls for the first wicket.
Simmons counted seven fours and two sixes while King struck five fours and a six before holing to long on in the ninth over off leftarm spinner Lakshan Sandakan.