WINDIES BLOWN AWAY
Rashid shines as England win opener
CLAPPY CHAPPIES
in Oman REMEMBER the game. Remember the game!
Five years on from the heist of the century, England wiped the floor with the Windies in a one-sided World Cup opener.
Not even Carlos Brathwaite could have pulled a rabbit out of the hole the Windies dug for themselves in an abject effort with the bat to be skittled for just 55.
England’s bowlers, to a man, were outstanding, from the brilliance of Moeen Ali to claim 2-17 off the reel at the start, to the frankly ridiculous figures of 2.2-0-2-4 that belonged to Adil Rashid.
Quality
“I don’t think we could have asked for a better start to the tournament,” said Rashid after the six-wicket win.
“I thought we all bowled exceptionally well. Moeen set the tone.
“He kept it tight and bowled so well with four overs in a row and showed he is a quality bowler.
“We didn’t expect that coming into the game, and we didn’t think it was over until it was over, but that is a great start.”
Jos Buttler marshalled the run chase with 24 not out as England won with a huge 70 balls to spare.
They did lose four wickets in the push for a quick chase to help their net run rate for later in the tournament, which is why Dawid Malan was pushed down the order and didn’t bat.
But this was a night to remember for the five bowlers and perhaps the most satisfying of all the wickets to fall was the first of Tymal Mills’ double to remove veteran Chris Gayle.
Mills softened the 42-yearold left-hander with the same searing pace he used five years ago when he castled Gayle in the T20 Blast for Sussex with a 93.3mph yorker.
This time it was an 89mph back-of-a-length ball that hit Gayle high on the bat and he skied it to Malan pedalling back to take an absolutely stunning catch.
Mills said: “It was a dream start to get back out there and put in a performance like that.
“It has been a long time since I last played, but it’s been great to be back and take a few wickets.” If the bowling was first rate, then the fielding was world class with eight out of 10 wickets falling to catches as the Windies tried to blast their way out of trouble.
They might have the most powerful line-up on paper, but out on the field they kept swinging and either missing or hitting fielders rather than the boundary.
There has to be a licence to thrill for batsmen in T20 cricket, but after being reduced to 27-3 and then 31-4 after the powerplay, the Windies had to be smarter.
Chances
It’s as good as it gets,” said England’s delighted skipper Eoin Morgan.
“All credit to our bowling unit. The guys were very disciplined, and we took our chances.”
Windies captain Kieron Pollard said: “To get bowled out for 55 as an international team is unacceptable, but we have the chance to put it right.”