New Zealand 131 for 4 in 23 overs (Taylor 47*, Latham 37) v West Indies 99 for 9 (Holder 34, Santner 3-15, Boult 3-18) by XX runs
Trent Boult, fast, furious and virtually unplayable under overcast skies on a seaming track, ripped through West Indies’ top order to clinch New Zealand’s 66-run win via DLS method along with a 3-0 series whitewash at Hagley Oval.
Boult, who returned the second-best ODI bowling figures by a New Zealander at this venue two nights ago, picked three wickets across two overs to leave West Indies tottering at 9 for 5 in chase of a revised 166 target in 23 overs. That, there, was the game ripped out as West Indies remained winless on tour. More importantly, they weren’t any closer to determining their squad balance ahead of the 2019 World Cup qualifiers in March.
Given West Indies’ prowess in the shortest format, a chase of 166, set up largely by Ross Taylor (47 not out) and Tom Latham (37), should have been right down their alley. But losing the returning Chris Gayle in the first over, when he sliced a catch to point, didn’t help matters. As it turned out, that would be the only wicket that was brought about by a swinging bat upfront.
Shai Hope flicked a full inswinging delivery to midwicket, Kyle Hope was pinned in front by a full delivery that angled in, Jason Mohammed’s defence was breached by a full delivery that tailed in late to beat the inside edge and Chadwick Walton, replacing the injured Evin Lewis, was snuffed out by Boult’s toe-crusher. Holder briefly triggered a surge as he picked off 15 off Todd Astle’s first over, but losing the wickets of Powell and Ashley Nurse off successive overs left him high and dry.
This wasn’t just about New Zealand’s pacers. Mitchell Santner slowed the ball down and deceived Powell in flight as he sliced a catch to short third man, while Astle, who conceded 15 off his first over – including a four and big six by Holder – had Nurse with a ripping googly to leave West Indies at 58 for 7. Santner would go on to pick two more wickets to finish with three wickets.
The pace at which the house came down for West Indies was in sharp contrast to earlier in the day, when their faster men had New Zealand hopping and jumping. With every passing minute early on, it became increasingly evident that this was a very good toss to lose on a juicy surface under overcast skies.
Holder, the West Indies captain, kept getting the ball to rear up at awkward lengths at New Zealand’s openers. George Worker, in a bid to break the shackles, chopped on against Sheldon Cottrell, the left-arm seamer. Neil Broom, brought back into the side and tested at the crucial No. 3 spot in place of the rested Kane Williamson, didn’t inspire much confidence.
Under pressure to get a big score after a failure in the second ODI, he was out caught in the slips by Gayle while attempting to cut a delivery that wasn’t all that short. Off the next over, the sixth, Colin Munro was out as he nicked to Gayle again at first slip, this time off Holder to leave New Zealand wobbling at 26 for 3.
By now, West Indies were charged up, so much that they went up for an optimistic review despite being unsure of an lbw decision off Tom Latham, the New Zealand captain. Replays confirmed the length ball that was angling away would’ve missed the stumps. It is a review West Indies may have wanted to use when Taylor survived a strong caught behind appeal in an attempt to play the hook shot off Cottrell.
Shannon Gabriel was introduced in the 14th over, surprisingly behind even Nikita Miller, the left-arm spinner who was returning to the ODI side for the first time since the 2015 World Cup. He began waywardly, being picked away by Taylor for two boundaries square of the wicket on the off side. In a bid to strengthen that side, the slip came off, only for the final delivery of that over racing past the cordon off a thick outside edge.
Holder was a touch guilty of slipping into the defensive as early as the 13th over, when deep point and long-off were in place for Miller, as West Indies allowed the game to drift ever-so-slightly. New Zealand were in the midst of a recovery at 83 for 3 in 19 overs when the rains arrived to frustrate players, fans and officials for the next five hours.
A frustrating wait of close to three hours looked set to end, with umpires deeming the outfield fit enough for a 33-overs-a-side contest, only for the rains to return five minutes before resumption. Then there was another inspection, following which the match was reduced to 27 overs. It drizzled again. Just as the threat of an abandonment surfaced, the rains relented again for the umpires to truncate the game further to 24 overs, before they finally settled on 23 with the clock veering towards a call-off.
Latham first and Henry Nicholls picked off crucial boundaries in the end overs by unsettling West Indies’ predictable lengths. Taylor then lent the finishing touches by picking two boundaries in the final over that went for 16. He was the top scorer with 44 not out as New Zealand added 48 off the last four overs to finish with 131 for 4. The surge towards the end that resulted in a target revision may have well been the clincher for West Indies.
Source: ESPN Crickinfo