England crush West Indies by 124 runs
England produced a dominant win over West Indies in the second game of the five-match one day series played at County Ground, Bristol. The hosts piled on the runs courtesy of a spectacular ton produced by Moeen Ali. Apart from Chris Gayle’s 94, West Indies never looked in a position to win the game. Liam Plunkett and Adil Rashid produced tidy spells to see West Indies get bundled out for 245.
Chris Gayle led the way with the bat for West Indies as he started the innings in his usual style. England will under immense pressure with him at the crease as runs came quickly for West Indies. The left-handed brought up his half-century in 39 deliveries before shifting gears to launch an all-out attack on the England bowlers.
Even Moeen Ali was not spared as Gayle smashed him for three consecutive sixes to move into the 90s. He looked set for a big innings before calamity struck as a terrible-mix up saw him dismissed for 94 runs in the 27th over. The Jamaican fell six runs short of a well-deserved century as the visitors kept losing wickets at regular intervals.
It required others like Marlon Samuels and Shai Hope to deliver big scores in order for West Indies to challenge England’s score. Gayle smashed nine boundaries and six sixes in his innings. Shai Hope and Jason Mohammad got starts and failed to convert their innings into a substantial one for the side.
Plunkett was the standout performer with the ball for England as he picked five wickets in the game followed by Rashid’s three-for to see England win by 124 runs.
Earlier in the day, West Indies bowled well in the first hour of play to reduce England for 74 for 3. Joe Root and Ben Stokes come together at the crease to rebuild the England innings. West Indies looked to contain the flow of runs as Root and Stokes produced a 132-run partnership to see England bring their 200 runs in the 30th over. Stokes played brilliantly for his 63-ball 73 runs before he was dismissed by Rovman Powell.
England lost Root and Buttler in quick succession and looked to have a thrown away the momentum. Moeen Ali came to the crease as left-handed started his innings with a flurry of boundaries. He brought up his half century in just 41 balls as West Indies let the opportunity slip through their hands. He went berserk after his half century to see him notch up a scintillating 102 runs in just 52 balls.
Miguel Cummins and Jason Holder were smashed to all parts of the ground. Moeen Ali added 117 runs with Chris Woakes to take the score past 350-run mark. He reached three figures by striking Cummins for two sixes to put England in a commanding position to win the game at the half-way mark.
Moeen Ali was awarded man of the match for his scorching ton against West Indies. England have taken 2-0 in the five-match series as the fourth game will be played at The Oval, London on 27th Sept.
