Inspired by Odean Smith's career-best bowling spell (3/29) and Brandon King's (53 runs off 35 balls) fifth half-century, West Indies on August 14 (Sunday) downed New Zealand to win the third and final T20I by eight wickets at Sabina Park, Jamaica. As a result of an emphatic win, the Men in Maroon salvaged some pride in front of their home supporters after losing the first two games of the series by a margin of 13 runs and 90 runs respectively.
In the process, West Indies also snapped the Black Caps' unbeaten run in limited-overs cricket in 2022. Before the 3rd T20I, the Kiwis had registered nine consecutive wins in T20Is and seven successive victories in ODIs in 2022.
New Zealand captain Kane Williamson's decision to bat first after winning the toss didn't yield the desired result for the visitors as West Indies restricted the Black Caps to a modest total of 145/7 in 20 overs.
Opening batter Martin Guptill once again broke Indian captain Rohit Sharma's world record and became the leading run-scorer in T20Is. The right-handed batter, who was trailing Sharma by five runs ahead of the final T20I, scored 15 runs off 13 balls before Akeal Hosein (2/28) disturbed the aggressive opener's woodwork.
New Zealand kept losing wickets at regular intervals and failed to stitch even a single fifty-run partnership. Williamson (24 runs off 27 balls) and in-form Glenn Phillips (41 runs off 26 balls) registered a 47-run alliance for the fourth wicket that enabled the Black Caps to post a decent score on the board.
Odean Smith stopped New Zealand batters from exploding in the death overs as he bagged wickets of power-hitters Phillips, James Neesham and Daryl Mitchell in the later stages of the innings. The right-arm pacer registered his best-ever bowling figures in T20Is on Sunday.
In reply, West Indies got off to a terrific start as King and Shamarh Brooks (56 not out off 59 balls) combined for a 102-run start for the opening wicket in just 13.1 overs. The Men in Maroon's openers ensured a consolation win for the hosts before Rovman Powell provided the finishing touches by playing a brisk cameo of 27 runs off 15 balls.
Tim Southee (1/37) and Ish Sodhi (1/36) bagged a wicket each for the Black Caps but the duo conceded far too many runs than they would have liked.
The two teams will now lock horns in a three-match ODI series, starting August 17.
