Windies won the one-off charity T20I game against the ICC World XI at the Lord’s on Thursday. Windies put a total of 199/4 on the board at the end of 20 overs while the ICC World XI was bowled out for just 127 runs (16.4 overs).
The match was organised to raise funds for rebuilding the cricket facilities across the Caribbean which were damaged by last year’s hurricanes.
World XI captain Shahid Afridi decided to field first after winning the toss. Windies openers Evin Lewis and Chris Gayle provided a superb start as they put a 75-run partnership for the opening wicket. However, Lewis scored most of the runs in that partnership as he scored 58 runs off just 26 balls (5 fours and 5 sixes) before Rashid Khan trapped him for lbw.
Gayle was dismissed at next on 18 runs off 28 balls. Andre Fletcher was also dismissed cheaply for just 7 runs.
Marlon Samuels and wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Ramdin controlled that innings with their brilliant battings. They put a 52-run partnership for the fourth wicket before Samuels was dismissed on 43 runs off just 22 balls with 2 fours and 4 sixes. While Ramdin was unbeaten on 44 runs off 25 balls (3 fours and 3 sixes), Andre Russell played a brilliant cameo for his team as he was not out on 21 runs off just 10 balls with 3 sixes.
With the help of those powerful knocks, Windies managed to score 199/4 at the end of 20 overs.
Among the World XI bowlers, Rashid Khan (2/48) picked up two wickets while Shoaib Malik (1/31) and the skipper Shahid Afridi (1/34) took one wicket each.
In reply, World XI had a disastrous start as they were 8/4 in 3.3 overs. Only Indian cricketer of this match, Dinesh Karthik scored a duck in this game. The next batsmen tried hard but the team was far enough from their target. Only Thisara Perera was able to reach the 20-run mark in that innings as he played an impressive 61-run knock off 37 balls with 7 fours and 3 sixes.
The second highest scorer in that innings was extras which were 14 in that innings. While the team was collapsed on 127/9 in 16.4 overs, Tymal Mills was unavailable for batting due to his injury. Windies finally won the game by 72 runs.
Among the Windies bowlers, Kesrick Williams (3/42) picked up three wickets while Samuel Badree (2/4) and Andre Russell (2/25) got two wickets each. Moreover, Keemo Paul (1/24) and the skipper Carlos Brathwaite (1/14) claimed one wicket each.
Windies opening batsman Evin Lewis was awarded the Player of the Match for his brilliant knock.
Playing XI
Windies: Chris Gayle, Evin Lewis, Andre Fletcher, Marlon Samuels, Dinesh Ramdin (wicketkeeper), Andre Russell, Carlos Brathwaite (captain), Keemo Paul, Ashley Nurse, Samuel Badree and Kesrick Williams
ICC World XI: Tamim Iqbal, Luke Ronchi (wicketkeeper), Sam Billings, Dinesh Karthik, Shoaib Malik, Thisara Perera, Shahid Afridi (captain), Rashid Khan, Mitchell McClenaghan, Sandeep Lamichhane and Tymal Mills
Brief Scores: Windies – 199/4 in 20 overs (Evin Lewis 58, Dinesh Ramdin 44*; Rashid Khan 2/48)
ICC World XI – 127 in 16.4 overs (Thisara Perera 61, Shoaib Malik 12; Kesrick Williams 3/42)
Result – Windies won by 72 runs.
