Salt, Bethell star against West Indies in 4th T20I
Philip Salt and Jacob Bethell stole the show as England posted a mammoth 218/5 in the fourth T20I against West Indies. The match, played at Daren Sammy National Cricket Stadium in St Lucia, witnessed both players scoring half-centuries. Despite having already won the series, the team showed no signs of slowing down. However, their efforts went in vain as WI (221/5) prevailed with an over to spare.
Salt and Bethell's impressive innings
Salt spearheaded the attack with a brisk 55, while Bethell stayed unbeaten on 62. Their efforts were bolstered by explosive cameos from Will Jacks (25 off 12), Jos Buttler (38 off 23), and Sam Curran (24 off 13). Salt, who had previously struggled against left-arm spin in this series, hit four sixes and scored 33 runs in just 14 balls off Akeal Hosein and Gudakesh Motie.
Bethell and Curran's late surge boosts England
Despite Liam Livingstone's dismissal leaving England at 155/4 after 15 overs, the team recovered due to Bethell and Curran. The duo added 63 runs in the last 30 deliveries, with Bethell hitting three consecutive sixes off Roston Chase. Their late surge helped England reach the joint-highest T20 total ever recorded in St Lucia. The record was broken as WI chased down the total thanks to openers Shai Hope (54) and Evin Lewis (68).
Another fifty for Salt
Salt, who scored a century in the series opener, made 55 off 35 balls as he smoked five fours and four maximums. In 37 T20Is, Salt now owns 1,106 runs at 36.86. The tally includes three tons and four fifties. His strike rate reads a stunning 165.32. Six of his seven 50-plus scores in the format have come against WI.
Salt becomes third batter with this feat
With his latest fifty, Salt became the third batter to complete 600 T20I runs against WI. As per ESPNcricinfo, he has now raced to 640 runs against them at 64 as each of his three T20I tons have come against WI. India's Rohit Sharma and Australia's David Warner, who have scored 693 and 662 runs respectively, are the other batters with 600-plus runs against WI.
Second T20I fifty for Bethell
Bethell played another fine knock, scoring 62 off just 32 balls. He smoked four fours and five maximums. Playing his sixth T20I, the young all-rounder has raced to 173 runs at a strike rate of 167.96. This was his second T20I fifty as his maiden one came in the opener of the ongoing series.
