Lewis shines as WI beat England in rain-hit 1st ODI
The West Indies cricket team registered a dominating eight-wicket win over England in the rain-affected first ODI. The match, played at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua on Thursday, witnessed a phenomenal performance from Evin Lewis. He scored an astonishing 94 runs, hitting eight sixes in his innings of a mere 69 balls. That's four times as many sixes as the entire England team managed in their innings.
England's performance and Livingstone's leadership
England's first-time captain Liam Livingstone's team was bowled out for 209 runs in 45.1 overs. Livingstone was the top scorer with 48 runs, including two sixes. However, his efforts weren't enough to win England on the difficult pitch where only Lewis seemed to flourish.
Rain interruption and Lewis's return
The match saw a rain interruption which delayed the time between innings but didn't cost any overs. However, West Indies innings was curtailed by 15 overs as a long rain break after the 15th over. Despite the interruption, Lewis had already got his half-century off 46 balls before rain came, leaving West Indies in a commanding position at 81-0. The southpaw continued his onslaught after the rain-break but missed out on a ton.
Lewis goes past 2,000 ODI runs
This was Lewis's second successive 90-plus score in ODIs as he smoked a match-winning 61-ball 102* in his preceding outing, against Sri Lanka. He also went past 2,000 ODI runs with his latest knock. As per ESPNcricinfo, Lewis now has 2,043 runs at 40.05. The tally includes five tons and 11 half-centuries. Against England, he boasts 325 runs at 46.42 (100: 1, 50: 1).
West Indies's victory and England's struggle
The West Indies chased down the target with 9.1 overs to spare, courtesy of Brandon King (30) and Keacy Carty (19 not out). Earlier in the match, England's innings was largely bolstered by a 72-run partnership between Livingstone and Sam Curran (37) for the fifth wicket. However, both batters were dismissed by left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie who took a four-fer.
Second ODI four-fer for Motie
Motie finished with 4/41 in his 10-over spell. This was his second four-wicket haul in ODI cricket as he has raced to 30 wickets across 17 games at 18.76. Eight of his wickets have come versus England at 18.37.
England's rotation strategy and upcoming matches
England brought in four new faces - Jamie Overton, Jordan Cox, John Turner, and Dan Mousley - as part of their rotation policy after a recent Test series defeat in Pakistan. The teams will play the second ODI on Saturday and the third next Wednesday before a five-match Twenty20 series. The upcoming series promises to be an intense battle as England aim to bounce back while the hosts would want to seal the series.
