West Indies skipper Rovman Powell lauded his bowling unit for restricting the powerful Indian batting line-up to 165 runs in the decider of the series at Central Broward Regional Park Stadium Turf Ground, Lauderhill, Florida on Sunday.
After electing to bat first, Hardik Pandya and Co. could not find the impetus in their batting innings. Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill, the stars of the penultimate game, were dismissed cheaply for five and nine runs respectively.
West Indies were given a perfect start as Akeal Hosein took both wickets of Indian openers. Tilak Varma, who impressed in the series, was also dismissed by Roston Chase for 27.
Subsequently, Romario Shepherd was right on the money for the Windies. He returned with his best T20I bowling figures of 4-31, dismissing Sanju Samson, Hardik Pandya, Kuldeep Yadav, and Arshdeep Singh in his fine spell.
On the other hand, Brandon King and Nicholas Pooran took the attack against the Indian bowlers after Kyle Mayers was dismissed cheaply. King went on to score an unbeaten knock of 85 runs whereas Pooran continued his good form, scoring 47. The duo added 107 runs for the second wicket and played a key role in the run-chase.
Rovman Powell said this series win means a lot to them after they could not qualify for the ODI World Cup and gave gratitude to the fans for their massive support.
Powell said in the post-match presentation, “It is difficult to put words. Even adjectives are difficult to be put here. There was a lot at stake. We sat down and had a meeting last evening. The people in caribbean were longing for something nice. Credit to the coaching side. We could have easily panicked after the loss. Our plans were good. I am very big on individual performances. If one can perform, the team will benefit.”
Powell hailed Nicholas Pooran for his consistent performances. Pooran was awarded Player of the Series for scoring 176 runs in the five-match series.
He added, “Nicholas Pooran is a big player for us, we asked him to come through for us in at least three of the five games and he did. Nobody can come good in every game so we asked him to try and stand up in three games. Credit to the bowling unit, they controlled this powerful batting lineup from India. A lot of credit has to go to the fans. When the chips were down, they supported us. It keeps us motivated, to see the fans supporting us, not only physically but also on social media. Thanks to everyone for supporting us.”
