Hurricane Elsa move over! Old is gold! Gayle Storm arrives

…Windies clinch 3-0 series win over Australia

It was a night full of action, there was no drama or no swaying of the game. Instead a storm arrived, a brutal storm in the form of Christopher Henry Gayle. He was unstoppable as he smashed balls to every part of the ground, he crucified the Australian bowling attack and showed the world why he is the “Universe Boss”. Gayle played his part and in the end, the West Indies stormed to a comfortable 3-0 series win over their opponents, winning the third T20 International by six wickets ending on 142-4 in reply to Australia’s 141-6.

The Aussies made three changes in their line-up for the third T20I – Ashton Turner, Alex Carey, and Riley Meredith. The men, in maroon on the other hand, were confident in their line-up and maintained almost the same team with the exception of Obed McCoy coming in for the injured Fidel Edwards.

Starc, Meredith make the breakthrough
The opening over saw Andre Fletcher smack Mitchell Starc for a crisp boundary, but the next ball saw him back in the pavilion. Despite that early breakthrough, the West Indies kept on ticking, Gayle and Lendl Simmons shared a 30-plus partnership, which included a 19-run over from Gayle off Josh Hazelwood. In the end, Meredith returned to remove Simmons for 15, as he was looking settled to have West Indies at 42-2.

Gayle Storm arrives
Gayle showed the world why he is still one of the most destructive batsmen, and even though many might have said he should retire, he proved that he has still got it. His match-winning innings of 67 off 38 balls included four boundaries and seven towering sixes at a strike rate of 176.31. Furthermore, he also went on to achieve yet another milestone being the first player to score 14,000 T20 runs, including 22 centuries and 86 half-centuries from his 431 matches.

Pooran finds some form
Nicholas Pooran scored a handy 32 off 27 deliveries, his innings was the second highest alongside Gayle’s 67. This was excellent for the young acting captain as not only did he find some form but he maintained an unblemished record as captain with three wins in three. Pooran hit the winning runs, scoring two boundaries off the fourth and penultimate deliveries of over number 14 to take the game in emphatic fashion, winning with 31 balls to spare.

Wade, Finch capitalise
Earlier in the game, openers Matthew Wade and Aaron Finch made use of their opportunities as compared to the first two T20Is. They made use of the bad balls and ran important singles when necessary; however, Wade fell to McCoy on the first ball of over 4 for 23 with the score at 41-1. Despite the partnership being broken, it was still an excellent start for the men from Down Under and they needed to make use of it.

Trouble in Paradise
With the score on 41-1, Finch and Mitchell Marsh needed to carry on, but the Windies bowlers kept things tight. Marsh was trapped for 9 by Fabien Allen, then specialist batsmen Alex Carey and Finch fell in quick succession. Hayden Walsh Jr in particular continued to lure the batsmen into playing their shots which resulted in their wickets being lost. Australia moved from 41-1 to 80-4 , putting the West Indies in control. Pooran played the Captain’s role like a champion, he managed his bowlers’ rotation and field with great excellence.

Australia rally on, but Windies tighten the reins
After four wickets fell, Moises Henriques and Ashton Turner carried on slowly and while they were able to cash in on a few classy shots, the West Indies pulled things back slowly. Their combination of Dwayne Bravo and Sheldon Cottrell in the last two overs was brilliant. The last 8.5 overs only yielded 61 runs. Henriques was dismissed by Bravo in the last over for 33 off 29, while Turner was run out for 24 off 22. In the end, after having such a good start, the Aussies were only able to post 141-6 in their allotted 20 overs. Walsh Jr was the pick of the bowlers with 2-18, Allen had 1-26, Bravo 1-17 and McCoy 1-9.