West Indies survived a spirited Sri Lankan defence in chase of a middling target of 148, as they eventually secured a final-over, but ultimately comfortable, seven-wicket victory in the first T20I at Sabina Park. The rain which had been forecast pleasantly stayed away, as a raucous home crowd finally got something to celebrate following the ODI washouts.

A flicked Rovman Powell six over deep midwicket off the expensive Dilshan Madushanka sealed the win, but it was one built on the patience of Shai Hope. The West Indian skipper made it a point to carry his bat through the innings in a 54-ball 65, as ensured there would be no hiccoughs come the crunch.

Hope was part of a rampant 39-ball opening stand of 67 with Brandon King, before shifting gears through the middle to string crucial partnerships of 28, 33 and 21*, with Shimron Hetmeyer, Roston Chase and Powell.

Sri Lanka’s bowlers toiled to drag the game deep in the second half of the chase, buffering a 66-run powerplay to take the game into the final over. Wanindu Hasaranga was the pick of the bowlers with figures of 2 for 32, while Eshan Malinga also impressed with 1 for 26. ‘

But on a wicket that wasn’t necessarily the most conducive to shot-making it was Sri Lanka’s batting that let them down. Kamindu Mendis waged a lone war for much of the innings during a 39-ball 51, and prior that Kusal Mendis had blitzed 36 off 23. But contributions aside from theirs was not nearly enough.

Jason Holder’s 3 for 18 was the catalyst for all the good West Indies managed with the ball, and it earned him a deserved Player of the Match award.

Generally when chasing a middling target on a sticky surface, a fast start in the powerplay when the ball is hard and fielders are in the ring is almost a prerequisite. And on that front the West Indian openers delivered.

The pair of Shai Hope and Brandon King struck 66 in an opening six-over salvo, as Sri Lanka were left ruing a host a missed opportunities – and King was at the centre of each of them.

The first was off Dushmantha Chameera, who rushed the right-hander with a short one that he could only miscue to midwicket. A third umpire no-ball check though offered a reprieve, much to the delight of the home crowd. The following free hit was a yorker squeezed to mid-on for a single that was never on, Sri Lanka again letting a chance slip by with a missed direct hit.

Then off the first ball of the very next over, Madushanka looked to have trapped King leg before, only for the decision to be overturned upon review for having pitched outside leg.

King made the most of his good fortune as he soon after found his timing, racing along to a 22-ball 37 before eventually been knocked over by a Hasaranga googly. Hope at the other end carried on at a similar click, managing 29 off 17 during the stand; he would crucially bat through to the latter stages to see the hosts home.

If West Indies’ start was belligerent, what followed certainly belied that. The 10 overs leading up to the death brought 54 runs and two wickets, as Sri Lanka clawed themselves back into proceedings. Such was West Indies’ early impact, it meant Sri Lanka were always underdogs but it crucially kept them in the game till the latter stages – when anything could happen.

Key to this was the Sri Lankan spin pairing of Maheesh Theekshana and Hasaranga. The latter was more expensive, giving away 32 in his four overs but picking up the wickets of King and Hetmyer. Theekshana meanwhile went wicketless but his four overs went for just 20 runs.

Ably assisting them was Malinga, carrying over his IPL form, mixing up his lengths and pace with a four over spell of 1 for 26. Chameera also responded well from the early tap he was on the receiving end of, landing some crucial yorkers in the death overs.

To put it into context, between the 10th and final over West Indies struck one six and two fours. It meant they need six off the final over. And Powell needed just two deliveries to ensure that very outcome.

Earlier, Kusal Mendis continued his rich vein of form with a with a 23-ball 36 to ensure a near 10-per-over powerplay for Sri Lanka. Twenty-six of those runs came in boundaries, including three sixes – two consecutively off Matthew Forde in a 17-run fourth over. That though would be Sri Lanka’s most profitable of the evening as a flurry of wickets to end the powerplay period reeled in the visitors just as they were looking to build a head of steam.

From 43 for no loss, Sri Lanka found themselves 56 for 3 at the end of the powerplay, and then 65 for 4 midway through the eighth over. A situation made considerably more perilous owing to the fact that their 6-5 combination meant a shorter batting lineup.

Following the sudden loss of their top order, including their in-form skipper, Kamindu and former skipper Dasun Shanaka had their work cut out for them. With only Hasaranga to come in the form of any sort of batting, wickets were at a premium and risks a minimum.

This was reflected in just the eight boundaries scored between the pair – including three sixes – in the eight overs they batted together. That they managed a run rate of 7.37 in this period was a credit to the pair’s running between the wickets. Even so Chase in particular proved hard to get away with his quick off breaks, as he snuck in 13 dots to the pair – pressure which eventually told in Shanaka slicing chase to backward point as he attempted to up the tempo.

That wicket was timely for the Windies, coming just as Sri Lanka would have been eyeing a death overs assault. It meant Hasaranga had little time to get his eye in, and he too would fall two overs later for an inconsequential 3 off 6.

Here the pressure on Kamindu mounted, and the West Indies also did well to starve the set batter of the strike for concerted periods, with him eventually dismissed in the final over looking to retain the strike on an ill-advised double.

Fresh off a run to the IPL final, Jason Holder once more proved his worth – particularly in the shortest format – as he read the conditions quickly and assertively to rein in Sri Lanka after a fast start. Introduced in the fifth over, he induced a miscue over short third first up from Pathum Nissanka, before following up with a well directed full inducker to knock over the dangerous Lankan opener.

Holder then set himself up for a hat-trick with a successful LBW review the very next delivery, to dismiss Lasith Croospulle who was playing just his second T20I. While the hat-trick was not forthcoming, Holder’s intervention had successfully shifted the momentum.

He would then return at the death to pick up his third as part of an outstanding two-run penultimate over, to end with figures 3 for 18. It meant that despite Kamindu and Shanaka’s best efforts at a mid-innings recovery, Sri Lanka were unable to land the finishing blows, managing just 25 for 4 in the death overs as the innings petered to a limp close.

Scores:
West Indies 149 for 3 in 19.2 overs (Brandon King 37, Shai Hope 65*, Shimron Hetmyer 17, Roston Chase 16, Rovman Powell 10*; Eshan Malinga 1-26, Wanidu Hasaranga 2-32) beat Sri Lanka 147 for 9 in 20 overs (Pathum Nissanka 18, Kusal Mendis 36, Kamindu Mendis 51, Dasun Shanaka 22; Jason Holder 3-18, Shamar Joseph 3-29, Roston Chase 1-18) by seven wickets

[Cricinfo]