Shai Hope smashed 82 runs and helped West Indies won match with 9.1 overs to spare

The explosive inning of Shai Hope of 82 runs played a crucial role in helping West Indies chased down target in just 10.5 overs. West Indies thrashed USA by 9 wickets and kept alive the hopes of the team of making their way to the semi-final of ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.

The players and all the fans of West Indies Cricket team will be eying on the next game of the team against South Africa in order to get a little step closer to the trophy. The toss was won by the West Indies Captain, Rovman Powell and he opted to bowl first. Since then, Caribbean players stepped into the ground and dominated the entire game play.

The USA suffered early blow with the wicket of their opener Steven Taylor by Andre Russell. Following that, Nitish Kumar and Andries Gous put up a score of 48 runs for the second wicket but failed to stay for a longer period. As Gudakesh Motie’s power delivery sent Nitish back to the pavilion and Gous who tried to emulate Alzarri Joseph was caught by Shai Hope. All the bowlers were so dominating on the entire USA team that they bowled down to 128 runs in 19.5 overs.

After that, the openers of West Indies entered into the crease and when they started accelerating, they became unstoppable. Shai Hope was the replacement for Brandon King who injured himself in their last game against England. Shai’s powerful unbeaten innings of 82 runs off 39 balls with 4 fours and 8 sixes was one of the highlights of the game.

Nicholas Pooran also remained unbeaten and scored 27 runs in 12 balls, he formed a partnership of 66 runs with Shai Hope in just 23 balls. According to the statistics, if England defeated USA, then West Indies might get knocked out from the tournament.

However, this massive victory has improved the net run of West Indies from -1.343 to +1.814, improving the position at the points table. After the game, Rovman Powell, the captain appreciated Shai Hope for playing impressive cricket. He stated that the player got a chance to play against Afghanistan but was dropped in the next game because of managing the combination. He further noted that Shai was hungry for a good performance and that it was a top game for him. He has proved his abilities which showcases his determination to play the game.