ADELAIDE, Australia – West Indies captain Rovman Powell has rued the top order collapse which sent his side to a 34-run defeat to Australia in the second Twenty20 International on Sunday.
Top order batsman Nicholas Pooran walks off after being dismissed by left-arm seamer Spencer Johnson.Asked to chase an imposing 242 at the Adelaide Oval after Glenn Maxwell struck a record-equaling fifth T20I hundred, West Indies slumped to 63 for five in the seventh over before recovering to reach 207 for nine off their 20 overs.
The early wickets placed enormous pressure on the middle and lower order, and even though Powell lashed 63 off 36 deliveries and Andre Russell, a 16-ball 37, West Indies still found themselves well short.
“We knew if we were going to get close to this [target] we needed to have wickets because our top order is a lot of power,” Powell said.
“It’s just something we have to think about. Those things do happen when you’re chasing 240 – it’s either you get really close or you lose badly.”
West Indies had started the game well after opting to bowl first, reducing the home side to 64 for three in the seventh over.
However, Maxwell entered the contest to blast a dozen fours and eight sixes in a scintillating unbeaten 120 off 55 deliveries, joining India’s Rohit Sharma as the only two batsmen in world cricket with five career T20I hundreds.
He ripped into the West Indies bowling, reaching his fifty off 25 balls and his hundred off only another 25 balls as the Aussies surged to 241 for four – their highest-ever T20I total on home soil.
“To be honest, it’s very difficult [to bowl to Maxwell]. The wicket is good and he has very good skills,” Powell conceded.
“Whether you bowl the ball close or you bowl the ball wide, he tends to have a shot for it.
“So he has very good skills and we accept that but I think we still strayed from our plans just a little bit.
“[Scoring] 240, even though the wicket is good, is a lot of runs. If we can take off 20, 25 off of 240, then we’re possibly in for a win.”
Even with the series gone following their 11-run defeat in the opener in Hobart last Friday, Powell said West Indies would be hoping to turn the tables in Tuesday’s final game in Perth.
“A 2-1 series is better than a 3-0. The guys are still confident, the guys are still upbeat we can beat this Australian team but it is going to take a greater effort from each and everyone of us,” he stressed.
