The West Indies Thursday secured an important win in the T20 World Cup 2024, defeating New Zealand by 13 runs in their second outing in the ongoing mega event.
During the match, the Black Caps fell short of the West Indies’ 149-run target and could only score 136 at the loss of nine wickets in 20 overs.
For the co-hosts, Alzarri Joseph Gudakesh Motie and bagged four and three wickets, respectively, to secure their team’s second win in the tournament.
Earlier in the match, Sherfane Rutherford rescued the West Indies as his unbeaten 68 off 39 balls (two fours, six sixes) lifted the home side from the depths of 30 for five in the seventh over to a competitive 149 for nine after they were put in by Black Caps skipper Kane Williamson.
The Black Caps never developed any momentum in the chase and continued to lose wickets at regular intervals during their innings.
Only Glenn Phillips (40 off 33 balls) caused any real worries for the West Indies but when he fell to Joseph in the 18th over the match was effectively over as a contest, despite Mitchell Santner belting three sixes off Romario Shepherd in the final over.
The defeat leaves New Zealand needing a miracle to progress beyond the group stage. They now need to win their remaining two matches by a good margin and hope other results go their way in order to stay alive in the race for Super 8.
The Kiwis will be eliminated if Afghanistan defeat Papua New Guinea.
