Sam Curran adds calm amid chaos as England seal T20 series win over West Indies | Cricket

They said St Lucia was a run scorer’s paradise. Tonight they were wrong as England had to scrap to overhaul the West Indies’ paltry total of 145-8 for a three-wicket win and a first away T20 series triumph in two years.

For the sixth match of the tour, the team that won the draw won. But this result was not decided by a coin as the West Indies hit self-destruction in the powerplay to lose four wickets in the first 20 balls of their innings.

A timid display from England with the bat made a game of it as the tourists slumped to 37 for three before Sam Curran (41) and Liam Livingstone (39) kept calm amid the chaos to help England to victory with four balls to spare.

It was remarkable that we were able to get a match into the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground at all. Heavy rain has fallen in the week leading up to the match with another downpour yesterday.

The game started almost an hour late, but England arrived on time. In the first over, Jacob Bethell, who has been privately named by a member of the England coaching staff as the best fielder in the country, ran at an attempted single from Shai Hope and, with a stump to aim for, ran him out yards.

Jofra Archer and Saqib Mahmood, both so effective at the weekend, combined again to get the new ball swinging and the West Indian batsmen going. Evin Lewis was caught at the top edge in a pull off Mahmood’s bowling, Nicholas Pooran was clean bowled by Archer attempting a lift and Roston Chase was cut trying to drive to give Mahmood his second.

England were in showboat mode. Jos Buttler fields at short leg, two slips in place and cover left wide open.

Mahmood claimed his third wicket before the powerplay was over when Shimron Hetmyer was caught at deep square leg. The old wives tale of T20 cricket is that if you lose three wickets in the powerplay, you lose the game. West Indies had lost five.

The home side would recover somewhat thanks to Romario Shepherd and skipper Rovman Powell, who added 73 for the sixth wicket, with Powell finishing on 54 off 40.

But Jamie Overton ended any thoughts of a Windies comeback with a double-wicket over, deceiving Shepherd with a superb dipping slower delivery before forcing a fake shot from Gudakesh Motie. When Powell bowled to him in his next over, Overton suddenly had the very fine figures of three for 20 to his name.

The West Indies finished with a total which, according to pre-game estimates, should never have been enough. But a nervous start from England saw both Phil Salt and Jos Buttler fall to Akeal Hosein before Bethell edged behind the second ball to leave England three down with 109 to win.

Curran, promoted to no. 5, added 38 with Jacks in a partnership that seemed to take the competitive edge out of the match, only for the opener to chip to cover to give the West Indies a glimmer again.

The home team had their chances. Three of them, in fact, as the usually reliable Nicholas Pooran dropped Liam Livingstone twice in five balls. The first from a steeper which he wasted while running backwards, the second from a thin edge from the spinner Motie.

Several Windies players fell to the floor in disbelief. Livingstone would then be grazed again by a diving Hetmyer on the boundary several overs later.

The toss may not have decided the outcome of the evening, but the conditions still favored England, with the dew settling and the West Indies bouncing over every delivery as they desperately tried to dry the ball.

Curran had done his best to take England home himself but fell with 33 runs still required at a run-a-ball. Both Dan Mousley and Livingstone would be dismissed before England reached their goal, but despite the closeness of the scorecard they were favorites throughout.

England’s series win is their first away since October 2022 and just their second series win in their last six attempts. The coin fell in their favor throughout, but you have to be good to make the most of your luck. In the Caribbean they were both.