England’s cricket captain Harry Brook gave a shoutout to his group of mates after snagging his second series win in just 11 days. On Sunday, England took the second Twenty20 match against West Indies, winning by four wickets with nine balls to spare, which puts them ahead 2-0 in the series. England chased down a target of 197, finishing at 199-6 in 18.3 overs after West Indies posted 196.
Brook has now led England to five straight wins against West Indies since taking over from Jos Buttler, including a clean sweep in the ODIs. It wasn’t an easy match in Bristol, though; at one point, they needed over 11 runs an over to catch up. But the team came together, with five of the top six batters contributing before Jacob Bethell (26) and Tom Banton (30 not out) blasted 56 runs in just 21 balls to seal the deal. Buttler led the scoring again for England with 47 runs off 36 balls, having scored 96 in the first match on Friday.
This game marked a change from the tough endings England faced under Buttler, who saw his stint finish with eight straight losses in white-ball cricket. After dominating West Indies in the ODIs, England expected a tougher fight since the visitors are ranked higher in T20s.
West Indies ramped up the scoring with 47 runs in the final two overs of their innings, including a stunning 31 runs in the 19th over off spinner Adil Rashid, who saw six balls go for 6-6-6-1-6-6. Jason Holder (29 not out) kicked things off with three sixes, while Romario Shepherd added the last two. Skipper Shai Hope top-scored for West Indies with a rapid 49 off 38 balls, hitting four sixes along the way. He partnered with Johnson Charles for an 89-run second-wicket stand after opener Evin Lewis was out LBW on the first ball of the match. Charles chipped in with 47 runs off 39 balls before falling to Wood.
West Indies had their second-ranked T20 bowler, Akeal Hosein (1-33), back in action after missing the first game due to travel issues. England also made one change, with Luke Wood stepping in for Matthew Potts. The third T20 will be played in Southampton on Tuesday.
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