Thriller, Sodhi, Duffy Three-Fors Trump Late Springer-Shepherd Blitz. When the crowd in Nelson imagined that the game was over and finished, the lower order of West Indians nearly rewrote the game. Shamar Springer and Romario Shepherd in a spectacular ending made what appeared to be a one-sided pursuit a heart throbbing spectacle. However, the three-fors of Ish Sodhi and Jacob Duffy defined the result as New Zealand somehow maintained its nerve to secure a 9-run victory in the 3rd T20 moving 2-1 ahead in the five match series.
It was the competition of all competitions, booming batting, beaming bowling, amazing catches and the sort of pressure that makes T20 cricket extremely addictive.
With New Zealand batters first their innings was built on the solid backbone of Devon Conway (fluent 56 (34b)). Daryl Mitchell had also had a quickfire 41. Conway was perfect at the right time to start with, he threw Akeal Hosein to the deep middlewicket and scattered the holes with accuracy.
It was Mitchell who burst through in the middle overs to provide essential energy to the party by pushing boundaries. New Zealand was at 96/ 2 after ten overs which appeared to give the team a 200+ total. But the West Indians bowlers headed by Matthew Forde (2-20) and Jason Holder, (2-31) discovered their run.
This and ineffective running between the wickets and three expensive run-outs saw the hosts pulled out of a dominating position into 177 for 9 in 20 overs, a position that was competitive and not impossible to overcome.
Jacob Duffy had not the same expectations of the West Indies as the West Indians had. Duffy sent Amir Jangoo and Shai Hope back with the same ball in a ferocious spell of new ball, impoverishing the visitors in the very beginning.
On the other end, Kyle Jamieson was very ineffective in his consistency, spilling blood, but making half-chances. The turning point was reached with the introduction of Ish Sodhi. His leg spin totally killed the chase he sent out Alick Athanaze, Rovman Powell, Matthew Forde and brought about a theatrical collapse.
Within six overs, the West Indies went down the slippery slope of the 53 for 2 which was steady to 88 for 8, creating the impression among the fans and commentators that the game was over.
Stunning Fightback by Springer and Shepherd.
Next, there was the Springer-Shepherd show. The two determined that should they be heading down the line, they were going to do so swinging. As soon as Springer slog-sweeps Sodhi across the middle, the atmosphere in the stadium changed.
Romario Shepherd, whose power is as brute as brute, came in– sending out Duffy to a hideous six over fine leg and cutting boundaries over point. The two then piled on an all-time record 78 runs stand at the ninth wicket on 39 balls and put the desperate pursuit back in a tense battle.
Their fearless hitting reduced the equation of 90 off 45 balls to mere 13 off 7 which fell on the crowd and forced the Kiwis in the proper and right mind.
Duffy and Jamieson Hold Their Nerve.
This seemed to be an alive dream of the West Indies when Jacob Duffy struck the game in the most decisive way. On the 19 th over he bowled the 19th, and his magnificent return catch was ahead of him, carried out as he dived on his left.
That had 12 required on the remaining over and Kyle Jamieson, who had repelled 16 in the last game, was once more given the ball. He bowled clever changes and difficulty of length in which Shepherd guessed.
Shepherd had 10 required off two balls, and he took the chance but could only succeed in reaching Daryl Mitchell at a very long distance. The climax was similar to that of the last set of T20Is close-knit, nail-biting and full of surprises but once again New Zealand came out as the winner.
Forde Impresses a losing cause.
In the case of the West Indies, Matthew Forde was the one who stood out. His mastery and precision in the powerplay limited the goals of New Zealand and his two fold hit in the middle overs ruined the flow of the hosts.
The other bowling products did not, however, support him. Both Akeal Hosein and Romario Shepherd had spilled their beans and this was sufficient to keep the scoring rate going through by Conway and Mitchell. The laxity in the disciplined fielding of the ball, caused by the failure in grounding supported chances, ended up in expense to the visitors.
Eventually, the cool thinking of New Zealand during crises came out as the difference maker. The third T20 in Nelson was another instalment in an exciting series that is not going to fail. Although the Springer Shepherd blitz will be remembered as one of the most provocative, the Kiwis won the match with the help of the accurate bowling by Sodhi and Duffy and a 2-1 series lead.
The fans of cricket can only await more fireworks as the series goes on with both the teams being hungry to prove itself to be better than the other in what is proving to be one of the most entertaining T20 wars of the year.
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