Mumbai: The West Indies stormed into the Super Eights stage of the T20 World Cup with a comfortable nine-wicket victory over Nepal on Sunday.
Having restricted Nepal to 133-8 in their 20 overs, captain Shai Hope’s unbeaten 61 guided his team to a comfortable 134-1 in just 15.2 overs in the Group C game at Mumbai’s Wankhede stadium.
Hope cruised to his half-century off 38 balls, hitting three sixes and five fours all told.
He added an unbroken 91 with Shimron Hetmyer to get to the target with 28 balls remaining.
Hetmyer was 46 not out in the end off 32 balls with two sixes and fours.
Qualifying, Hope said, was “one step, one hurdle that we’ve crossed.”
“Good to contribute to wins,” he added of his own batting, following scores of 19 and nought in his team’s two previous games at the tournament.
“It means we keep watching what we’ve been doing, our play. The hope is that we’re going to do that.”
Hope won the toss and elected to field and his decision was soon vindicated as Matthew Forde bowled a magnificent opening spell.
It was hard going for the Nepal batsmen all against him as Forde finished with 1-10 from his four overs and claimed the prize wicket of Nepal captain Rohit Paudel (5).
“You’ve got to give him some credit, he’s been hitting his areas,” Hope said of Forde. “He really exploits the movement.”
Nepal were floundering at 22-3 after the six-over power play, then it was 23-4 and 46-5 as Jason Holder too found among wickets.
Only Dipendra Singh Airee’s 58 helped Nepal to pass the hundred mark and he put on partnership of 54 for the seventh wicket with Sompal Kami, who finished not out on 26.
“I’m very relieved to win the toss and get on with what we wanted to do,” said Hope.
“We were trying to contain the runs and keep taking wickets.”
Holder finished with 4-27 from his four overs and was man of the match.
“I thought the ball moved a bit more. Maybe just held in the surface a little bit more up front,” Holder said.
“It was just a little harder to hit through the line of the ball. We also were able to move a little bit as well, too, which was huge.
“I just thought our bowlers hit a really good line.
The outcome ends Nepal’s campaign after three defeats. They will play their last group match in Mumbai against Scotland on Tuesday.
The West Indies will play their final group match against Italy in Kolkata on Thursday.
The Caribbean side will then come back to Mumbai for their first Super Eights game on 23 February — their opponent yet to be decided.