Press Trust of India
Mumbai, March 16: Chris Gayle (100 n o, 48b, 5×4, 11×6) got his second century in T20 Worlds as he led the West Indies to a six-wicket victory over England in their Group I encounter at the Brabourne Stadium, here Wednesday.
Put into bat by the opposition, England posted a healthy 182 for six in their 20 overs. But even that proved a little too less as Gayle force hit their bowlers hard. Riding on Gayle’s knock, the 2012 champions emerged comfortable winners with 11 balls to spare.
The dew factor certainly came into play when England bowled. But then credit cannot be taken away from Gayle’s knock. His first century had been for a losing cause as South Africa had won the inaugural match of the 2007 T20 World Cup. But he would certainly remember this knock as it helped his team to start on a winning note.
After West Indies had lost Johnson Charles to the second ball of the innings, Gayle and Marlon Samuels (37, 27b, 8×4) steadied the ship with a partnership of 57 from 40 balls. But after Samuels’s dismissal, it was Gayle all the way hitting the England bowlers all over of the park.
Earlier Joe Root (48, 36b, 3×4, 2×6), Jos Buttle (30, 20b, 3×6) and skipper Eoin Morgan (27 n o, 14b, 1×4, 2×6) had contributed to the England cause.