Roston Chase displayed once again why the West Indian selectors keep him in their scheme of things as the batting allrounder delivered an allround masterclass to help the Windies win the 2nd T20I by 16 runs against South Africa at Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica.
The hosts have taken an unassailable lead (2-0) in the three-match series and the Proteas will be playing for their pride in the final fixture.
The 2nd T20I saw Brandon King call it right at the toss and he had no hesitation in setting a score on the board. The hosts lost Johnson Charles in the fourth over and King also departed in the seventh over with 54 runs on the board.
King's wicket brought Kyle Mayers and Chase together in the middle and their partnership started giving headaches to the South African skipper Rassie van der Dussen.
Mayers took on the South African bowlers and proved that King's decision to bat first was a wise one. He smashed 32 off just 16 balls, including two fours and three sixes but fell prey to the leg-spinner Nqabayomzi Peter while trying to launch him over the deep square leg fence.
Mayers' wicket didn't bother Chase much as he paced his innings to perfection and allowed the players at the other end to take the Proteas down by attrition.
As a result, Romario Shepherd (26 off 13 balls) and Andre Fletcher (29 off 18 balls) played with freedom and dented the South African attack.
Chase remained unbeaten on 67 off 38 deliveries with the help of seven fours and two sixes and helped the hosts post an imposing 207 on the board.
South Africa's run chase got off to a flyer as they raced to 81 in just five overs before Quinton de Kock got cleaned up by Akeal Hosein at an individual score of 41 off just 17 balls.
Hendricks also departed two balls later and South Africa's chase lost its steam. Ryan Rickleton (19), Matthew Breetzke (12) and Rassie (30) got starts but failed to make the most out of them.
The tourists finished with 191 for the loss of seven wickets and it was largely due to an excellent spell of spin bowling by Gudakesh Motie. Motie bagged 3/22 in his four overs and was the pick of all the West Indian bowlers.
