WI vs NZ: After the events of the first ODI and how they unfolded, the Kiwis had a job at their hands. Surprising everybody and leaving their bad form behind, the Caribbean team inflicted a heavy defeat upon New Zealand. But as history has it, the Kiwis do not stay down for a long time and are pretty much capable of making strong comebacks. They did the same thing in the second ODI. Members of team New Zealand have always come across as the nicest guys in the game of cricket, but at the back of their heads, they have a rock-solid mindset and are fierce competitors.
On the contrary, West Indies had a great opportunity at their disposal to clinch the ODI series victory which will now be decided in the third ODI scheduled to be played on August 21, 2022. Before the crucial ODI (One Day International), the Kiwis faced a major setback with Kane Williamson missing the game. Stand-in skipper Latham confirmed that Williamson had a niggle and was left out keeping the T20I World Cup in mind. Nicholas Pooran won the toss and decided to field first. West Indies wanted to restrict New Zealand to a low score and later chase it down.
Martin Guptill opened the innings with his teammate Finn Allen but could not make any notable contribution to the New Zealand innings. His stay at the crease was shortened by former Caribbean skipper Jason Holder. Later Alzarri Joseph dismissed Devon Conway and was followed by New Zealand skipper Tom Latham who couldn't even open his account. Pulling New Zealand out of woes, Finn Allen played a sublime inning of 96 off 117 deliveries. Daryl Mitchell too played a very handy inning of 41 off 63 deliveries which helped New Zealand to finish with 212 at the end of the 49th overs.
Things had according to West Indies as they managed to restrict New Zealand to a low score, but the story of their batting did not change. Seeing their bat and go after this target, nobody can decipher what they were up to and what was their approach for the game. Shae Hope tried to start on a positive note but could not score more than 16 runs from 29 deliveries. The likes of Shamarh Brooks and Kyle Myers departed on 0 which left the West Indies team reeling on 26/5. The likes of Jason Holder and Nicholas Pooran too could not make any notable contribution and that left West Indies lagging far behind in the game. Yannic Cariah gave a last-minute scare to the Kiwis as he scored 52 off 84 deliveries, but courtesy of Tim Southee and Trent Boult's heroics, West Indies won the match by 50 runs and leveled the series 1-1.
Teams:
West Indies XI: Shai Hope(w), Brandon King, Kyle Mayers, Shamarh Brooks, Keacy Carty, Nicholas Pooran(c), Jason Holder, Akeal Hosein, Yannic Cariah, Alzarri Joseph, Kevin Sinclair
New Zealand XI: Martin Guptill, Finn Allen, Devon Conway, Tom Latham(w/c), Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, James Neesham, Michael Bracewell, Mitchell Santner, Tim Southee, Trent Boult
