England in West Indies: Phil Salt hits century to power tourists to victory in first T20
Phil Salt led England to an eight-wicket win over West Indies in the inaugural T20 in Barbados.
After a disappointing defeat in the one-day international series, Salter smashed an unbeaten 103 off 54 balls to help England level comfortably on the island he once called home. 183 balls.
It was England’s third T20 hundred in an opener, with all three coming against West Indies in the past 12 months.
He bowled just 25 balls in his first 50 overs as England scored 73 runs in the first six overs, losing just 17 runs to Will Jacks.
Captain Jos Buttler was sensationalized when he returned to the team after four months out injured, but Salter continued to drop the pace and control the required run-rate as England held off at Kensington Oval Kensington Oval completed the highest T20 chase with 19 balls to spare.
Jacob Bethell, another of Barbadian origin, joined Salt in an unbeaten 58 off 36 balls and in the process became the youngest player in the England squad T20 fifty player when he was just 21 years old.
Earlier, West Indies posted an impressive total in stunning fashion, posting a record of 183-9 despite falling to 18-3 and 117-8 respectively.
After the loss of the eighth wicket, they added another 65 runs in the last 5.2 overs, with No. 10 Gukadesh Motie then taking a stunning catch to finish off 14 balls. Beat Butler by 33 points.
Despite a strong start, England lost control with Saqib Mahmood taking 4-34 and Adil Rashid taking 3-32.
The second of the five T20 matches will begin at 20:00 GMT on Sunday at the same venue.
England will await the fitness of Reece Topley, who left the field visibly emotional after suffering a shock to his knee midway through the third over – the latest blow to a bowler who has suffered a series of brutal injuries in his career.
