5th ODI: WI beat NZ to earn consolation win
What's the story
The West Indies cricket team clinched a hard-fought victory over New Zealand in the fifth ODI in Bridgetown. The win came by two wickets and was largely due to stellar performances from Sherfane Rutherford and Shimron Hetmyer. The duo's partnership helped the West Indies chase down a target of 269 runs set by New Zealand, with Hetmyer remaining unbeaten on 69 off 64 balls. Despite this loss, NZ have won the series 3-2.
Match details
New Zealand post a competitive total
New Zealand posted a challenging total of 268 for nine in their innings, the highest first-innings score of the five-match series.
Tom Latham top-scored with a solid 69 while Nick Kelly and Will Young contributed with scores of 64 and 56 respectively.
For West Indies, Alzarri Joseph (2/38) and Vitel Lawes (2/63) were the pick of the bowlers with two wickets each.
Initial struggle
West Indies's slow start and early wickets
The West Indies's chase started on a slow note, with Keacy Carty's 20 off 54 balls being the slowest innings of 20 or more by a West Indian in ODIs since Marlon Samuels's 25 off 65 against Pakistan in July 2013.
The spinners from New Zealand kept the batters tied to the crease, building pressure without any release.
Captain Shai Hope fell for 39 after trying to break free from the pressure created by Keacy Carty's slow scoring.
Stellar partnership
Rutherford and Hetmyer lead the fightback
Rutherford and Hetmyer led a stunning recovery for the West Indies, with their fifth-wicket partnership adding 95 runs in 90 balls.
The duo tackled the New Zealand spinners with confidence, bringing the required run rate down significantly.
However, Jacob Duffy's double strike in the 45th over gave New Zealand a glimmer of hope as West Indies went from 218/4 to 248/8.
Despite the late wickets, Hetmyer stood firm and guided his team home.
He hit Duffy for two sixes in the final overs of the game, sealing a thrilling win for the West Indies.
Young
Young races past 2,000 ODI runs: Stats
Young smashed 56 off 63 balls, a knock laced with six fours and a maximum.
This knock powered him past 2,000 ODI runs across 63 games.
As per Cricinfo, he has raced to 2,050 runs at an average of 35.34.
Young has crossed the 50-run mark 16 times in the format, converting four of them into tons.
Against WI, he has 190 runs across eight matches at 23.75.
Latham
27th ODI fifty for Latham
Latham smoked six fours and a maximum en route to his 69 off 71 balls.
Across 171 ODI matches, the southpaw has raced to 4,664 runs at an average of 34.04.
He has hammered 27 fifties besides eight tons.
458 of his runs have come across 19 games against WI at 28.62 (50s: 2).
Kelly
Third fifty for Kelly in ODIs
Kelly made 64 off 80 balls with the help of five fours and two sixes. This was Kelly's third half-century in his eight-match ODI career.
The left-handed batter, who made his ODI debut last year, recorded his previous two fifties against Bangladesh.
He has now completed 265 ODI runs at an average of 33.12 and a strike rate of 75.07.
Rutherford
Rutherford records his ninth 50-plus score in ODIs
Rutherford made 61 off 58 balls, a knock laced with two fours and five sixes.
This was his eighth fifty across 29 ODIs as the southpaw also boasts a hundred. Rutherford now owns 849 ODI runs for West Indies at 38.59.
His strike rate is 99.29. 188 of his runs have come across eight games against the Kiwis at 26.85 (50s: 2)
Hetmyer
Hetmyer slams his second ODI fifty versus NZ
Hetmyer's unbeaten 69 came off just 64 balls. He smoked two fours and four maximums.
This was his fifth ODI fifty as he also owns as many hundreds.
He has now raced to 1,638 runs across 59 matches at an average of 32.76.
His strike rate is a stunning 105.26. 180 of his runs have come across five games against the Kiwis at 45 (50s: 2).
Bowling accolades
Player of the Series Jayden Lennox takes 3 wickets
Jayden Lennox was New Zealand's standout bowler, taking 3/35 across nine overs in the final match.
He ended the series with an impressive 14 wickets at an average of 13.6 and was named Player of the Series.
He hence equaled the record for most wickets by a New Zealand bowler in a bilateral ODI series.
The spinner also surpassed Tim Southee (13 wickets vs England, 2008) to become NZ's most successful bowler in a bilateral ODI series away from home.
Duffy
Three-fer for Duffy as well
Duffy also claimed three wickets in the series finale, claiming 3/67 from eight overs.
The pacer also boasts an impressive ODI record of 40 wickets from 24 matches at an average of 25.30 and an economy rate of 5.86.
He has claimed seven wickets across as many games against the Men in Maroon (ER: 5.28).