West Indies Chase Down 219 to Beat England by 5 Wickets

West Indies secured a five-wicket victory over England in their T20 international on Saturday, chasing down a target of 219 with an over to spare. The match, a dead rubber with England already leading the series 3-0 featured explosive half-centuries from openers Shai Hope and Evin Lewis which propelled the West Indies to their second-highest successful T20I chase. England batted first and posted a competitive total. Openers Phil Salt (55) and Will Jacks (caught behind for 1) put on 54 runs before Salt continued to dominate, hitting four sixes and five fours.

Despite a strong 38 from captain Jos Buttler, England’s innings gained momentum thanks to an unbeaten 62 from Jacob Bethell and a quickfire 24 from Sam Curran, setting a challenging target of 219. West Indies struggling with their top-order in earlier games, responded with intent. Hope reached his half-century off just 23 balls, while Lewis played a blistering knock, smashing three sixes in one over. Lewis brought up his own 50 off 26 balls before dismissing for 68.

Hope followed shortly after, getting run out leaving West Indies at 136-3 with the game in the balance. Captain Rovman Powell steadied the ship, scoring a quickfire 38 off 23 balls before trapping LBW. Sharfane Rutherford’s unbeaten 29, including two sixes guided the West Indies home securing a morale-boosting win. Despite the loss, England’s captain Jos Buttler praised his team’s efforts, particularly their strong start. West Indies’ Powell reflected on the importance of the win with the series now at 3-2 and one final game remaining.