Ahmedabad, Feb 24 (.) West Indies men’s cricket team captain Shai Hope urged his side to stay grounded despite a record-breaking batting display that powered them to a 107-run win over Zimbabwe men’s cricket team in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Super Eight stage.
West Indies piled up 254/6, their highest total in Men’s T20 World Cup history, falling just six runs short of Sri Lanka men’s cricket team’s all-time tournament record of 260/6.
The innings was anchored by a blistering knock from Shimron Hetmyer, who smashed 85 off just 34 balls, including a rapid 19-ball half-century, as the Caribbean side overwhelmed Zimbabwe.
West Indies’ spin attack then backed up the batting effort with a clinical bowling performance, restricting Zimbabwe and sealing a dominant victory to remain unbeaten in the tournament.
“When you get 250 plus on the board in a T20 game, then you must be happy as a batting unit,” ICC quoted Hope after the match.
“And then with the ball being as clinical as we did, especially in the middle phase and Powerplay, I would call it more of a complete game for us. But if you want to be picky, there’s always areas that you can improve.”
Despite the emphatic win, Hope insisted his team remains focused on the bigger goal of reaching the semi-finals.
“This is the stage of the tournament where you’re more focused on playing your best cricket,” he said.
“You never go to bat thinking about scoring 275 or 350 in a T20 game. It’s about getting as many runs as possible and putting the opposition under pressure.”
West Indies are still at least one win away from securing a semi-final berth and face a crucial clash against the South Africa men’s cricket team in Ahmedabad, which is likely to determine the Group 1 toppers. They will also face India men’s cricket team in their final Super Eight fixture.
Hope said the team would focus on maintaining momentum.
“Great start, great confidence booster. But those games are gone. We’ve got to look ahead now. We’ve got South Africa next, and then India after. So we’ve got to keep playing our best cricket,” he added.
. VAN .