The West Indies beat New Zealand on Thursday, June 13 morning, to confirm their spot in the T20 World Cup Super 8 stage.
Sherfane Rutherford knocked off 68 runs, and Alzarri Joseph’s four wickets helped the West Indies win by 13 runs at Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Tarouba.
Chasing the target of 150 runs, New Zealand made 136 runs after losing nine wickets and hopes of qualifying for the second stage of the next round of the mega event.
Whereas, after their third consecutive win in the group matches, the West Indies have qualified for the Super 8s stage.
West Indies captain Rovman Powell, after winning the match, said, “I am very happy. We found ourselves in some trouble, but thank you to all the guys in Trinidad.”
He added, “We knew someone would have to play a blinder because we knew it wouldn't be an easy wicket because of the inclement weather that we've had. We believe individual brilliance is needed in T20 cricket sometimes, and it was a fantastic knock from Sherfane Rutherford.”
New Zealand, in a post-match presentation, asserted, “It was good. We had an inkling it was going to be quite tough, and that proved to be the case. You've got to find a way, and the difference can be an over or two. The quality of Sherfane Rutherford's innings was of the highest. It was incredibly impressive and frustrating for us.”
Williamson vowed, “We want to see better performances and be smarter. We'll pick ourselves up and go again.”
