BASSETERRE, St Kitts (CMC):
AUSTRALIA ARE one match away from clean sweeping the West Indies on their tour of the Caribbean after securing an exciting three-wicket win in the fourth T20I at Warner Park on Saturday.
West Indies did well to get up to 205 for nine from their 20 overs after suffering a top-order collapse, but led by superb power hitting from Glenn Maxwell and half centuries from Josh Inglis and Cameron Green, Australia reached 206 for seven off 19.2 overs.
The result gave the visitors a commanding 4-0 lead in the five-match series, with the final match slated for today at the same venue.
It also means the home side have yet to win a match after having been swept 3-0 in the preceding Test series.
Similar to the previous three matches in the series, Australia won the toss and elected to field first.
West Indies found themselves in a spot of bother early on at 67 for four, due mainly to the efforts of pacer Xavier Bartlett.
Playing in his first game of the series, Bartlett dismissed openers Brandon King and Shai Hope cheaply for 18 and 10 respectively.
Roston Chase was then spectacularly caught one-handed at mid on by a leaping Glenn Maxwell for a duck, before Sherfane Rutherford, who had looked good at 31 off just 15 balls, sliced leg spinner Adam Zampa straight to backward point where captain Mitchell Marsh took the catch.
Despite the early losses, Shimron Hetmyer and Rovman Powell kept the run rate above 10 runs an over.
However, Hetmyer fell when he skied Sean Abott to deep backward point where Mitchell Owen took a stunning catch diving at full length, as West Indies slid to 111 for five at the halfway mark.
With just eight runs added, Powell picked out deep midwicket to be out for 28 from 22 balls to leave the home side in danger of being bowled out inside the allotted overs.
However, Romario Shepherd, who belted 28 from 18 balls, Jason Holder (26 off 16 balls), along with useful contributions from Akeal Hosein, who finished unbeaten on 16 and Matthew Forde, who made 15 off just seven deliveries, got them up to a respectable total.
Zampa led the way for Australia picking up 3-54, while Hardie (2-24), Bartlett (2-39) and Abbott (2-61), provided good support.
The home side got off to a dream start when left-arm pacer Jediah Blades trapped Marsh lbw with the second ball of the innings without a run on the board.
Player of the Match Maxwell and Inglis then added 66 runs in six overs, with the latter dominating the partnership.
Inglis hit Blades for three fours in the third over and then blasted Shepherd for four consecutive boundaries in the ensuing over.
He moved into the 40s by reverse sweeping Forde for four and then hitting him over midwicket for six, and brought up his 50 off 28 balls by scampering two runs off Holder.
Inglis didn’t last much longer, though, flicking Shepherd straight to Rutherford at deep backward square to be out for 51 off 30 balls with 10 fours and one six.
His departure ignited a flame inside Maxwell, who had only contributed eight runs off five balls.
Maxwell hit Shepherd for a six and four to end the seventh over and then clubbed Forde for two sixes in the ninth.
Shepherd was hit for two more sixes to move Maxwell within sight of a half century, but he picked out Holder at long on off the bowling of Akeal Hosein, to be dismissed for 47 from 18 balls, as Australia fell to 129 for three in the 10th over.
Blades then accounted for the wickets of Owen and Cooper Connolly for two and a duck, respectively, to see Australia slump to 134 for five.
Cameron Green, who hit an unbeaten 55 from 35 balls, inclusive of three sixes and three fours, then added 51 with Aaron Hardie, who made 23, and then shared a valuable 18-run partnership with Bartlett to see Australia to victory.
Blades was West Indies’ best bowler with 3-29 from his four overs.
