Jos Buttler shook off the ring rust with a blistering 83 off 45 balls as England moved right into a 2-0 lead of their five-match T20 sequence towards the West Indies in Barbados.
Sooner or later on from a golden duck in his first aggressive innings since late June, England’s white-ball captain overcame a shaky begin to underpin a profitable chase of 159 and seal a seven-wicket victory.
Buttler belted six sixes and eight fours, placing on 129 in 72 deliveries alongside Will Jacks after Phil Salt, who registered a match-winning 103 not out 24 hours earlier, received a first-baller of his personal.
The Windies misplaced what appeared one other essential toss and posted 158 for eight on a difficult pitch which appeared aggressive at midway as England undermined their trigger with 29 extras – 19 of them wides.
Saqib Mahmood took one other two wickets, taking his tally for the sequence to 6, and Liam Livingstone and Dan Mousley took a few scalps, whereas Jofra Archer’s figures of 4-0-31-1 hardly replicate how properly he bowled, particularly within the powerplay, however the Windies completed strongly.
England’s Reply
When Salt lashed to quick cowl from the primary ball of the reply and Buttler bottom-edged his third supply over his leg stump in an eventful first over from Akeal Hosein, England nerves had been jangling.
Jacks edged simply wanting a lone slip, whereas a whip off his hip bounced in entrance of quick effective leg, however he opened up the offside to take three fours in six deliveries and ease among the constructing stress.
Buttler, who has been sidelined for 4 months with a nagging calf damage, took his time to get settled with simply three singles in his first 10 balls in his experimental place of quantity three.
However he flogged 4 fours and a straight six from his subsequent half-a-dozen deliveries to ignite his cost earlier than spinners Gudakesh Motie and Roston Chase went the gap to carry up a 32-ball fifty.
T20 debutant Terrance Hinds, standing in for the injured Andre Russell, noticed his first over disappear for 15, whereas Buttler muscled two extra sixes and a 4 off the shell-shocked Chase.
Jacks had been comfortable to play second fiddle to his skipper however departed for 38 off 29 balls after holing out off Romario Shepherd.
Buttler was in no temper to hold round however was put down at additional cowl in the identical over earlier than thumping the very subsequent supply to long-on to provide Shepherd a second wicket.
However Livingstone’s 23 not out off 11 balls made certain a dramatic collapse was not within the offing, the all-rounder bludgeoning Shepherd for four-four-six to seal victory for England in 14.5 overs.
Jofra Archer
Archer was earlier borderline unplayable, having been included on the expense of the injured Reece Topley in England’s solely change, and brushed the glove of Evin Lewis with a vicious bouncer.
So efficient was he that Buttler stationed himself at quick leg and put in two slips, however certainly one of them, Jamie Overton, couldn’t cling on to a excessive likelihood when Archer discovered Chase’s edge.
Mahmood was extra erratic with a number of wides as he appeared to capitalise on the early motion, however he received his strains proper to account for Brandon King earlier than beating Chase’s inside edge to get an lbw verdict.
Whereas the Windies swung freely on Saturday regardless of a cascade of wickets, a pitch providing help to seamers and spinners alike made them extra circumspect this time, exemplified by Nicholas Pooran chewing up 23 balls for simply 14 and Windies captain Rovman Powell contributing simply 43 from 41 deliveries.
However after Powell was yorked as Mousley claimed his maiden worldwide wicket, the Windies added 56 within the final 4.3 overs, which included a wicket-maiden for Adil Rashid.
Mousley was entrusted to bowl the final over regardless of Mahmood having one left and a full toss ended Shepherd’s cameo of twenty-two off 12 balls, however the Windies nonetheless completed strongly.