Victory was a partnership away – Pooran

West Indies white ball captain Nicholas Pooran, while praising a record ninth-wicket partnership between Alzarri Joseph (49) and Yannic Cariah (52), at the back-end of a 50-run loss to New Zealand in the second game of the three-match CGI ODI series on in Barbados, is bemoaning another inglorious batting collapse.

“If the top order could’ve given us one partnership I think we would’ve won the game,” said Pooran after watching his side slump to 161 in chase of 212 at the Kensington Oval in Barbados.

Pooran’s comments came after the West Indies slumped to 27-6 at the end of the first 10 overs.

In contrast, between overs 10 and 33, the West Indies only lost two wickets, scoring 122 runs, which left Pooran to comment:

“[The early collapse] was definitely disappointing. It hurt us a lot. Losing six wickets in the power-play there, we knew we were in deep trouble.”

Earlier, opener Finn Allen had perished agonisingly short of a maiden ODI hundred with a top score of 96 as New Zealand were dismissed for 212 in the penultimate over.

Twenty-two year-old off-spinner Kevin Sinclair grabbed four for 41 in his second ODI and was supported by experienced seamer Jason Holder (3-24) and left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein, who finished with two for 51.

Similar to Wednesday’s opener, the Black Caps found the going difficult on a testing Kensington Oval pitch and were quickly 31 for three in the 10th over before Allen and Daryl Mitchell (41) rebuilt the innings in an 84-run, fourth-wicket stand.

Struck seven fours

The 23-year-old Allen faced 117 deliveries and struck seven fours and three sixes while Mitchell, 31, counted a brace of fours and sixes in his 63-ball stay.

Allen added another 35 for the fourth wicket with Michael Bracewell (6) before eventually falling with a deserved hundred within reach, playing on to seamer Holder in the 41st over.

But when the West Indies replied, they struggled even more.

Asked to chase 213 for a rare series win against a top-tier opponent, West Indies slumped to 27 for six in the 10th over, veteran seamers Tim Southee (4-22) and Trent Boult (3-18) shredding the top order with lethal new-ball spells.

When rain halted play for nearly an hour with West Indies on 63 for seven in the 23rd over and Akeal Hosein fell six balls following the resumption at 72 for eight with a revised target of 212 from 41 overs on the cards, the Caribbean side’s demise appeared imminent.

However, Cariah struck a sensible 52 from 84 balls in his first-ever international innings while Joseph slammed a cavalier 49 from 31 balls, the pair putting on a rollicking 85 to establish a new record for the ninth wicket for West Indies in ODIs.

The left-handed Cariah notched two fours and a six and found his caution complemented by Joseph’s brawn, the number 10 transferring pressure back on to the Black Caps by belting five fours and two sixes.

With 57 runs needed from the last 41 balls, Southee returned to bowl Joseph in the 35th over before Cariah holed out on the ropes at point in the next over from left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner, as the home side folded for 161 in the 36th over.

“… Yannic and Alzarri Joseph, they putting on that partnership [helped us] but I think that partnership was a bit too late,” said Pooran.