A superb unbroken sixth wicket partnership of 118 between Brandon King and Keacy Carty steered the West Indies from potential embarrassment in Amstelveen to a five wicket victory over Netherlands in the second one-day international on Thursday.
The two came together with the West Indies in serious trouble at 99 for five, chasing what appeared to be a relatively straightforward target of 215.
King was the more vigorous of the pair, clubbing three sixes and nine fours in his unbeaten 90-ball 91, while Carty played the anchor role, accumulating 43 from 67 balls.
With four needed to win and 28 balls remaining, he hammered a short ball from Duff high over midwicket to register his only six and seal the win that gives the West Indies an unassailable 2-0 win in the three-match series.
“To be honest, part of my strength is adapting to whatever is needed for the team. I can bat anywhere in the top six. This was a new role given to me. It’s not unfamiliar [though] – I’m a middle-order batsman first and foremost, so I’m comfortable in this position,” ESPNcricinfo quotes Brandon King as saying.
The Dutch, who won the toss and chose to bat first, had started the match in impressive fashion as Vikramjit Singh (46) and Max O’Dowd (51) added 101 for the first wicket.
Once they both fell O’Dowd the first of four victims for left-arm spinner Akeal Hosein (4-39) — the rest of the batting struggled.
Scott Edwards, who came in at three, battled hard and was last out for 68 but even he found it difficult to get the bowling away, mustering but a single boundary in his 89-ball knock.
The Dutch bowlers settled well to their task of defending such a small total and were buoyed by the early dismissal for 18 of Shai Hope who made a century in Tuesday’s seven-wicket win.
Logan van Beek picked up two wickets and, at 99 for five, it looked as though Pieter Seelaar’s side might steal the match and square the series but King decreed otherwise.
“As cricketers, when times are good, you have to try and cash in and get as many runs as possible. I’m trying to cash in and feel good out there, and trying to capitalize on good form. Going out there, wickets falling around me… I just had to try and dig in and stay out there for the team,” he added.
Brandon King’s best knock of 91 not out rescued West Indies from 99 for 5 and led them to a series win.
“Knowing that I was one of the last recognized batsmen out there with Keacy, I thought we just had to stay out there. We weren’t chasing a big total, so it was good to keep it simple,” he added.
Talking about Keacy Carty, who smashed 43 not out and stitched up a 118-run stand for the sixth wicket with King, the West Indies batter said,
“He was brilliant coming in that pressure situation in his first innings. I thought he played exceptionally well. He kept a cool head and if he continues with that, he’ll do well.”
The win for the West Indies has now seen them leap into the top half of the ICC Super League ODI table, and King is keen on continuing to rack up more points, with more challenging assignments on the horizon.
“These points are extremely important because we have not been having the best of fortunes recently in this format of the game. It is great to come away with a series win and, hopefully, we can carry this into the last game and the next series,” he said.