MATCH STORIES
Follow UsGet Shai Hope in for Johnson Charles – that was the consensus going into the clash against USA on June 21 (Friday). However, as luck would have it, Brandon King suffered a tournament-ending injury in the previous game and had to be replaced. While Johnson hung on to his place, King’s absence created a void at the top.
In walked Hope.
Before today, Hope had opened just six times in T20 cricket since 2022. In this period, he had scored just 50 runs at an average of 8.33 and an abysmal strike rate of 78.1. His best position in this period was No. 3, where his 1,194 runs came at an average of 38.52 and strike rate of 138. In fact, all his 50-plus scores (8) in this time frame came at this very position.
Unfortunately, for him, that position went to Nicholas Pooran, and there was no displacing the southpaw, given the sort of tournament he was having with the bat.
In the only game he played before this in the T20 World Cup 2024, Hope batted at four – a spot where he had slammed 345 runs at a strike rate of 129.2 since 2022. Even in the previous season of CPL, Hope finished as the leading run-getter for his side with 481 runs at 53.44 to go with a strike rate of 140 – all of which came at three.
While recent evidence suggested that Hope should not have lasted as long as he did against USA, he ended up turning a new corner, easing skipper Rovman Powell’s woes. A failure for Hope here may have seen Kyle Mayers – King’s replacement – drafted into the XI.
While the addition of Mayers is still a possibility, this innings has ensured that it will not be in Hope’s place. Charles, who has not really been proactive in giving West Indies a brisk start, could very well be the candidate dropping to the bench.
Hope spared no one on his way to a career-best 82* off 39. Warming the bench for most parts of the tournament, one thought Hope would take his time to settle down. With a target of 129, he could have afforded to do so. He managed just a couple of runs from his first five deliveries as Saurabh Netravalkar kept it tight as he has done all tournament.
But the second over bowled by left-arm spinner Noshtish Kenjige broke the shackles. His second delivery to Hope was a half-tracker which the batter accepted with both hands and deposited it over mid-wicket for a 96m six. That was the opening he needed, as the right-hander spared no bowler after that.
USA have shown in this tournament they are no pushovers and rightly deserve their place in the Super 8s. However, West Indies have a bigger picture in mind. They needed to chase the target down by 14.3 overs to take their run-rate above South Africa’s. In the end, West Indies did not even need 11 overs to get to their target, which has given them a slight edge as far as qualifying for the semi-final goes.
As a result, we saw Hope and Nicholas Pooran (27*) go berserk. While doing something crazy is nothing new for someone like Pooran, we got a glimpse of what Hope can do when he is given the license up top. None of the shots Hope played today can be termed as a slog. In fact, he scored all of his sixes in the 'V' in front of him, which comes as a breath of fresh air given that the modern-day T20 batters choose to hit them behind the wicketkeeper on most occasions.
While recent numbers do not justify his spot as an opener, he may very well have made it his own with this blistering knock.
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