[Watch] Sam Curran bats with sunglasses during the 1st ODI between England and West Indies
England bowling all-rounder Sam Curran batted with sunglasses during the first ODI between England and West Indies on December 3. The 3-match ODI series between the two sides commenced last night at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in Antigua.
The visitors won the toss and batted first in the contest. Phil Salt (45), Zak Crawley (48), and Harry Brook (71) played well at the top to set up a good platform for the English side. However, they lost a couple of wickets in quick succession towards the fag end of the middle phase of the innings.
Sam Curran (38) chipped in with a handy knock after the collapse and ensured England breached the 300-run mark. It was interesting to note that he batted with sunglasses during his innings. He got run out in the 48th over, and England eventually reached 325 in 50 overs.
You can watch the video of Sam Curran batting with sunglasses below:
Sam Curran had an off day with the ball as West Indies chased down the target to go 1-0 up in the 3-match series against England
West Indies got off to a great start in the chase as openers Alick Athanaze (66) and Brandon King (35) put on a 104-run partnership in 17.3 overs. Young English leg-spinner Rehan Ahmed dismissed Athanaze in the 18th over to give his side a much-needed breakthrough.
West Indies captain Shai Hope then took charge and hit a brilliant match-winning ton to see his team home. En route to 109* (83), he smashed 7 sixes and 4 fours, shepherding Windies to 326/6 in 48.5 overs. Romario Shepherd (49) supported him with a blazing cameo. Sam Curran looked off-color with the ball as he conceded 98 runs in 9.5 overs, without picking up a wicket.
At the post-match presentation, England captain Jos Buttler reflected on the loss, saying:
"Fantastic game of cricket and lot of credit goes to Shai Hope. They batted brilliantly to chase this down and it's kudos to them. The guys at the top set the tone for us, they pegged us back and bowled slow. It was a special effort from them to chase it down.
He added:
"You always want to play well, it's been a little while I have been in a good nick. They fought hard, credit to Shai Hope and Shepherd. It was some fantastic hitting. We had some good phases, especially Rehan Ahmed. We will look to come back strongly."
England and West Indies will face off in the 2nd ODI on December 6 at the same venue.