West Indies vs England 2019, 5th ODI: West Indies crush England by 7 wickets to level the series
West Indies produced a dominating display in the 5th and final ODI against the world's top-ranked side England, which was played at St. Lucia on Saturday. Oshane Thomas' sensational bowling spell helped the hosts bowl out the visitors for a paltry total and they then chased down the target with ease.
West Indies captain Jason Holder won the toss and decided to field first. It was a great start for the hosts as Sheldon Cottrell dismissed Jonny Bairstow while Jason Holder dismissed Joe Root.
Alex Hales and England captain Eoin Morgan then steadied the innings with some good stroke play. At the end of 10 overs, the visitors were 55 for 2.
Carlos Brathwaite got the important wicket of Hales for 23. Hales and Morgan had added 39 runs for the 3rd wicket. Thomas then dismissed Morgan to reduce England to 63 for 4.
Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes added 25 runs for the 5th wicket, but Brathwaite soon dismissed Stokes for 23. Thomas then bowled a brilliant spell which put a great deal of pressure on the English batsmen.
West Indies eventually bowled England out for a measly total of 113 in 28.1 overs. From 111 for 5, West Indies took 5 wickets for just 2 runs.
Thomas finished with career-best figures of 5 for 21 in 5.1 overs. Holder and Brathwaite, meanwhile, took 2 wickets each.
Chasing the target of 114 runs to win, Chris Gayle continued his destructive form with some sensational hitting. John Campbell was dismissed cheaply for 1 run, but Gayle put the English bowlers to the sword with some towering sixes.
At the end of 10 overs, West Indies were 97 for 3. The hard-hitting left-handed batsman reached his fifty off just 19 balls and continued to smash England bowlers.
He eventually got out for 77 off 27 deliveries, and West Indies won the match by 7 wickets with 227 balls to spare. With this win, the hosts leveled the series at 2-2.
Brief scores: West Indies 115 for 3 in 12.1 overs (Chris Gayle 77, Mark Wood 2/55) beat England 113 in 28.1 overs (Jos Buttler 23, Alex Hales 23, Oshane Thomas 5/21) by 7 wickets.