West Indies captain Shai Hope hailed his team’s most complete performance of the tournament after they crushed Zimbabwe by 107 runs in their Super 8 clash at the Wankhede Stadium on Monday, with Shimron Hetmyer’s explosive 85 stealing the show.
The Caribbean side posted a formidable 250-plus total before dismantling Zimbabwe with a clinical bowling display, particularly during the powerplay and middle overs, to seal an emphatic victory that sends an ominous warning to their remaining group opponents.
“When you get 250 plus on the board in a T20 game, then you must be happy as a batting unit.
And then with the ball being as clinical as we did, especially in the middle phase and power play, I would call it more of a complete game for us,” Hope said after the match.
While the captain acknowledged there remain areas for improvement, he reserved special praise for match-winner Hetmyer, whose blistering knock transformed the game, along with two sharp catches in the field.
“He’s a quality player, and the way he’s batting, I think sometimes he’s kind of wasted down the bottom of the innings,” Hope admitted. “He’s such a good player, he can bat in all situations, spin and pace.”
The decision to promote Hetmyer’s role in the batting order was first trialled during the South Africa series, and the move has paid handsome dividends throughout the tournament.
“He’s been an asset for us, especially in this tournament. We gave him the role from South Africa, and he’s embraced it. He started with a bang, and he’s continued with that great form. So happy to see him scoring runs, and everyone supports him along the way.”
The victory serves as a significant confidence booster for a West Indies side that now faces a daunting run of fixtures against South Africa and India. However, Hope was quick to keep his team grounded despite the dominant display.
“I just believe the way we’ve been playing, it certainly gives us a lot of confidence. And like I always say, we’ve gotta stay in the moment. Yes, we’ve played well to this stage, but again, we’ve got another game in a few days, and we gotta make sure we turn up on that day again.”
Far too often, the West Indies follow up a great performance with a mediocre outing; however, Captain Hope concluded with a clear message about the challenges ahead.
“Great start, great confidence booster, but those games are gone. We gotta look ahead now. We’ve got South Africa next and then India after, so we gotta keep playing our best cricket. If we can get better, continue getting better. If we’re doing what we’re doing well, continue doing it.”
(CMC)
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