West Indies v England 2023/24

Watch: Ben Duckett takes spectacular flying catch to break West Indies opening stand

by Wisden Staff December 13, 2023 - 7:08am 2 minute read

Watch: Ben Duckett took a spectacular catch at point to break West Indies’ electric opening stand and give England a much needed wicket in the first T20I.

Having been asked to bat first, England got off to a flier before being pegged back by the hosts. Jos Buttler and Phil Salt put on 77 in the powerplay, but the latter fell one ball after the fielding restrictions were lifted, after which England struggled to kick on.

While a lively cameo from Will Jacks (17 off 9) took them to 112-2 at the halfway stage, the only real signs of acceleration in the last 10 overs came in the form of consecutive sixes from Liam Livingstone. Andre Russell, playing his first T20I in two years, bowled a key spell, taking career-best figures of 3-19.

In reply, West Indies also started quickly. Brandon King smashed 16 off the first over, bowled by Sam Curran, while Kyle Mayers hit Will Jacks’ second delivery onto the roof. Chris Woakes was swiftly introduced, but when King climbed into his fourth ball, another boundary seemed certain until Duckett flew to his left and took a catch at full stretch high above his head.

West Indies continued to surge, with Rehan Ahmed deposited over the ropes three times in his first over. But like England they had a slump after the powerplay, slipping from 78-1 after seven overs to 108-4 after 12.4 overs, when rain halted play with West Indies six runs ahead of the DLS par score.

Soon enough, the rain relented, and West Indies cruised to victory after the delay.