Twitter Reactions: Harakiri from West Indies batters plays into England's hands in Dubai

It was the clash between the finalists of the 2016 T20 World Cup. But only one team arrived with the correct mindset in Dubai. England were exceptional on the day and they literally thumped West Indies who played extremely poor cricket with the bat. The defending champions wouldn’t have even dreamt of such a horrible start to their campaign as they registered their second lowest total ever in T20Is. Their bowlers showed some fight but such a small total was never going to be a winning score.

After opting to bowl first, England opened the bowling with Moeen Ali in a bid to get the quota of the fifth bowler done. But the off-spinner did more than a good job for his side bowling his quota of four overs straight up. Moeen sent back Lendl Simmons in his second over and what transpired was simply some poor and possibly the worst cricket West Indies would’ve ever played in the shortest format.

Each batter was coming and playing a big shot which played into England’s hands. Shimron Hetmyer looked good for a couple of shots but over-aggression against Moeen cost him. At the other end, Chris Woakes nipped out Evin Lewis while the other pacers Tymal Mills and Chris Jordan chipped in with wickets to leave West Indies reeling at 42/6 in the ninth over.

This was not it. Adil Rashid came into the attack then and slid one past Andre Russell’s defence to castle and just rolled over Kieron Pollard and the rest of the tail to return with the magical figures 4/2 in 2.2 overs. West Indies were skittled for just 55 runs in the 15th over. While it was some top-class bowling from England but the Caribbean side clearly had something more interesting lined up in the dressing room than in the middle.

Only Chris Gayle reached double-figures, scoring 13, for West Indies as they were on a self-destruction mode on the day with the bat.

England lose four wickets in the small chase

Well, the target was not even going to bother England. The customary boundaries from Jos Buttler inside the powerplay came soon while Jason Roy also smacked one out of the park. However, the West Indies bowlers showed some spine picking Roy and Jonny Bairstow in quick succession. Ravi Rampaul and Akeal Hosein were the bowlers with some success.

The latter showed off his skills with the ball and followed it up with a brilliant flying catch to send back Liam Livingstone. Prior to that, Moeen Ali got run-out in a mix-up with Jos Buttler as England stumbled chasing a small total. However, that didn’t bother them much as they got over the line comfortably eventually with six wickets in hand in the 9th over.

Only if the West Indies batters had shown application with the bat and posted a fighting score at least, their bowlers would’ve made a match out of it.

Here’s how Twitter reacted:

What a catch by Akeal Hosein off his own bowling! One of the best ever. Remember Rajesh Chauhan catching Shahid Afridi off his own bowling at Sharjah in 1997. That was terrific #T20WorldCup2021 #T20WorldCup21

— Sarang Bhalerao (@bhaleraosarang) October 23, 2021

You have to admire the tenacity of the West Indies. A lot of teams would let their heads drop & barely be present after being shot out for 55. This team have made England work for every single run and pushed hard till the very end. A lot more to come from this team. #T20WorldCup

— Aatif Nawaz (@AatifNawaz) October 23, 2021

STAT TRACKER: First win for #England against #WestIndies in #T20WorldCup history

— CricTracker (@Cricketracker) October 23, 2021

Decent win for England to kick their tournament off then. It’s always important to get off to a good start but even more so given how difficult this group is. Bangladesh next up on Wednesday #ENGvWI #T20WorldCup

— Rob Johnston (@RobJ_Cricket) October 23, 2021

I know Jason Roy's record isn't good, but has anyone who's objectively not good against spin ever looked better against spin

— Ben Jones (@benjonescricket) October 23, 2021

For all the superstars in the side, #WI’s inevitable comeback in this tournament will be led by the younger likes of Obed McCoy and Akeal Hosein with the ball, like we’ve seen tonight. You just know there will be bigger totals for them to defend later in this #T20WorldCup

— Bharat Sundaresan (@beastieboy07) October 23, 2021

England NRR +3.97!#T20WorldCup

— Mpumelelo Mbangwa (@mmbangwa) October 23, 2021

Big statement by 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 today.. #T20WorldCup #T20WorldCup2021

— Herschelle Gibbs (@hershybru) October 23, 2021

England putting a marker down today .. Hammering the champions is a perfect start .. btw .. these pitches are not what this tournament needs .. #T20WorldCup

— Michael Vaughan (@MichaelVaughan) October 23, 2021

कुछ भी हो, सलामी तोप से ही देंगे!
#WestIndies #T20WorldCup

— Wasim Jaffer (@WasimJaffer14) October 23, 2021

Could be a long tournament if conditions stay like this! If they do where is Jo Root!!!!!!! #T20WorldCup So England have decided that to account for the slow strike criticism of Malan they will put Bairstow in if they lose a wicket during the Power play!

— Nick Compton (@thecompdog) October 23, 2021

Best caught & bowled EVER ! #AkealHosein #WestIndies

— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) October 23, 2021

Why is this taking so long it’s out! #T20WorldCup2021

— Mitchell McClenaghan (@Mitch_Savage) October 23, 2021

West Indies poor start in World T20 opener.Adil Rashid awesome spell

— Danish Kaneria (@DanishKaneria61) October 23, 2021