Eoin Morgan must have been dreading the loss when Chris Gayle was pushing West Indies towards an unimaginable victory despite England's jaw-dropping target of 419 runs in the fourth ODI at Grenada. And hence, he felt "fortunate" after finally ending the game with a victory of 29 runs to unassailably go 2-1 up in the five-match series.
Gayle actually responded to Jos Buttler's unforgettable 77-ball 150 runs knock through his own outstanding vigil that finished off with an innings of 162 from just 97 balls. The Universe Boss smashed 11 fours and 14 sixes through the course of his sojourn. But he was still outperformed by one certain explosive wicketkeeper batsman, who struck 13 boundaries and 12 maximums of his own to help the visitors achieve a welcome victory at the National Cricket Stadium in St George's.
Basically, it was a very tough day for the bowlers. And yet, Adil Rashid survived the early onslaught before picking up four wickets in the 48th over to return with match-figures of 5/85. The wrist-spinner ended opponent's longstanding fight at 389 all out with a superb spell to its lower-order.
"It was a hell of a game," Morgan said at the post-match presentation ceremony on Wednesday (February 27). "We really did go toe to toe with West Indies today. We were very fortunate, particularly with that spell that Adil came back with, to get over the line because we were probably sitting in second position for the last 15 overs of the game. We needed something special and Adil produced that in his final over."
"Adil is a strong asset of ours. He has the ability to bowl anywhere in the 50 overs and particularly at the end, he poses a huge threat with his variations. He kept his calm."
"It wasn't easy to bowl to the short side, particularly to Chris Gayle, and then when he came on at the far end, he found a really nice rhythm and found nice purchase off the pitch. That breeds confidence. To come back and bowl an over where he takes four wickets and wins us the game is outstanding."
Morgan then lavished rich praise over his perennially attacking batting unit. This year's ICC Cricket World Cup is expected to be a high-scoring affair and so, the skipper took heart from how his team outbatted their rivals.
"Collectively we batted brilliantly," he felt. "It started at the top with Bairstow and Hales who were excellent and got us off to a flying start and laid a platform to allow myself and Jos to build a partnership."
"Jos is built like a champion racehorse and when he gets into his stride, he's very difficult to stop. Watching him in full flow today was exceptional and gave us the best chance of going out and putting on a really strong score."
West Indies will now have to win Saturday's fifth and final ODI in St. Lucia.
(Inputs from Sky Sports)
