Sharon Akhigbe Ekhiwere
After struggling to avoid an upset against Nepal in their first match, many people expected England to come out stronger in their second game. They arrived at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai ready to face a confident West Indies side that had already beaten Scotland by 35 runs, but were stunned by the West Indies Cricket team with a 30 runs advantage.
West Indies batted first and made a strong total of 196 for 6 in their 20 overs. Sherfane Rutherford was the star of the innings. He scored 74 runs from 42 balls and remained not out. His powerful and calm batting helped his team reach a big score. He was later named Player of the Match.
England needed 197 runs to win, but the chase did not go as planned. The West Indies spinners made life difficult for the English batters. Wickets kept falling, and England could not build solid partnerships.
In the end, England were all out for 166 runs in 19 overs. Adil Rashid tried to give his team some hope, but he hit a full toss straight to Roston Chase at deep backward square leg. That catch ended the game and confirmed a strong win for the West Indies.
With this result, the West Indies move to the top of Group C with two wins from two matches. They are now in a good position to reach the Super Eight stage. They will face Nepal on Sunday at the Wankhede Stadium before playing Italy in Kolkata on Thursday, 19 February.
England must now respond quickly. They will play Scotland on Saturday at Eden Gardens in Kolkata, before facing Italy again at the same ground on Monday, 16 February. Their next matches are very important if they want to stay in the tournament.