PORT OF SPAIN – Hometown boy Evin Lewis went on a six-hitting spree to lead the charge with a pugnacious 91 that ended West Indies’ home season losing skid in style with a convincing seven-wicket victory over Pakistan in the third Twenty20 International on Saturday here.
Playing in front of a crowd of more than 6,000, the diminutive left-hander went ballistic upon the Pakistani bowlers, striking five fours and an incredible nine sixes from just 51 balls, as the Windies successfully chased 138 on a docile Queen’s Park Oval pitch to claim their first victory in six international matches on home soil for the year.
The 25-year-old Lewis from the remote village of Tableland about 30 kilometres east of the southern Trinidad city of San Fernando shared half-century stands with Marlon Samuels and compatriot Jason Mohammed to be a shoo-in for the Player-of-the-Match prize and put the West Indies firmly on track for a morale-boosting victory before he was dismissed with four needed.
Lendl Simmons, another Trinidad & Tobago native, carried the home team to the magic number with 31 balls remaining, when he scorched a drive back past leg-spinner Shadab Khan, whose bowling was the difference between the two sides in the first two matches in the series, but was reduced to rubble by a rampaging Lewis.
The result meant that West Indies now trail 1-2 in the four-match series, following a six-wicket loss in the first T20I last Sunday at Kensington Oval and a three-run defeat in the second match last Thursday at this venue.
The final match of the series will be contested on Sunday here.
Summarised scores:
Pakistan 137 for eight off 20 overs (Kamran Akmal 48, Babar Azam 43, Fakhar Zaman 21; Samuel Badree 2-22). West Indies 138 for three off 14.5 overs (Evin Lewis 91, Marlon Samuels 18, Jason Mohammed 17 n.o.). West Indies won by seven wickets with 31 balls remaining.