Jason Holder did the bulk of the damage as England’s latest batting collapse paved the way for West Indies’ nine-wicket win in the first Twenty20 International in Bridgetown on Saturday.
Fast bowler Holder bowled twice in a row during his best return of four for seven at his Kensington Oval home ground as England were bowled out for just 103 after their Ashes crisis.
West Indies then crossed the target of 104 with 17 balls to spare, with opener Brandon King scoring an unbeaten 52 as the hosts went 1-0 up in the five-match series.
It was a happy result for West Indies, fresh from a 2-1 One Day International series defeat at home to Ireland, and now without veteran opener Chris Gayle after a T20 World Cup where they had just one of their five matches. .
West Indies captain Kieron Pollard said at the presentation ceremony, “When it comes to Kensington Oval and Jason Holder, he leads it. He was phenomenal for us.
“We supported it on the field and the guys really put on a show today.”
West Indies faced a lot of criticism after the Ireland series but Pollard said: “Tough times don’t last, tough people do… We stay together in the dressing room.”
England will have little time to think about their defeat before Sunday’s second match, with captain Eoin Morgan admitting: “We didn’t adapt enough. We will have to come back tomorrow with a new game plan as conditions are likely to be similar.
“In trying to get a mindset about risk and reward, we encountered a challenge today.”
Holder was helped by an inconsistent bouncy pitch and that being a different format, Saturday’s slump was all but reminiscent of the batting collapse that saw England suffer their recent 4-0 Ashes series defeat in Australia.
Sheldon Cottrell removed opener Jason Roy, who had scored a century in England’s only warm-up match, after fellow pacer Holder struck twice in two balls to dismiss Tom Banton and Moeen Ali.
Holder ensured that England were bowled out in 19.4 overs as he dismissed Shakib Mahmood and Adil Rashid in successive deliveries.
England surpassed their record low T20 total of 80 mainly due to the eighth wicket stand of 36 between Chris Jordan (28) and Rashid (22).
England were after an Ashes effort without T20 regulars Jos Buttler and Ben Stokes as they fielded a much changed side.
Sam was one of only five survivors from Billings XI who lost to New Zealand in the T20 World Cup semi-final in November, making the long journey from Australia to Barbados just days after his Test debut.
As happened in that match, England’s bowlers were again disappointed by their batsmen, with King hitting four fours and a six in his 49-ball knock.
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