A solid innings of 47 by returning captain Kane Williamson and a dashing 33 from 15 balls by Jimmy Neesham propelled New Zealand to a 13-run win over the West Indies in the first of three Twenty20 cricket internationals.
Neesham struck three fours from the last three balls and 23 runs from the last over of the innings as New Zealand made 185-5 after being sent in to bat at Sabina Park on Wednesday.
Left-arm spinner Mitchell Santner took 3-19 as New Zealand restricted the West Indies to 172-7 in 20 overs.
“There was a lot of spin which was a big sur-prise,” said Santner, who was voted player of the match. “I think the lengths are key against these guys. They can hit you pretty far, so back of a length worked today and as a unit we were able to pick up wickets which was pretty key.”
New Zealand’s innings had two parts, separated by a lengthy rain break. Openers Martin Guptill and Devon Conway gave the tourists a strong start, put-ting on 63 for the first wicket. But the pair fell to consecutive deliveries from Odean Smith, who went on to take career-best T20 figures of 3-32.
Guptill fell to a brilliant one-handed catch by Shimron Hetmeyer, who was backed up against the boundary at deep point, while Conway’s innings of 43 from 29 ended when he top-edged a catch to wicketkeeper Devon Thomas.
