New Zealand won the third and final One Day International (ODI) series against the West Indies by five wickets as they chased down 302 to clinch the series 2-1 in 37 years at the Kensington Oval in Barbados on Sunday, August 21.
Previous stand in captain Tom Latham erred when he chose to bat first in overcast conditions as the West Indies thrived in good batting conditions.
Kyle Mayers blasted 105 runs in a 173′ opening partnership with Shane Hope, and Pooran hit nine sixes in a brisk 91 for the West Indies. The pitch proved much better for batting than those in which the West Indies won the first match by five wickets and New Zealand won the second by 50 runs.
The previous highest total was New Zealand’s 212 in the second match.
Mayers and Hope stood together for almost 35 innings to form the West Indies innings.
Their partnership ended when Hope was out for 51 and as is often the case with big partnerships, Mayers was out two balls later and no extras.
Brandon King fell soon after with a total of 181 in a surprise upset for the West Indies.
But Pooran picked up the pace again, posting a half-century in 33 balls. He hit nine sixes and four fours from 55 balls in 91. He was out in 49 overs.
Mayers second One-Day International 100 laid the platform for West Indies’ highest total against New Zealand in eight years.
The left-hander Myers scored with 105 off 110 deliveries on his home turf.
The West Indies then struck early as New Zealand ran into fast bowler Jason Holder (2 -37), hitting Finn Allen ahead for three in the fourth over with 20 runs on the board.
However, any hope of further immediate intervention was dashed. Martin Guptil, who faced 64 balls and tallied five fours and a six, posted 82 for the second wicket, with Desmond Conway hitting half a dozen fours in a crisp 63-ball knock.
When the two crumbled in the space of 30 deliveries at 128 for three in the 25 overs, Latham (69) and Daryl Mitchell (63) combined in a 120-run fourth stand to all but put the race beyond the West Indies.
