By:AAMER MADHANI and ZEKE MILLER
North Sound (Antigua): Evin Lewis hit four times as many sixes as the entire England team in a commanding innings of 94 which led the West Indies to an eight-wicket win in the rain-affected first one-day international.
First-time captain Liam Livingstone hit two sixes in a top score of 48 in his team’s under-par total of 209. That was England’s best performance as it was bowled out in 45.1 overs on a tricky pitch on which only Lewis flourished.
The left-handed Lewis hit eight sixes in his innings of only 69 balls but was out 13 runs before the West Indies reached their Duckworth-Lewis System revised total of 157 to lead the three-match ODI series.
No overs were lost when rain extended the interval between innings but the West Indies innings was reduced by 15 overs after a lengthy rain break after the 15th over.
They already were in command, thanks to Lewis. He had reached his half century from 46 balls before the rain came and the West Indies were 81-0, 48 runs ahead of the Duckworth Lewis calculation though they had to face 20 overs for the result to count.
Lewis returned to the West Indies ODI lineup for the first time in almost three years during their recent tour to Sri Lanka, scoring an unbeaten 102 in the third one-day international in Pallekele. That was his last innings before Thursday and he narrowly missed back-to-back centuries.
Lewis was the only batter to command tricky conditions at the Sir Viv Richards Stadium. During the England innings, deliveries from both the seamers and spinners tended to grip and hold up, making expansive stroke play difficult.
Brandon King made 30 in a 118-run opening partnership with Lewis and Keacy Carty was 19 not out when the West Indies won with 9.1 overs remaining.
Livingstone’s 48 and Sam Curran’s 37 in a 72-run partnership for the fifth wicket provided the backbone of England’s innings. Both batters were undone by left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie, who took 4-41.
England may have struggled because it was coming off a test series against Pakistan while the West Indies have been playing white-ball cricket in Sri Lanka.
England named four players on debut — Jamie Overton, Jordan Cox, John Turner and Dan Mousley — though Overton and Cox previously had played Twenty20 internationals and Overton had played one test.
Livingstone hit the first six of the England innings in the 32nd over, signaling the difficulty that England had getting the ball to the boundary.
Phil Salt had made 18 and England was 38 in the ninth over when he swung hard at a ball from Jayden Seales which held up after bouncing and he mis-timed his shot to Alzarri Joseph, who took an outstanding running catch in the deep.
Will Jacks was on 19 when he tried to crack a full delivery from Seales into the leg side. Again the ball gripped and took the leading edge of Jacks’ bat flying to Motie, who ran around behind the bowler to take the catch.
Cox was looking settled on 17 when he tried to hit hard down the ground and the ball, which stood up sharply, took a top edge and flew to third man.
Livingstone’s disciplined innings of 48 from 49 balls ended when he pushed too far forward at a ball from Motie which held up and straightened and which he patted back to the bowler.
The teams are scheduled to play the second ODI Saturday and the third next Wednesday ahead of a five-match Twenty20 series.
