New Zealand moved 2-1 ahead in the five-match ODI series against West Indies after a six-wicket win in Providence on Thursday. Left-arm spinner Jayden Lennox took 4 for 52, backing up his five-wicket haul from the second match, as West Indies folded for 140. New Zealand chased the target down with 63 balls to spare, reaching 141 for 4 in 39.3 overs.
Tom Latham finished unbeaten on 31 and Dean Foxcroft added 22 not out, guiding the visitors home after a mid-innings wobble. Lennox picked up the Player of the Match award for his effort with the ball.
West Indies Collapse After Promising Start
West Indies looked set for a competitive total when Keacy Carty and Shimron Hetmyer put together a stand that took the hosts to 121 for 3. Carty made 48 off 77 balls, while Hetmyer, playing his first ODI in over a year, cleared the leg side twice off Lennox before falling for 26.
The innings then fell apart. Michael Bracewell removed Carty lbw and had Hetmyer caught at deep square leg in his next over, triggering a slide of six wickets for just 19 runs. Lennox bowled Gudakesh Motie and Alzarri Joseph in quick succession, turning figures of 1 for 49 after eight overs into 4 for 52 from his full quota. West Indies lost their last six wickets in only 51 balls, with opener John Campbell unable to bat again after retiring hurt early in the innings with a suspected hamstring injury.
Vitel Lawes Impresses With the Ball for West Indies
Nineteen-year-old Vitel Lawes continued his strong start to international cricket, taking 3 for 39 in the chase. He removed Henry Nicholls, Mark Chapman and Will Young to leave New Zealand at 77 for 3, and twice troubled the visitors with sharp deliveries even as he mixed in the occasional loose ball.
New Zealand were tested again when Khary Pierre had Daryl Mitchell bowled, but Latham and Foxcroft steadied the innings with an unbroken fifth-wicket stand of 52. West Indies also missed a chance to remove Foxcroft on nine when they chose not to review an lbw shout off Lawes; replays later showed the ball would have hit leg stump.
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New Zealand Take Control of the Series
The win puts New Zealand firmly in command of the series with two matches remaining in Barbados. West Indies must now win both games to force a series victory, having lost the toss and been asked to field first in Providence on a pitch that offered turn throughout the match.
Jacob Duffy and Mitchell Santner supported Lennox with the ball, taking one and two wickets respectively, while Bracewell finished with 2 for 33. New Zealand’s bowling attack has now dismissed West Indies twice inside 40 overs in the series, exposing a middle-order batting collapse as the hosts’ biggest concern heading into the final two matches.
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