Brathwaite sixes take WI to thrilling title win

Sun, Apr 3, '16

Write off West Indies cricket at your peril. Less than four months in, 2016 is already a year of great celebration and renewal for cricket in the Caribbean. West Indies won the Under-19 World Cup. West Indies won the Women's World T20. And now West Indies have won the World T20. In doing so, Darren Sammy's men have become the first team to win two World T20 tournaments, having also triumphed in Sri Lanka in 2012.

Those are the facts. The how is all the more extraordinary. Set 156 to beat England and win the championship, West Indies found themselves needing 19 off the last over, to be bowled by Ben Stokes. Marlon Samuels, who had steered the chase, was on 85. But he was at the wrong end. This was all down to Carlos Brathwaite, the allrounder who emerged on the Test tour of Australia just a few months ago.

Six. Six. Six. Six. Job done with two balls to spare. The first one was a poor ball from Stokes, down leg, clubbed over deep backward square. Then a length ball slammed down the ground over long-on. Then over long-off. One run needed. Push a single? Why bother when you have the power, like Brathwaite, to crunch another six over the leg side. The West Indies players streamed onto the field in jubilation. They had not only done it. They had done it in style.