The West Indies made history by becoming the first team to win the ICC T20I World Cup twice. This memorable event took place in Kolkata on April 3, 2016. It was an exciting match against England at the famous Eden Gardens, where the West Indies showed their grit and teamwork to claim the title. Before they even reached India for this big tournament, they faced a lot of challenges. The cricket board had plenty of issues, and the weight of their cricketing heritage was heavy on their shoulders, with some players taking heat for their attitudes. Despite all these setbacks, the West Indies came out laughing when they defeated England by four wickets on an unforgettable Sunday night.
The path to the West Indies’ success was riddled with bumps. Rather than letting the internal struggles drag them down, they kicked off their T20I World Cup journey with a solid win over England. The team, led by Darren Sammy, struck fear into their opponents with their explosive batting. Throughout the tournament, they had moments of clever strategies and key bowling that helped them along the way. They combined their natural power with smart plays, making their way to the finals where they would meet England once more.
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As the highly charged game began, the West Indies won the toss and chose to bowl first in Kolkata. Samuel Badree set the tone early with his spin bowling, keeping the English batsmen on their toes. He took out Jason Roy on just the second ball and followed that by removing England’s captain, Eoin Morgan, in the fifth over. The fast bowlers, Dwayne Bravo and Carlos Brathwaite, also made their marks by picking up critical wickets, not allowing England to build up any momentum. Joe Root managed to score a quick-fire 54 off 36 balls, which helped England set a total of 155/9, a respectable score for the West Indies to chase.
Confident as they were, the West Indies had their momentum knocked back by England’s effective bowling. Joe Root struck again, taking out both Johnson Charles and the legendary Chris Gayle in the very next over. Lendl Simmons soon fell victim to David Willey, and just like that, the West Indies found themselves in a tough spot at 11/3. But Marlon Samuels and Dwayne Bravo weren’t phased. They partnered up and steadied the innings; Bravo contributed 25 runs before getting out, while Samuels remained unbeaten with a fantastic 85 runs from 66 balls. With just six balls left to play, the West Indies needed 19 runs to win.
In those thrilling last moments, it was Carlos Brathwaite who became the hero of the day. He unleashed a stunning performance against Ben Stokes, hitting four consecutive sixes in the final over. With that, he secured the T20 World Cup title for the West Indies, cementing their place in cricket history once again. It was a match filled with drama, skill, and excitement, a true showcase of what cricket is all about.
