Paulsen’s five-for sinks West Indies in World Cup opener
Key Points(5)
- West Indies endured a difficult start to their International Masters Cricket (IMC) Over-40s World Cup campaign, suffering an 88-run defeat to Australia in Saturday’s opening match at Providence National Stadium.
- Australia’s 266 for five from 45 overs proved beyond the reach of the hosts, whose batting faltered under pressure before they were dismissed for 178 in 40.1 overs.
- Australian captain Steve Paulsen delivered the decisive blow, claiming five wickets to lead his side to a commanding victory.
- Australia build on strong opening partnership Opener Ryan Broad anchored the Australian innings with 58 from 76 balls, laying the foundation for a competitive total alongside Glen Batticciotto, who contributed 48.
- The pair put on 94 runs for the first wicket in 19 overs before Broad was stumped by Denesh Ramdin off Imran Khan’s bowling.
West Indies endured a difficult start to their International Masters Cricket (IMC) Over-40s World Cup campaign, suffering an 88-run defeat to Australia in Saturday’s opening match at Providence National Stadium.
Australia’s 266 for five from 45 overs proved beyond the reach of the hosts, whose batting faltered under pressure before they were dismissed for 178 in 40.1 overs. Australian captain Steve Paulsen delivered the decisive blow, claiming five wickets to lead his side to a commanding victory.
Australia build on strong opening partnership
Opener Ryan Broad anchored the Australian innings with 58 from 76 balls, laying the foundation for a competitive total alongside Glen Batticciotto, who contributed 48.
The pair put on 94 runs for the first wicket in 19 overs before Broad was stumped by Denesh Ramdin off Imran Khan’s bowling.
Batticciotto also scored 48, while Greg Hunt matched that contribution and Paulsen added 45 as Australia maintained a strong scoring rate through the middle overs.
At 200 for three in the 36th over, the visitors appeared poised to push well beyond 266. However, West Indies tightened their bowling and restricted the Australians to 66 runs in the final nine overs while taking two additional wickets.
Khan was the standout bowler for the home team, finishing with two wickets for 36 runs from his nine overs.
Early wickets derail Windies chase
West Indies’ pursuit never gained momentum, as Australia’s bowlers struck repeatedly to leave the hosts reeling at 52 for four in the 15th over.
Antonnel Atwell and Ramdin attempted to stabilise the innings, combining for a fifth-wicket partnership of 55 runs that briefly offered hope of a recovery.
Atwell scored 28 before Paulsen bowled him, breaking the partnership and triggering another collapse.
Ramdin top-scored for West Indies with 31 from 55 deliveries, but his resistance was not enough to revive the chase. Khan remained unbeaten on 26, while Larry Babb provided a late burst with 21 from just 16 balls.
Those contributions offered some resistance, but Australia maintained control and completed the victory comfortably.
Paulsen leads Australia’s bowling attack
Paulsen’s five-wicket haul was the defining performance of the second innings, as he finished with figures of five for 41 to ensure West Indies never threatened Australia’s total.
Mark Cleary supported his captain with two wickets for 33 runs.
The result leaves West Indies with work to do as they seek to recover from their opening setback.
They will return to Providence National Stadium on Tuesday to face South Africa in their second match of the tournament.
Other opening-day results
South Africa edged Canada by two wickets, England recorded a commanding 134-run victory over the United States, and Pakistan swept past a Rest of the Caribbean team by nine wickets.
