Extremely pleased with our recovery, eager for our next confrontation: Shai Hope

On Saturday, June 22, at Kensington Oval in Barbados, the West Indies triumphed handily over the USA, getting back on track. After the team’s incredible comeback from losing to England in their opening Super Eight match, Shai Hope—one of the night’s top performers—expressed his happiness.

Hope replaced the injured Brandon King in the lineup and immediately made an impression, amassing an undefeated 82 off just 39 balls. With eight fours and eight sixes, Hope helped the two-time champions win by nine wickets with 55 balls remaining. The wicketkeeper-batter expressed his satisfaction with the way his squad bounced back from their first tournament loss against England, having chased a 129-run mark with perfect ease.

“I would describe it as extremely clinical, especially in light of the defeat we suffered a few days earlier. The lads did a terrific job understanding the task today, and we got to play the kind of cricket we wanted to play. We now understand what’s at risk, therefore it’s critical that we keep going in this direction. However, as India tonight reports, Hope informed the media during the press conference held after the game, “We’re excited to play more cricket and are really pleased with our performance tonight.

Next up is a must-win match between the Windies and the Proteas.

Monday, June 24, in Antigua, is the scheduled match between West Indies and South Africa in the Super Eights stage. With six straight victories, the Proteas appear to be a well-oiled machine. Shai Hope said that the Caribbean side is eager to take on the challenge, though.

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“Winning the game and as long as we tick our boxes, then I think the rest will take care of itself and I guess that’s what happened to it,” the Caribbean cricket player continued. “Not entirely the main aim today, coming out in the meetings as well, was just to get the win and ensure we play our cricket. The important thing is to focus on our skills, not necessarily get too far ahead of ourselves,” he said.