Harry Tector’s unbeaten 54 helped Ireland to a five-wicket win over the West Indies in a rain-affected second ODI in Kingston on Thursday.
Victory saw Ireland square the three-match contest at 1-1 ahead of the teams’ return for a now decisive finale at Sabina Park on Sunday.
Ireland, set a revised target of 168 from 36 overs under the Duckworth-Lewis-Stern method after a rain delay of more than an hour, finished on 168-5 with 20 balls to spare.
They had been chasing 230 at the start of their innings and were well-placed at 158-4 when play was halted midway through the 32nd over.
By that stage, Tector had already completed his second fifty of the series following the 53 he made during a 24-run defeat in the first ODI, with the 22-year-old hitting four fours and a six.
George Dockrell fell after the resumption but by then Ireland were just three runs shy of victory.
Earlier, Romario Shepherd’s maiden ODI fifty helped the West Indies recover to 229 all out.
In a match postponed from Tuesday because of a Covid-19 outbreak in the Irish camp, the two-time world champions collapsed to 111-7 after losing the toss.
But a ninth-wicket partnership of 58 between Shepherd (50) and Odean Smith (46) took the West Indies past 200 before they were bowled out with two overs left in their innings.
The 27-year-old Shepherd, best known as a pace bowler, completed his first fifty in nine matches at this level off 41 balls, including seven fours.
But having made exactly 50, he was bowled by Andy McBrine, the off-spinner returning fine Man of the Match figures of 4-36 in 10 overs on a ground where Ireland dramatically knocked Pakistan out of the 2007 50-over World Cup.
Ireland paceman Craig Young (3-42) removed the West Indies’ top three, before No 4 batsman Shamarh Brooks made 43 in just his second match at this level.
This series forms part of the World Cup Super League, with both teams looking to gain points to earn them an automatic qualifying place for the 2023 World Cup in India.
© Agence France-Presse
