Sammy delighted after T20 win over NZ

Florida crowd treated to delightful hitting by Gayle, Pollard.

West Indies captain Darren Sammy was delighted as his team posted a comfortable 56-run win in the opening Twenty20 against New Zealand in Lauderhill, Florida.

The crowd at the stadium, which hosted its first Twenty20 international, bore witness to some brutal hitting by Chris Gayle and Kieron Pollard as West Indies posted a more than competitive 209 for two.

In reply, New Zealand never got going and were bundled out for 153 in the 19th over.

Sammy was pleased with the win and the support his team got at the venue. “I’m very happy at how we approached the game,” said Sammy. “It felt like a game at home and it’s good that we are trying to promote cricket in the US. Pollard and Gayle executed everything very well.”

Meanwhile, New Zealand’s woes compounded as captain Ross Taylor was ruled out of the first part of the One-Day International series that follows the second Twenty20.

Published in The Express Tribune, July 2^nd, 2012.