West Indies beat New Zealand by 13 runs on Thursday at the Brian Lara Stadium, Tarouba, Trinidad, during the ongoing T20 World Cup 2024.
Chasing a target of 150 runs, New Zealand were restricted to 136-9 in 20 overs.
The loss left New Zealand on the brink of T20 World Cup exit since it was their second defeat in as many matches in Group C.
Meanwhile, the West Indies have qualified for the Super 8 after three wins in a row. They beat Uganda and Papua New Guinea in their previous matches.
During the run-chase, Glenn Phillips scored 40 runs in 33 balls for New Zealand and was the highest run-scorer. However, the Black Caps struggled to gain momentum throughout the innings as they lost wickets regularly.
Alzarri Joseph finished with figures of 4-19, meanwhile Gudakesh Motie snapped up 3-25.
Batting first, West Indies posted 149-9 in their allotted 20 overs. At one stage, it seemed that the home side would post a much lower total as they had slipped to 7-76 in the 13th over.
However, Sherfane Rutherford played a sensational unbeaten knock of 68 runs in 39 balls to help Windies reach a competitive total. His innings included two fours and six maximums.
"I want to thank God for the opportunity. I am going to keep 68 close to my heart. I was in the IPL for two months, so I was preparing, even though I was not playing. I did a lot of work and did my planning. Keeping it simple and backing my skill - I think that was the key. I was just telling myself to take it deep. Me and Sammy had a talk and I knew if we got momentum, I could make it up in the end," Rutherford said after winning the Player of the Match award.
West Indies scored 37 runs in the last two overs as they took full advantage of the fact that New Zealand's main bowlers had already completed their overs. Daryl Mitchell gave away 19 in the penultimate over, while Mitchell Santner went for 18 in the last over.
Trent Boult was the pick of the bowlers for New Zealand with impressive figures of 3-16 in four overs. The left-armer also bowled a maiden over during his spell.
Tim Southee and Lockie Ferguson also bagged two wickets each.
New Zealand suffered a heavy defeat in their opening match against Afghanistan which dented their net run-rate. They now need to win their remaining two matches by a good margin and hope other results go their way in order to stay alive in the race for Super 8.
New Zealand made three changes for the match today. Tim Southee was in for Matt Henry, James Neesham replaced Michael Bracewell and Rachin Ravindra came in for Mark Chapman.
Lineups
New Zealand XI: Finn Allen, Devon Conway (wk), Kane Williamson, Daryl Mitchell, Glenn Phillips, James Neesham, Mitchell Santner, Rachin Ravindra, Tim Southee, Lockie Ferguson, Trent Boult.
West Indies XI: Brandon King, Johnson Charles, Nicholas Pooran (wk), Roston Chase, Rovman Powell (c), Sherfane Rutherford, Andre Russell, Romario Shepherd, Akeal Hosein, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie.
