Career-best figures of five for 20 from Romario Shepherd and an aggressive innings of 64 from Shimron Hetmyer helped West Indies to a 35-run win against Scotland in their International Cricket Council (ICC) Men’s T20 World Cup opener at Eden Park, Kolkata on February 7. 

With the Scottish chasing 183 for victory and needing 51 off 24 balls at the start of the 17th over, Shepherd effectively killed the game off for the West Indies as he grabbed a hat-trick and eventually finished with four wickets in the over to leave the opposition reeling on 133 for nine. For good measure, Shepherd also played a hand in the final wicket as he took a smart catch at short third man to help Jason Holder (three for 30) see the back of Mark Watt (15). Scotland were bowled out for 147 in 18.5 overs as the Windies earned a commanding win, which didn’t always look like a guarantee. 

Earlier, Hetmyer clouted six sixes and also added two fours in an innings that gave much-needed impetus to West Indies' plight. The opening pair of Brandon King (35 off 30 balls) and captain Shai Hope (19 off 22) laboured through the power play, which saw the West Indies get to 33 without loss. With the openers falling in consecutive overs to the spin pair of Michael Leask (one for 42) and Oliver Davidson (one for 23), the regional team slipped to 58 for two as the halfway mark approached. 

After playing a couple of faulty shots to start his innings, Hetmyer settled down and proved to be the catalyst in an 81-run partnership for the third wicket with former skipper Rovman Powell (24 off 14) as the Men in Maroon scored heavily through the middle overs. The Scottish were brilliant at the death and conceded just 44 runs off the last five overs, while also getting the key wickets of Hetmyer, Powell and Sherfane Rutherford, who showed off his off-side game in a breezy 26 off 13. 

After posting 182 for five, West Indies had the perfect start with the ball as Scotland slipped to 37 for three inside the power play. However, Scotland got back into the game with a 78-run stand for the fourth wicket between captain Richie Berrington (42 off 24) and Theo Bruce, who was dropped twice as he made 35 off 28. 

With the Scottish scoring 53 runs from overs ten to 13, they needed 69 off 42 balls when Holder started the 14th over. The over proved to be a crucial one, as Holder had Berrington caught on the point boundary to grab his 100th T20 International scalp, with left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie (one for 29) trapping Bruce lbw in the subsequent over as Scotland slid to 122 for five. 

With the required rate climbing above 12 runs per over by the start of the 17th over, Shepherd stole the show with his hat-trick as he took the scalps of Matthew Cross (11), Leask, and Davidson (both golden ducks), before adding the wicket of Safyaan Sharif for good measure to seal his first five-for in Windies colours.  

With group C off to a good start, coach Daren Sammy’s team will return to action when they meet England at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai on February 11. 

Summarised Scores: 

WEST INDIES: 182/5 from 20 overs (Shimron Hetmyer 64, Brandon King 35, Sherfane Rutherford 26, Rovman Powell 24; Bradley Currie 2/23) vs SCOTLAND: 147 from 18.5 overs (Richie Berrington 42, Tom Bruce 35, George Munsey 19; Romario Shepherd 5/20, Jason Holder 3/30). West Indies won by 35 runs.