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Australia Demolishes West Indies in Just 6.5 Overs to Record Fastest ODI Chase, Sweeps Series
Australia swept away the series 3-0 after beating West Indies by 8 wickets in the last match.
It was an embarrassing day for West Indies at the office as Australia thrashed the team in just 6.5 overs to take the ODI series away by 3-0. The men in yellow completed the target of a mere 87 runs in just 41 balls to register their third victory of the series at the Manuka Oval on Tuesday.
Australia’s dominant show against West Indies
After winning the toss, skipper Steve Smith decided to send the Windies out to bat first on the humid day. Despite the absence of Pat Cummins, Josh Hazlewood, and Mitchelle Starc from Australia’s bowling attack, the visitors crumbled after posting a mere 86 runs on the board.
Xavier Bartlett kept the intensity of Australia’s bowling attack alive despite the absence of the team’s most reliable bowlers, by achieving a 4-wicket haul. Picking up 4 wickets, he just gave 21 runs away and helped in restricting the Windies to a very mediocre total. This was Bartlett’s second four-wicket haul in the series, as he earlier registered the figures of 4/17 during his debut in Melbourne.
Australia’s young gun Jake Fraser-McGurk was the highlight of the match, as he launched an aggressive attack against the opposition to smash 41 runs off just 18 balls. In, what was his just second match, McGurk hit five fours and three sixes to help Australia achieve a record-breaking chase. 
Skipper Shai Hope reacts to the humiliating defeat
Reacting to the humiliating defeat, West Indies captain Shai Hope said, “Not sure if we can make sense of it, our batters let us down. We need to do some real searching. Can't put your finger on one thing, comes down to mindset.”
He further added, “Few things we can look at but we didn't bat as well as we should have. Keacy (Carty) played really well, he should have a lot of confidence, Roston Chase also played well. We must take the positives with us to negate the negatives.”
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Australia’s performance in the ODI series
It was quite an impressive series for Australia as they dominated West Indies throughout all three matches. Defeating West Indies by 8 wickets in the first match, Australia gained a 1-0 lead in the series. Continuing their ruthless form in the second match as well, they went on to beat the visitors by 83 runs to mark their victory in the series.
This exceptional chase of Australia in the last match is also their fastest-ever chase in the format as they managed to hunt down the target with 259 balls to spare. Earlier, their fastest-ever chase came in 7.5 overs against USA, in 2004.
Australia vs West Indies T20I series
Australia and West Indies now have a T20I series lined up. The three-match series will begin on February 9 and will conclude on February 13. The first match will take place on Friday at the Blundstone Arena. The Windies will be looking forward to regaining the pride they lost in the ODI series, by beating the Aussies in T20Is.
Aussies, on the other hand, will be entering the T20Is with immense confidence, gained by the dominating show they put up during the ODIs. This will provide them an edge over the visitors, who will be under pressure due to the humiliating series loss.
