Salt hails Bairstow’s ‘calculated hitting’ after win over West Indies

England’s explosive opener Philip Salt showered praise on his teammate Jonny Bairstow for taking the pressure off him, which allowed him to break free and go all out after a temporary pause in the middle.

With some eye-catching stroke play, Salt and Bairstow led England to a resounding 8-wicket win over the co-hosts, the West Indies, chasing the target of 181 runs under 18 overs in the Super 8 clash of the ongoing T20 World Cup.

Salt was named Player of the Match after his brilliant 87* off 47 balls. His partnership with Bairstow was critical in helping England over the line and chase down 181 runs with 15 balls to spare.

As Salt slowed midway through the innings, Bairstow took an aggressive approach, scoring 26 off 48 balls. Salt completed his fifty in 38 balls and then went out all guns blazing. Salt blasted Romario Shephard for 30 runs, securing England’s victory.

“There was a period where I didn’t face too many balls, the boundaries had dried up, but Jonny took the pressure off me with his calculated hitting, his knock was very crucial,” Salt said in a post-match presentation.

The opener mentioned that it was a little tricky against the spinners in the mid-overs and it was all about constructing the chase. Salt total obliterated Romario Shepherd for 4, 6, 4, 6, 6 and 4 gathering 30 runs in the 16th over.

“I like batting here, but I’m more happy to have contributed to a good team win. It was tough against spin in the middle overs, but I knew pace would come at some stage, the wind was blowing at one end, there was one short boundary and I backed myself to take on him ,” he added.

The West Indies’ eight-match winning streak in T20Is came to an end as England delivered a clinical effort in every department. After keeping the West Indies to 180 runs with superb death bowling, England’s openers got the team off to a strong start with a 67-run opening stand. Following the dismissals of captain Jos Buttler and Moeen Ali, Bairstow and Salt stitched a partnership for 97 runs off 44 balls to win the match.

Now, England will lock horns with South Africa in the next Super 8s match on June 21.