Shimron Hetmyer, hat-trick hero Romario Shepherd steer West Indies to victory over Scotland

Shimron Hetmyer smashed a blistering half-century to rewrite a Caribbean record and power two-time champion West Indies to a 35-run victory over late entrant Scotland in their opening T20 World Cup Group C match at the Eden Gardens here on Saturday.

Romario Shepherd’s five-wicket haul, which included a hat-trick, was the icing on the cake.

Inserted to bat, the West Indies posted a formidable 182 for five before wrapping up the Scotland chase for 147. The Caribbean team managed only 33 for no loss in the PowerPlay as openers Brandon King (35, 30b, 4×4, 1×6), who plundered 17 runs off Safyaan Sharif in the seventh over, and captain Shai Hope added 54 runs.

Hetmyer (64, 36b, 2×4, 6×6) replaced Hope in the ninth over and thoroughly entertained the 18,000-odd spectators with his blitzkrieg that was studded with breathtaking pulls to the stands. The southpaw reached his milestone off 22 balls, breaking Chris Gayle’s 17-year-old record for the fastest half-century by a West Indian in the T20 World Cup.

Hetmyer’s fire power overshadowed the efforts of Rovman Powell (24, 14b, 1×4, 2×6) and Sherfane Rutherford (26, 13b, 4×4, 1×6). A sensational catch by Brandon McMullen at deep midwicket off Sharif ended Hetmyer’s stay in the penultimate over.

Scotland’s reply was on expected lines. It lost three early wickets, with George Munsey falling to a stunning catch by Hetmyer off Shamar Joseph before captain Richie Berrington (42, 24b, 3×4, 2×6) and Tom Bruce (35, 28b, 1×4, 2×6) put up a fight by adding 78 runs.

Shepherd (5/20) removed four desperate Scottish batters, including a hat-trick (Matthew Cross, Michael Leask and Oliver Davidson), in his third over and the team’s 17th to earn his maiden five-for in West Indies’ comprehensive win.

The scores: West Indies 182/5 in 20 overs (Brandon King 35, Shimron Hetmyer 64, Brad Currie 2/23) bt Scotland 147 in 18.5 overs (Richie Berrington 42, Tom Bruce 35, Jason Holder 3/30, Romario Shepherd 5/20). Toss: Scotland. PoM: Hetmyer.