West Indies annihilate Pakistan in brutal World Cup opener

West Indies have employed some ruthless tactics to utterly destroy Pakistan in their World Cup opener, rolling their shell-shocked opponents for 105 before sealing victory with 218 balls to spare.

NOTTINGHAM, ENGLAND - MAY 31: Andre Russell of the West Indies looks on during the Group Stage match of the ICC Cricket World Cup 2019 between the West Indies and Pakistan at Trent Bridge on May 31, 2019 in Nottingham, England. (Photo by David Rogers/Getty Images)

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A blistering Oshane Thomas-led pace attack swept Pakistan away for a dismal 105 on Friday as West Indies wrapped up a seven-wicket victory in their World Cup opener at Trent Bridge.

Chris Gayle, set to retire at the end of the tournament, then led the West Indies reply with 50 off 34 balls as the two-times champions reached 3-108 off just 13.4 overs.

Having won the toss and elected to field, West Indies made full use of overcast conditions as Thomas took four wickets for 27 runs, while captain Jason Holder (3-42) and the returning Andre Russell (2-4) completed the demolition job.

“It’s good to have a young quick like Oshane, we know he can be expensive at times but he’s a genuine wicket-taker,” Holder said after the match.

“That’s the gamble we need to take in one-dayers, with big scores going around.”

West Indies' Oshane Thomas (C) was ruthless as Pakistan fell to pieces. Picture: AP

Pakistan’s batsmen have struggled with short deliveries and West Indies’ plan to pepper them with bouncers soon paid off.

Opener Imam-ul-Haq was caught behind down the leg side off fast bowler Sheldon Cottrell before Russell hit Fakhar Zaman on the helmet and the ball ricocheted onto the stumps.

Wicketkeeper Shai Hope grabbed two more catches when Russell and Holder removed Haris Sohail and captain Sarfaraz Ahmed to leave Pakistan on 5-75.

Wahab Riaz struck 18 off 11 balls to help Pakistan breach the 100-run mark before he was cleaned up by Thomas.

“I was confident of running in and doing my job,” man-of-the-match Thomas said.

“Andre Russell started it for us, I just followed his footsteps today. Lot of guys tried to mix it up with short balls. We wanted to execute our plans well.”

The only concerns for the West Indies were Russell limping with a knee issue in the first innings, while Gayle — who broke the record for the most sixes in World Cup history — appeared to have sustained a back injury.

West Indies' Chris Gayle leaves the field after his dismissal. Picture: AP

After smashing two fours and a six in the 10th over, Gayle appeared to hold his back and limp to the other end for a single.

He looked increasingly edgy before holing out to point for Mohammad Amir’s third wicket of the match.

Pakistan’s 21.4-over innings was their lowest World Cup total since making 74 against England at Adelaide in 1992, the year Imran Khan’s team went on to lift their only 50-overs crown.

It was a tough day out for Pakistan, as Wahab Riaz expresses. Picture: Getty

The in-form Zaman and Babar Azam got off to solid starts but were both dismissed for 22, exposing the middle order against the new ball and Pakistan never recovered.

The hammering was Pakistan’s 11th consecutive ODI defeat in matches where a result was achieved, following series losses to Australia and England.

“If you lose the toss and lose so many wickets early on, it’s tough to come back into the game,” Sarfaraz said.

“It was tricky for half an hour, but this is a good batting track, we didn’t bat well. I think we have to play positive cricket, didn’t do well today but hopefully we’ll bounce back.”

Pakistan next face hosts England on Monday, while the West Indies take on defending champions Australia three days later.

Originally published as West Indies annihilate Pakistan in brutal World Cup opener