Phil Salt smashes brilliant unbeaten 109 and Harry Brook hits 24 from the final over as England smash 18 sixes in chasing down 223 to beat West Indies and keep Twenty20 series alive

• Phil Salt hit an unbeaten 109 as England managed to overcome West Indies
• England chased 223 and managed to secure a brilliant seven-wicket win 

Phil Salt kept his cool in the stifling heat of St George’s to produce one of England’s great white-ball innings and keep the Twenty20 series against West Indies alive.

Salt crunched an unbeaten 109 and watched from the non-striker’s end as Harry Brook took 24 from the final over by Andre Russell to complete a brilliant seven-wicket win, equalling England’s second-biggest chase in T20s in the process.

Never before had an international team knocked off a total in excess of 200 on Caribbean soil, but doing it with a delivery to spare sends Jos Buttler’s men to Trinidad trailing 2-1 with two to play.

Having been set 223 on the back of 16 West Indian sixes, England returned fire with interest, striking 18 of their own, Buttler and Salt blazing 73 from the power play during a 115-run opening stand.

But the loss of Buttler to a relay catch on the fine leg rope, immediately after a clever ramped four had taken him to a half-century, and Will Jacks in quick succession, left them needing 15 an over from the final seven.

Phil Salt hit an unbeaten 109 as England chased 223 to overcome West Indies in the third T20

Harry Brook, who took 24 from the final over, celebrates with team-mate Salt after the victory

Salt crunched an unbeaten 109 as he produced one of England’s great white-ball innings

Salt raced to 50 from 26 balls and, battling against fatigue, kept pace, sharing 70 for the third wicket with Liam Livingstone and making it to three figures immediately after hitting his eighth six.

England required 29 off nine when he struck his ninth, off Alzarri Joseph, and 21 when Brook found himself at the business end – finishing things in a flurry.

Another punishing day to be a bowler – Sam Curran and Tymal Mills both travelled for more than 20 in an over, 48 hours after Curran went for 30 – saw England hit back against West Indies’ attack.

Left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie went for just nine runs in four miserly overs on Thursday, stymying England’s progress, but travelled for twice as many in his first alone here, Salt book-ending it with two clearances of the rope at long-on.

And England showed they have the aerial game to compete with West Indies when Brook hit his first ball into the stands, finishing with an unbeaten 31 from just seven to add spice to the series before leaving the spice isle.

Brandon King batted through the full 20 overs in the 10-run win on Thursday that put West Indies 2-0 up with three to play, but did not make it to the end of the first in the pivotal match of the series as Moeen Ali provided an antidote to being crunched for a couple of early boundaries by spinning a delivery sharply through the gate.

A sweltering afternoon on the spice isle got even better for England soon afterwards when Reece Topley marked his recall alongside fellow Surrey bowler Gus Atkinson with a beauty that made Kyle Mayers play and found its way through to wicketkeeper Buttler off the edge.

West Indies exited the power play on 52 for two, providing them with some breathing room for the entrance of Adil Rashid into the attack.

England’s Moeen Ali celebrates after taking the wicket of West Indies’ Brandon King

Jos Buttler and Phil Salt knock gloves during England’s victory against West Indies

England’s Adil Rashid celebrates after taking the wicket of West Indies’ Shai Hope

Yet they refused to take the cautious approach against England’s master leg-spinner: Shai Hope holing out to deep midwicket from just his fourth delivery.

Rashid has been in such control on this tour that he had sent down 36 deliveries without being hit for a boundary when Rovman Powell dropped to one knee and scythed the ball half a dozen yards wide of Salt, patrolling the rope at deep midwicket.

Powell’s muscular strokeplay saw him dominate a 58-run stand with Pooran and things were looking ominous for the tourists when Buttler gambled by throwing the ball to Curran for the 13th over of the innings.

This time, however, having conceded just four runs off the first five balls, he surprised his nemesis with his sixth, a bouncer that ended up in Buttler’s gloves from a cross-bat flap.

Under Powell, though, West Indies know only one way. Pooran powered beyond a 37-ball 50 to finish with 82 off 45, via a flurry of blows belying his slight stature, and cameos from the recalled Sherfane Rutherford and Jason Holder set England’s required rate in excess of 11.

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