Impressive England beaten by rain as hosts scrape win

WEST Indies defied the rain to scrape a Duckworth-Lewis win over England – leaving their opponents to face a Providence shoot-out with Ireland for an ICC World Twenty20 Super Eights place.

The weather played havoc with the home reply to 191 for five yesterday. But a storming start before rain first intervened took the Windies to 30 without loss, and they eventually returned to achieve a revised target of 60 in six overs – with eight wickets and one ball to spare.

Victory for either England or Ireland will take them through to the next stage today, while a washout would mean Paul Collingwood's men progress on a far superior net run rate. "I think 95 per cent of the time when you put 191 runs on the board you are going to win the game," said Collingwood. "Somehow Duckworth-Lewis seems to bring that equation down a fair bit. It does get very frustrating as a team when you've pretty much played a very good game there and you still come out losers."

Eoin Morgan and Luke Wright had shared a stand of 95 to help England set a testing initial total. The fifth-wicket pair smashed seven sixes between them. They laid into Ravi Rampaul in particular as 76 runs came from the last five overs. Morgan's share was 55 from 35 balls, and Wright's an unbeaten 45 from 27, in an England total which boasted the most sixes they have ever hit in Twenty20 cricket and equalled the highest score in this tournament so far. Openers Michael Lumb and Craig Kieswetter gave England the start they have been picked for – until the left-hander toppled over trying to drive and was bowled by Gayle.

Kevin Pietersen got under way with a cover-drive for four of his first ball from Gayle. But two big wickets in one over from Darren Sammy stalled England.

Kieswetter was gone, lbw to one that turned and hit his back leg from Nikita Miller – and then Collingwood was bowled and Pietersen holed out in the leg-side deep, having hit the previous ball for six.

Wright and Morgan had been set a significant task but rose to it as the early ones and twos gave way to towering sixes and boundaries. Yet West Indies got a flying start to their chase. Gayle and Shivnarine Chanderpaul tore into the England attack in the 2.2 overs before the downpour. Graeme Swann then had Gayle chipping a catch to midwicket, and Kieron Pollard was stumped by Kieswetter from the very next delivery – which was called a wide. But Chanderpaul and Andre Fletcher held their nerve to leave England to sweat on the result of today's match.