Chase: Hope doesn’t get enough credit

RANCHI, India (CMC):

Veteran all-rounder Roston Chase believes West Indies white-ball captain Shai Hope does not receive the recognition he deserves, despite continuing to produce outstanding performances.

Hope’s brilliance was on display once again on Friday when he scored an unbeaten century to lead the visitors to a record-breaking run chase against India in the second T20 International.

The 32-year-old smashed 102 not out off 45 balls at the top of the order to propel the West Indies to 252 for four in 18.3 overs in reply to India’s 249 for five at the JSCA International Stadium Complex.

It was the Windies’ highest successful chase in T20 Internationals and the second-highest in the format’s history.

Hope’s century was also the second-fastest by a West Indian in T20 Internationals, while his 120-run partnership with Sherfane Rutherford was the West Indies’ highest fourth-wicket stand in the format.

Speaking in a post-match press conference, Chase, who starred with the ball with figures of 3-24 from four overs and was the only bowler from either side to concede fewer than 10 runs per over, said Hope continued to demonstrate his class against one of the world’s best teams.

It was Hope’s third century in five matches on the white-ball tour of India, having also scored two hundreds in the preceding three-match ODI series, which India won 2-1.

Hope averages 51.48 in 158 One-Day Internationals, 32.15 in 72 T20 Internationals and 27.97 in 49 Test matches for the West Indies.

“I think people underrate him a lot. Shai Hope is a guy that can blank out a lot of noise and just focus on what he has to do and I think that is his special skill. When everything seems to be going wrong, he is still out there giving his best and performing for the team. So I think that is his hallmark skill and he’s a great player.

“He doesn’t really have the record in red-ball cricket but, as I said, people play down his stats and his record that he has, especially in T20 cricket. Everyone knows he’s great in 50-over cricket and still sometimes people don’t give him the credit; they either say that he bats too slow or he bats for himself,” Chase, who is also the red-ball captain, said.

“So I’m always happy when I see him do well, because he’s a guy that I know is very professional, puts in the hard work, and is the ultimate professional. So when he gets those performances, I’m very happy for him.”