West Indies got off to a quick start in the first of two T20Is against Australia on Wednesday at the Carrara Oval in Queensland.
Kyle Mayers, the left-hander began with two boundaries off Micthell Starc in the first over, the second a blistering cover-drive, before adding two more off Josh Hazlewood in the next over.
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The standout shot though came off Cameron Green, much to the surprise of the fielding team and commentators. Green bowled one short angling away from the left-hander, and Mayers just cleared his front leg and halted his back-foot punch with perfect time. The ball flew past the extra cover ropes and into the second-tier for the game's first maximum.
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After being called in to bat, West Indies raced to 53/2 in six overs, with Hazlewood removing Johnson Charles and Brandon King with the new ball. Following that, the scoring slowed significantly, with only 15 runs coming in the following four overs, including Mayers' wicket, which was cleaned up by Pat Cummins. Mayers' 36-ball 39 included five fours and a six.
Mayers enters the tournament after a strong performance in the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) 2022. He ended as the competition's second-highest run-scorer, with 366 runs at 30.5 and a strike-rate of 134.55 in the Barbados Royals' march to the final. With his smooth right-arm medium speed, he also took eight wickets while keeping a great economy of 5.38.
Meanwhile, Australia retained an in-form Green in their XI, and the all-rounder is expected to begin alongside David Warner, with skipper Aaron Finch slotted in at No.4.
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