Colin Munro became the first batsman on planet to hit three T20I ton as New Zealand crushed Windies by 119 runs in the third match of the T20I series to clinch the series 2-0 and reclaim the top spot in ICC T20I Rankings.
Opting to bat first, New Zealand could not have asked for a better start as their openers—Martin Guptill and Colin Munro—added 136 runs in just 11.3 overs.
While Munro registered his third successive half century of the series, Guptill also raced to his 50 before being dismissed for 63 runs from 38 balls. The knock included 5 fours and a couple of sixes.
Munro then added 55 runs with Tom Bruce in just 27 balls for the second wicket before the later was cleaned up by Brathwaite after scoring 23 from 14.
Soon Munro scored his third T20I ton, in just 47 balls. He was dismissed in the last over after hitting 10 sixes in a knock of 104. Captain Kane Williamson also played a cameo of 19 runs from 8 balls as the Kiwis ended up on 243/5 in their quota of 20 overs. Last 3 overs accounted for 39 runs.
Brathwaite was the most successful bowler as he picked up 2 wickets but conceded 50 runs from his 4 overs.
Chasing a target of 244, Windies batsmen dug a hole for their team. The visitors had a contrasting start than they needed, losing the first two wickets in form of Chadwick Walton and Chris Gayle in the very first over.
Windies were reduced to just 124/9 in 16.3 overs but Shai Hope didn’t come to bat as he injured his right shoulder.
They could never recover from 1/2 despite Rovman Powell, 16 from 8, and Andre Fletcher, who scored 46 from 32, adding 41 runs for the third wicket in just 18 balls. Wickets falling after regular intervals pegged them back further and they succumbed to a crushing defeat.
Tim Southee picked up 3 wickets while Ish Sodhi and Trent Boult picked up 2 wickets each.
Earlier, as New Zealand scored a mammoth 243/5 in the third and final match against Windies in Bay Oval.
The win meant hosts swept the T20 series as well after winning the Tests 2-0 and ODIs 3-0.