T20 World Cup: Windies cruise past Papua New Guinea in opening clash

The West Indies' bowling attack proved too strong for the relatively inexperienced Papua New Guinea as the two-time former champions won by five wickets in their T20 World Cup clash on Sunday.

Sese Bau's belligerent 50 off 43 balls, with six fours and one six, represented the only meaningful contribution from PNG as they were restricted to 136 for eight after being put in to bat on a bright, humid morning.

Wicketkeeper Kiplin Doriga (27 not out) and captain Assad Vala (21) were the only other players to get past 20 with fast bowlers Alzarri Joseph and Andre Russell spearheading a disciplined West Indies effort with two wickets each.

West Indies captain Rovman Powell opted with a spin-pace combination throughout the innings to good effect.

The slow bowling trio of Akeal Hosein, Gudakesh Motie and Roston Chase contributed with wickets and economy to limit a struggling Papua batting line-up.

Chase then top-scored with 42 off 27 balls in the West Indies' reply, with Brandon King (34) and Nicholas Pooran (27) also contributing as they cruised to 137-5 in 19 overs.

Chastened by desperately poor showings at the last two T20 World Cups, the champions from 2012 and 2016 are keen to pick up early points against PNG and Uganda before the tougher Group C challenges in the shape of New Zealand and Afghanistan.

West Indies' only previous meeting in an official international fixture against Papua New Guinea was at the 2018 qualifying tournament in Zimbabwe for the 2019 50-over-side World Cup.

Jason Holder's unbeaten 99 guided the Caribbean team to a six-wicket win in Harare.

West Indies captain Powell said after Sunday's game: "Credit to PNG, their plans were simple and they played good cricket. It's important to start well and that's