The fifth and final T20 of the series between England and West Indies was washed out by heavy rain in St Lucia.

England captain Jos Buttler chose to bowl first and the hosts reached 44-0 in five overs before the downpour began.

The ground staff attempted to clear the wet outfield for a restart but the match was eventually abandoned without a result at 22:15 GMT.

West Indies openers Evin Lewis and Shai Hope made 29 and 14 respectively, looking to add another commanding partnership following their 136 in nine overs in the fourth T20.

England claim the T20 series 3-1, having lost the one-day international leg of the tour 2-1.

Opener Phil Salt finished as the series' leading run-scorer with 162 runs in four innings, including an unbeaten 103 in the first T20, with West Indies captain Rovman Powell second with 153.

England seamer Saqib Mahmood was the leading wicket-taker and was rested for the final match, finishing with nine scalps in four matches.

England are next in action with three Tests in New Zealand, starting on 27 November, with the white-ball side taking on India in January.

That will be Brendon McCullum's first assignment as white-ball head coach.

Player of the series, England bowler Saqib Mahmood: "As a group we've spoken a lot about what we want to do and our mindset of taking wickets in the powerplay, so it's nice to get the rewards for that.

"We've got a nice stock of fast bowlers now, hopefully we can all stay fit and healthy - long may it continue."

England captain Jos Buttler: "We're delighted with the series win. We've played some brilliant cricket.

"I enjoyed it [being captain without keeping], I felt like I had a bit more time and it was nice to be out there running around and closer to the bowlers. I got everything I wanted to out of doing that."

West Indies captain Rovman Powell: "It's been a tough series and credit to Jos Buttler and his team who came to play in these conditions and dominated.

"We played good cricket in patches but not for long enough periods."

Source: BBC

BDST: 1340 HRS, NOV 18, 2024
SMS