World Cup 2019: Five best tactical decisions in the first week

#3 West Indies' attacking short-ball strategy

West Indies v Pakistan - ICC Cricket World Cup 2019

Leading up to the tournament, most of the focus on the West Indies was devoted to their batting. For good reason too, considering how their explosive batting lineup has fired in recent months, such as in the warm up match against New Zealand. In their opening encounter however, it was the West Indian bowling attack that stole the show.

Having left out two of their two best Test bowlers (Kemar Roach and Shannon Gabriel), the rest of the West Indian bowling attack justified their inclusion on a infamous road like Trent Bridge. Like their famed predecessors, the likes of Sheldon Cottrell, Andre Russell, Carlos Brathwaite, Jason Holder and Oshane Thomas dismantled an opposition batting lineup through short balls.

It wasn't quite Fire in Bablyon, but the West Indian decision to attack Pakistani batsmen at their throat was brilliant. It began with Russell, who removed Fakhar Zaman and Haris Sohail with genuinely threatening bouncers. After that, it was a procession as Thomas and Holder took full advantage of Pakistan's weakness against the short ball. The West Indian team management's decision to use the short ball worked brilliantly.