West Indies Vs Australia: Owen And Green Guide Aussies To Opening T20i Win

Mitchell Owen enjoyed a dream debut as he helped Australia to earn a three-wicket win over West Indies in the first T20I at Sabina Park.

Cameron Green also provided a spark in the chase, while Ben Dwarshuis put in a masterful display with the ball to stifle West Indies.

The hosts started strong despite Brandon King's (18) early dismissal, as Shai Hope (55) and Roston Chase (60) propelled them forward.

Dwarshuis (4-36) got his first wicket to stop the latter midway through the 13th over before Owen forced Hope into a miscue, dropping West Indies to 159-3.

Dwarshuis stepped up again, taking Andre Russell (eight), Sherfane Rutherford (0) and Jason Holder (0) inside the space of four balls in the 19th over, with Nathan Ellis then stopping Shimron Hetmyer on 38, with the West Indies crawling to 189-8.

Australia initially struggled to find their rhythm; Mitchell Marsh's 24 was the pick of the top order before Green steadied the ship with 51 off 26 balls and enjoyed an 80-run partnership with Owen for the fifth wicket.

The debutant plundered 50 off 27 balls, including six maximums and one off his first ball, before being stopped by Alzarri Joseph (2-39) with Australia needing just 15 more runs, and they hit their 190-run target thanks to Dwarshuis' single.

Data Debrief: Owen makes his mark

Owen took the key wicket of Hope to get off to a perfect start, but it was with the bat that he really made his impact.

In fact, he is only the fourth Australia player to score 50+ runs in their T20I debut, after Ricky Ponting (98* v New Zealand in February 2005), Karen Rolton (96* v England in September 2005), and David Warner (89 v South Africa in January 2009).

But while he and Green steadied the ship after a wobble at the start, West Indies could not maintain their momentum - the lower order combined for 11 as they lost six for 30 in the final five overs.