Jayden Lennox stars as Black Caps level ODI series against West Indies with five-wicket win in Guyana
Tuesday, 14 July 2026
At Providence, Guyana: West Indies 138 in 36 overs (John Campbell 43; Jayden Lennox 5-19, Mitchell Santner 2-21) lost to New Zealand 141-5 in 32.4 overs (Tom Latham 37*) by five wickets. Full scoreboard
If Black Caps fans had been polled prior to the second ODI which left-arm spinner would star, Jayden Lennox would have undoubtedly finished second.
Instead, Lennox returned the third-best figures by a New Zealand spinner in men’s ODI history with 5-19 from eight overs as the visitors defeated the West Indies by five wickets on Tuesday in Providence, Guyana.
Leggie Ish Sodhi is the only spinner to have taken six wickets for the Black Caps in the format, while Lennox joined fellow left-arm orthodox slow bowlers Daniel Vettori (twice), current captain Mitchell Santner (twice) and Matthew Hart as those who have captured a five-wicket bag in an innings.
In just his seventh ODI appearance, Lennox took over at the bowling crease after Michael Bracewell and Santner had put the breaks on the home side’s innings on a pitch which offered prodigious help for the spinners.
The 31-year-old from the Napier Tech club made his domestic debut for Central Districts in a one-day match in November 2019, and has chiefly been a white-ball specialist at the top level - he’s made 67 List A and 48 T20 appearances for the Stags, but played just 23 first-class appearances with Ajaz Patel the first-choice red-ball left-arm spinner.
He sports modern sunglasses, but with the lens of the same shade your mum used to prefer from the stand at the chemist.
Lennox opts for the ‘Chris Pringle meets Adam Ant’ approach to sunscreen use, has an unruly fringe which appears to have a limited future, and a buttoned-up popped collar in the home of cool cricketers.
His amble to the bowling crease is short and uncomplicated, and while a coach may suggest his technique could be improved with more impetus and greater use of his height, Lennox can insist that he’s doing just fine thanks.
Windies opener John Campbell looked like he was going to make the news as he raced to 43 from 41 balls, but the hosts slumped from 63 without loss in the 11th over once NZ’s spinners got into their work.
In his first over, Lennox skidded one past West Indies skipper Shai Hope (7) and in his second, the following ball after being elegantly cover-driven for four by Sherfane Rutherford (8), he got enough turn and bounce for the ball to slide backwards off an unconvincing prod and hit the stumps
Santner soon grabbed his second scalp with the near-perfect left-arm spinner’s delivery to get rid of Keacy Carty (18); pushing him back, squaring him up, beating him with turn and capped off by the ball kissing the top of off stump.
The skipper then was overshadowed by his lesser-known lefty, as Lennox bowled Gudakesh Motie and Matthew Forde and wrapped up the innings by trapping Vitel Lawes lbw as the Windies were rolled for 138 in only 36 overs.
Lennox said the NZ spinners were delighted that Santner won the toss and elected to bowl.
“It was exciting that the West Indies guys got it to spin when the sun was out the other day,” he said in reference to their seven-wicket loss in the opening match.
“The variability in the wicket meant [you aimed] to keep the stumps in play, squeeze the dots, squeeze the ones and it kind of looks after itself if you put the ball in the right area.’
Lennox said the side also made a “couple of subtle changes in the field” after reviewing game one to limit the singles and boundaries on offer for the West Indian batters.
The visitors, aware that the best time to make runs even in a small chase was early, had opener Will Young looking fantastic in getting to 28 from 31 balls before an Alzarri Joseph off-cutter had him lbw.
Mark Chapman was sold down the Demerara River by batting partner Henry Nicholls when the pair lacked the co-operation required over a risky single in the Co-operative Republic of Guyana.
When Daryl Mitchell’s stumping was soon followed by Dean Foxcroft’s duck, the hosts still had visions of going 2-0 up in the series.
Teenage left-arm wrist spinner Lawes, who had taken three wickets in the Windies’ series-opening win, was troublesome but not consistent enough, while fellow spinners Khary Pierre and Motie kept matters interesting as NZ’s batters often looked to sweep to score.
But test skipper Tom Latham’s unbeaten 37 from 61 balls, with support from Bracewell (24no from 26), got NZ home with 17.2 overs to spare. Game three of the series is at the same venue on Friday (6.30am NZT) before it moves to Bridgetown, Barbados for the final two matches.