Monday 13 June 2011

Windies salvage pride with win

The West Indies crushed India by 103 runs to earn a consolation victory in the ongoing ODI series in the Caribbean Islands.
Lendl Simmons and Kieron Pollard were the mainstays of the hosts' total of 249 for eight, the former leading their recovery from 12 for two with 67 before Pollard added 70 to lift them to a competitive mark.
India, who went into the game with an unassailable 3-0 series lead, folded for 146 in reply as Anthony Martin took four for 36 and Andre Russell three for 16.
Windies newcomer Danza Hyatt, promoted to open, was dismissed for one for the second time in as many innings when he fended Ishant Sharma to Manoj Tiwary at backward point.
Ramnaresh Sarwan cut Praveen Kumar straight to Tiwary to also depart for a single, leaving Simmons to rebuild alongside Darren Bravo.
Simmons hoisted Sharma for four then six and crashed back-to-back sixes off Amit Mishra before reaching his fifty with a two off the spinner.
The pair put on 53, though Bravo was not at his best as he made 15 from 36 deliveries before falling to a well-judged third catch from Tiwary at deep mid-wicket.
Marlon Samuels (eight) was harshly adjudged leg before to Mishra's googly and new man Pollard sliced Tiwary aerially just beyond fly slip for four.
The key wicket of Simmons followed when he pushed Ravichandran Ashwin into the leg side, set off hesitantly and was run out by the dynamic Tiwary's direct hit.
Pollard launched Tiwary into the sightscreen for six and followed up with a four past the bowler and the otherwise restrained Carlton Baugh stepped down the wicket to slap Kumar to the mid-wicket boundary.
The pair's 50 stand came up in 73 balls with a Pollard boundary and the all-rounder reached his half-century from 58 balls, with four fours and a six, when he worked Ashwin off his legs for one.
The powerplay began in the 44th over with a Mishra wide followed by a Pollard maximum, but the key man lifted Ashwin to long-off Sharma in the next over.
Russell added 25 in just 14 balls and hit three fours and a six as the powerplay yielded 57 runs. He put on 41 with Baugh (39) before both departed in successive balls.
Kumar took three for 37 and Mishra two for 56 as India were left to chase 250, but their top order - Rohit Sharma aside - failed to get going.
A hesitant Tiwary had already been dropped by Bravo by the time he edged Darren Sammy to keeper Baugh and departed for two.
Parthiv Patel was looking better and had twice whipped Sammy through the leg side for four, and he cut another boundary off Kemar Roach but then fell for 26 to an instinctive low return catch by Sammy to leave India 41 for two.
Both Virat Kohli and Subramaniam Badrinath survived confident caught-behind appeals but failed to take advantage. Badrinath was first to go when he gloved a short ball from Russell through to Baugh and was superbly caught for 12.
Kohli whipped a stylish four through mid-on off Sammy but was caught out of his ground by a smart stumping from Baugh after a loose drive at Anthony Martin.
Rohit Sharma responded by cracking Pollard into the stand but soon lost partner Suresh Raina, who drilled Martin straight to Pollard at mid-wicket.
Simmons struck with his fourth ball, Yusuf Pathan (one) lofting straight to long-off Roach, and Sharma could only reach 39 before skying Martin into the leg side where Bravo took a good running catch.
Russell could not take a sharp return chance offered by Kumar, but he got his man when the tail-ender fenced a short ball tamely to Sammy at backward point.
Ashwin (15) danced outside off stump and haplessly scooped Russell straight in the air to Marlon Samuels at short fine leg and when Ishant Sharma was stumped, Martin had his fourth wicket and India were all out.

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