da imperador bet： Zimbabwe successfully recovered from their chastening 38 all out on Saturdayto defeat a West Indies side that looks ill at ease after a spate ofinjuries, disciplinary problems and a three-Test drumming by Sri Lanka
Charlie Austin09-Dec-2001Zimbabwe successfully recovered from their chastening 38 all out on Saturdayto defeat a West Indies side that looks ill at ease after a spate ofinjuries, disciplinary problems and a three-Test drumming by Sri Lanka.The four-wicket victory, played out in front of empty Sinhalese Sports Clubstadium, ended a 28-match run stretching back 10-months in which Zimbabwehad not beaten any team bar Bangladesh.Indeed, so lackluster does the West Indies team now look, that one wouldfear for them in a series against Bangladesh. Their batting was sloppy,fielding nervy and bowling unthreatening, which was hardly unexpected aftertheir best two bowlers, Dinanath Ramnarine (side injury) and Mervyn Dillon(disciplinary reasons), had been sent home.West Indies – unsurprisingly asked to bat first when Zimbabwean captainStuart Carlisle won the toss for the first time all tour – failed tocapitalise on an easy-paced pitch that had long since lost the moisture thathad assisted Chaminda Vaas yesterday, as they were bowled out for 173 byZimbabwe’s makeshift spin attack and plodding seamers.Zimbabwe too looked short of confidence and edged towards the winning targetwith the uncertain air of a side too used to failure. However, thanks to achancy 30 from Grant Flower, a responsible 47 from Carlisle and an unbeaten48 from Andy Flower, they eventually secured victory with 1.5 overs tospare.West Indies batting faltered right from the start as Chris Gayle recordedhis fourth duck in consecutive international matches; a slump that stretchesback to the second Test in Kandy. This time, though, it wasn’t his techniquethat was at fault, but his running, as Dion Ebrahim threw down the stumpsfrom backward point.Heath Streak then managed what the Sri Lankans have failed to do all tour:dismiss Brian Lara cheaply. The star left-hander walked across his stumpsand was trapped lbw for two (nine for two).Ramnaresh Sarwan and Daren Ganga rescued the innings with a forthright 57run partnership for the third wicket. Ganga went on to score 59, his fifthone-day fifty, but Sarwan, uncharacteristically, threw away his wicket withan ungainly swipe across the line to be clean bowled for 36 (66 for three).Carl Hooper was then run out for five after Ganga tried to nudge a quicksingle on the off-side, only to see his plan anticipated by the energeticHenry Olonga, who fielded in his follow through and knocked down the stumpswith an underarm flick (77 for four).Ganga partially made amends in a 60 run stand with Marlon Samuels beforeGrant Flower’s innocuous looking spinners swung the match firmly towardsZimbabwe, as Samuels (32) chipped a catch to mid-wicket and Ganga was caughtand bowled (152 for six).Thereafter, Zimbabwe’s fast bowers chipped away at the lower order. RidleyJacobs tried to rally but, running out of partners, was eventually last man outfor 20 as Streak took a smart, juugling catch on the mid-wicket boundary.Zimbabwe’s start didn’t engender great confidence, as Dion Ebrahim wastrapped lbw for his second consecutive golden duck to the first ball of theinnings.But Grant Flower, missed on 19 when wicket-keeper Jacobs should have divedin front of first slip and on 26 when Ganga dropped a dolly at mid-on, added59 with Carlisle to steady dressing room nerves.Those nerves started to fray again when Carlise was third man out for 47 (96for three) as Craig Wishart (12), Douglas Marillier (5) and Tatenda Taibu(0) were dismissed cheaply.However a calming innings from the prolific Andy Flower, coupled with somesolid lower order support from the experienced Heath Streak (19*), saw theZimbabwean’s home.