West Indies gets a breather

By Andrew Ramsey

ADELAIDE, JAN. 25. Despite its miserable Australian tour, the West Indies remain in with a chance of reaching the finals of the triangular one-day series in Australia after its 77-run win over Zimbabwe in a rain-affected match here.

The weather provided the West Indies with its first fortunate break of its luckless Australian visit when the controversial Duckworth-Lewis scoring system lifted it to its highest one-day total of the summer.

Batting first in oppressive heat against, the West Indies had reached 235 for six after 47 overs when the first serious rain of the year descended on Adelaide Oval causing a delay of almost two hours.

Under the often-maligned but rarely understood revised target schedule, that score was then adjusted upwards to 253 off the reduced maximum of 47 overs.

It was a tough call for the Zimbabweans but they did not help their own cause with some costly lapses in the field. The highest penalty came after they dropped Brian Lara twice before he had reached 25, and the brilliant left-hander went on to top score for the West Indies with 70 from 96 balls.

Until Lara got together with 19-year-old Marlon Samuels for a third-wicket stand of 133 off 176 balls, the West Indian innings was following a familiar path.

Opener Sherwin Campbell fell to another poor shot when he presented a simple catch to his Zimbabwean namesake at first slip.

And his new opening partner Darren Ganga-playing his first match since the Boxing Day Test at the MCG-was equally unproductive as the West Indies slumped to 16 for two in the sixth over.

Ganga needlessly sacrificed his wicket when he took off for a second run and, when he realised it was not feasible, attempted to return to his crease but slipped and narrowly failed to beat Grant Flower's throw.

It was then that Zimbabwe's grip on the game quite literally fell from its grasp. The first blemish came when Gavin Rennie grassed a straightforward chance off Lara when he mishit an attempted pull shot to midwicket when he had made just 10.

Four overs later, having progressed to 21, Lara attempted a delicate dab past first slip off legspinner Brian Murphy but steered it low to Alistair Campbell's left.

Campbell managed to get both hands to the ball but it slipped through his grasp and the West Indian pair continued to torment the bowlers as they reached respective half-centuries a few balls apart.

Samuels was also granted a life, a difficult chance, to Heath Streak's left at mid-wicket when the teenager was on 38.

But by the time Samuels was eventually dismissed for 68, his highest one-day International score, the West Indies was cruising at 149 for three.

Streak hit back with the crucial wicket of Lara, caught at deep long-on from a full toss, and Ricardo Powell who had blasted his way to 33 from just 26 balls.

Skipper Jimmy Adams and Mahendra Nagamootoo attempted to lift the scoring rate realising rain was nearby, and had managed to add 32 from 23 balls when the big downpour came and the innings was prematurely halted.

Upon resumption Zimbabwe faced a daunting run-rate of more than five an over, a task which was made more difficult when it lost three wickets inside the first 15 overs and was in tatters at 47 for three.

The reliable Flower brothers, Andy and Grant, then set about resurrecting the innings with a fourth-wicket partnership of 90 off 127 balls but when Andy was brilliantly caught and bowled by Nagamootoo for 50, the required run rate had climbed to almost eight an over, more rain was on the way and the game was all but over.

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