BIRMINGHAM, England, CMC – At the last time of asking, West Indies again failed to rise to the occasion and were crushed by 58 runs in the third and final One-day International against England yesterday.
Chasing 329 runs for victory from their allocation of 50 overs, West Indies were dismissed with two balls remaining, after another inexplicable batting collapse in the match at Edgbaston, with the result being formalised, when Sulieman Benn failed to keep out a James Anderson’s yorker and was bowled middle-stump.
The defeat meant that West Indies lost the three-match series 0-2, after the opening match at Leeds was washed out without a ball being bowled, and England won the second ODI at Bristol by six wickets.
It also meant that West Indies will end the brief series against England without a win, after they were comprehensively swept in the preceding two-Test series.
Their bowlers were roughed up, as Matt Prior led a trio of England batsmen stroking solid half-centuries, after the West Indies sent England in to bat.
Prior smashed 87 off 86 balls, Owais Shah clubbed 75 from 65 balls, and England captain Andrew Strauss cracked 52 from 66 balls, as the home team reached 328 for seven from their 50 overs.
Jerome Taylor was the pick of the West Indies’ bowlers with 3-59 runs from 10 overs and received support from Kieron Pollard who picked up 2-63 from his nine overs.
But West Indies never recovered, after losing the key scalps of their captain Chris Gayle and Ramnaresh Sarwan in the space of six balls.
Shivnarine Chanderpaul hit the top score of 68 from 108 balls, Denesh Ramdin made 45 from 48 balls, and there were useful contributions of 31 from Sulieman Benn, 26 from Dwayne Bravo, and 21 from Runako Morton in the unusual role of opener.
Gayle was caught at mid-on when he mistimed a pull at a short ball in the third over off Stuart Broad for 11 and after a brief stoppage for rain, Sarwan was caught at short extra cover off Anderson for nine driving loosely at a ball of no great merit outside the off-stump. Chanderpaul then anchored successive partnerships – 44 with Morton, 33 with Bravo, and 82 with Ramdin – before he was caught at mid-wicket dragging a delivery from Broad from outside the off-stump.
When he departed, West Indies were 181 for five in the 38th over, and there was only token resistance from the rest of the batting, although Benn indulged himself with a few lofty strokes including a six over mid-wicket off Broad.
Anderson was England’s most successful bowler with three for 58 from 9.4 overs, and Broad supported with two for 63 from 10 overs.
Earlier, West Indies were put on their heels, after England started solidly with an opening stand of 81 between Strauss and Ravi Bopara.
Things did not ease up, after Bravo bowled Bopara in the 15th over, and Benn had Strauss stumped in the 24th over.
West Indies were made to chase leather, when Prior, batting at No.3, linked up with Shah for a fluent 149-run, third-wicket stand at better than run-a-ball rate that rushed the home side toward the 300-run mark.
Taylor ended their soirée, when he had Shah caught at deep mid-wicket in the 44th over, and he added the scalps of Prior bowled in the 46th over, and Paul Collingwood also bowled for 23 in the 48th over.
In between, Pollard held a return catch to remove Dmitri Mascarenhas for a first-ball duck in the 45th over, and snared Tim Bresnan caught at long-on for nine in the penultimate over.
England’s total was their sixth-highest ever in ODIs, and their best against West Indies.
