A good all-round performance by West Indies brought them a 27-runvictory over a demoralized but defiant Zimbabwe team at Harare SportsClub in the opening match of the triangular tournament also involvingIndia

John Ward23-Jun-2001A good all-round performance by West Indies brought them a 27-runvictory over a demoralized but defiant Zimbabwe team at Harare SportsClub in the opening match of the triangular tournament also involvingIndia. After compiling 266 for five wickets, they restricted Zimbabweto 239 for nine.The shock news for West Indies was the withdrawal of Brian Lara fromthe tour, due to a long-term hamstring injury. For Zimbabwe, it wasthe resignation of Heath Streak as captain, following Andy Flower’swithdrawal through injury. No official reasons have been given yet forStreak’s resignation, but it is generally believed that the playersare aggrieved at on-going selection policies. Grant Flower took overas captain for this match at short notice, as vice-captain GuyWhittall refused to take over in the circumstances.Two sides thus faced each other, both in turmoil. Zimbabwe won thetoss and put West Indies in on a good-looking pitch, no doubt hopingfor early life. For the first time in 224 successive internationalmatches, Zimbabwe took the field without Andy Flower.Chris Gayle made the early running for West Indies, hitting AndyBlignaut, who now had his hair dyed in the colours of the nationalflag, for two fine boundaries through the covers in his third over.Daren Ganga hit a cover boundary in Streak’s next over as Zimbabwe’sbowlers again failed to control the white ball or extract much helpfrom the pitch. Gayle on 15 was dropped at second slip, a difficultchance, off Blignaut.The fifty came up in the 13th over and the hundred in the 22nd, withthe batsmen enjoying several slices of good fortune but graduallylooking more impressive as Zimbabwe’s change bowlers proved quiteinnocuous. Grant Flower came on himself to put a brake on the scoring,but several uncharacteristic misfields did not help their cause. Thepair added 113 before Gayle (53), in the 25th over, checked a big hitoff Brian Murphy to be caught by long-on running in.Wavell Hinds ran superbly between wickets with Ganga as West Indieshammered home their advantage. Ganga recorded 66 off 98 balls beforeTatenda Taibu claimed his first victim in full international cricket,stumping him smartly off Murphy, and shortly afterwards Hinds (37)unilaterally attempted an impossible single to be run out. But at 180for three in the 38th over, West Indies were well placed.Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Carl Hooper made merry as Mluleki Nkala andTravis Friend again failed to measure up with the ball, but Streak wasbetter and had Hooper (29) brilliantly caught at wide long-on byFlower. Chanderpaul, not general thought of as a one-day batsman,played with fine judgement for his 51 before holing out at deepishmid-off off Blignaut’s slower ball, and West Indies finished with 266for five. With morale obviously low in the Zimbabwe camp, the matchappeared to belong to the tourists. One bright spot was the finewicket-keeping of Tatenda Taibu on his debut.Reon King and Cameron Cuffy bowled with hostility and purpose, but theZimbabwean openers faced them with determination until Dion Ebrahim(11) edged King for wicket-keeper Ridley Jacobs to take a remarkablehigh catch with the webbing of his gloves, causing some questions tobe asked about the legality of such gloves under the new code of laws.Stuart Carlisle, fresh from his match-winning innings in the SecondTest against India, was soon peppering the off-side field withpowerful drives, King and Mervyn Dillon both proving expensive. Then,on 17, he was dismissed by a brilliant catch at short extra cover byHooper.This was virtually the end of Zimbabwe’s challenge, as AlistairCampbell and Grant Flower became bogged down, unable either to rotatethe strike or reach the boundary. They later opened up, but just asthe partnership was developing Flower was caught at the wicket for 29;Zimbabwe were 99 for three in the 27th over.Blignaut was sent in to raise the run rate, and did so, although notto the now necessary rate of eight an over, before being run out for25, just after Campbell reached his fifty. Whittall improvised well,and was badly dropped at long leg, but 97 were needed off the finalten overs. Whittall (32) fell at deep midwicket, while Campbell, neverfluent, holed out to long-off for 68.Streak and Friend (16 each) and last man Murphy (15 not out off 8balls) did their best to ensure that Zimbabwe went down with all gunsblazing. Dillon took three for 49 and Samuels, at the death, threefor 28.