Story Calypso vs. Collapso - A West Indies story (WI/Aus posted!)
- Thread starter qpeedore
- Start date
joejoe018
Associate Cricketer
1. What score will West Indies make? 147
2. Who takes the most wickets for England? Jimmy Anderson
3. Who top scores for West Indies? Danza Hyatt
4. What score will the top scorer for West Indies make? 52
5. Will West Indies survive the full 20 overs? Yes
2. Who takes the most wickets for England? Jimmy Anderson
3. Who top scores for West Indies? Danza Hyatt
4. What score will the top scorer for West Indies make? 52
5. Will West Indies survive the full 20 overs? Yes
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surendar
ICC Chairman
- Joined
- Feb 15, 2006
- Location
- Bentonville, US
- Profile Flag
- India
- Online Cricket Games Owned
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- Don Bradman Cricket 14 - PS3
- Don Bradman Cricket 14 - Steam PC
- Don Bradman Cricket 14 - Xbox One
1) 161, considering flat pitch 
2) Swann
3) Hyatt
4) 80
5) Yes
2) Swann
3) Hyatt
4) 80
5) Yes
qpeedore
SOTM Winner - July 2014
For a writer such as suren to respond to this...is awesome.
Five days left for predictions folks! First innings up on Thursday.
Five days left for predictions folks! First innings up on Thursday.
qpeedore
SOTM Winner - July 2014
Um...what the hell?
So...I go to write the next match tonight...and no matter what happens with Eng/WI it's pretty much confirmed that I'll be going onto the next stage. I saved my game just before actually playing the next game in the latter stages of the tournament.
And the game doesn't recognise it?
I have no control over my team as they go forward in the tournament? The matches are played without my control? Huh? I saved the game showing Team X vs. the West Indies...now I get a list of results for my team for which I had no control over, and then the graphic for the next series shows up.
I am VERY disappointed.
Now I have to start a series...with a half played flipping World T20 with no control over anything after the initial stages.
Should I just ignore it and continue?
So...I go to write the next match tonight...and no matter what happens with Eng/WI it's pretty much confirmed that I'll be going onto the next stage. I saved my game just before actually playing the next game in the latter stages of the tournament.
And the game doesn't recognise it?
I have no control over my team as they go forward in the tournament? The matches are played without my control? Huh? I saved the game showing Team X vs. the West Indies...now I get a list of results for my team for which I had no control over, and then the graphic for the next series shows up.
I am VERY disappointed.
Now I have to start a series...with a half played flipping World T20 with no control over anything after the initial stages.
Should I just ignore it and continue?
Till Valhalla
ICC Chairman
- Joined
- Jun 5, 2011
- Profile Flag
- Papua New Guinea
What? Didn't understand anything brother..
qpeedore
SOTM Winner - July 2014
Basically what happened is...I've gotten through to the next round. My game was saved just prior to the match, where the "continue" button is replaced with "play match".
The next time I load the game...not only does the button say "continue" instead of "play match"...I see the computer simulating those next three WI matches in the next round. Without my control.
Next thing I know, I have to pick a squad for the next series.
The next time I load the game...not only does the button say "continue" instead of "play match"...I see the computer simulating those next three WI matches in the next round. Without my control.
Next thing I know, I have to pick a squad for the next series.
qpeedore
SOTM Winner - July 2014
Play – West Indies vs. England
The debuting Currency and the patient Chattergoon made their way to the middle as Pietersen arranged his field. Currency took first strike and the intent from England was clear to all. They were going to attack. Big gaps were left in the field as Pietersen put in two slips, a gully, short fine leg, midwicket, mid off, mid on, square leg, and cover. No men out in the deep.
The first ball of Currency's international career was short, just outside off. He defended it easily back up the pitch to the bowler Anderson. The second also gave him his first runs. Anderson bowled a half volley that was duly dispatched past the short midwicket with a good on drive for four.
Anderson came back well, however, with an excellent delivery that took the edge of Currency's bat but dropped short of second slip. The next delivery had Currency trying to glance one off his hips, but the ball took the top edge and gave short fine leg an easy catch. 4 for 1, just a few balls in.
That scoreline would become even worse for the West Indies in the next over, as Broad caught Hyatt plumb in front for his second successive duck at international level. He had yet to score his first run at the top level, and the dismissal would give him nightmares for some time as he shouldered arms to a straight one.
Lewis came to the crease, and after a brief but entertaining stay the last time he took guard, a lot was expected from him. Broad was not going to give him anything to work with, though. The first ball Lewis faced was a short one that Lewis was forced to duck under or risk losing his head. Broad followed it with the yorker, and Lewis was struck on the pads for a big appeal by the fielding team. The umpire shook his head. Replays seemed to show the thinnest of inside edges, but it was not at all very conclusive.
No such doubts with the next ball. Broad started it outside off to the left hander from around the wicket. It came in with the angle and then straightened after pitching. Lewis tried to swipe across the line but missed. The fielders went up almost before the ball hit the pads. The finger went up almost as quickly. West Indies were 5 for 3 and in some trouble.
Banks came out, still adjusting his equipment. He had clearly not expected to be out in the middle so early. But what West Indies needed at the moment was a period of consolidation, and he had the ability to do just that. He played a textbook forward defense stroke to see out the end of the over and then met Chattergoon in the middle for what seemed like the longest of conferences.
Anderson continued for his second over. The batsmen were content to play simple shots out of the manual, running the singles when they were on offer. Not one shot was played in aggression and they ran well. Even a direct hit at the striker's end off of the final ball of the over found the batsman well inside the crease as the run was taken.
Broad had bowled a great first over, and he too, continued for a second. Banks played him out into the covers for a single. Chattergoon then played a good glance off of his legs that ran close the the boundary. The fielder chased hard, turned, and threw. Kieswetter collected and had the stumps down in a flash. Chattergoon landed alongside him in a puff of dust after putting in a dive. The square leg umpire went upstairs.
It was hard to tell. Chattergoon's bat had dug into the pitch a bit and the resulting spray of dirt made it hard to tell if he was over the line or not. Eventually the third umpire ruled it out. West Indies were 13 for 4.
That soon became 14 for 5 as Banks played Broad's last ball of the over into the lap of midwicket for one of the easiest catches anyone is likely to ever see.
West Indies were sinking. The fans, most of whom had been jeering and booing, were now sitting in stunned silence.
Browne and Stoute were effectively the last two recognised batsmen. Only four overs had been bowled and half the side was back in the dressing room.
Pietersen gave the ball to Swann, who was greeted with a cracking shot from Stoute for four behind point. He then guided one down past backward square with a sweep to take a single. Browne took his time in playing Swann, staying on the back foot more often than not and playing the ball off of the pitch. But at least if no further runs were scored in the over, no further wickets fell too.
Sidebottom took up proceedings at the other end, relieving the successful Broad. But just as had happened to his teammate Swann, he too was greeted with a boundary, this one a maximum one over wide mid on for six. That got the crowd to stir again, and as he took a single to put Browne on strike, the cheers grew. Browne then played a cover drive for four to get those cheers to grow even more.
It could still be all for nothing, though. After the six-over Powerplay, West Indies were a paltry 31 for 5.
Swann resumed at the next end, and the batsmen played him carefully. Only when he bowled a short one a few balls in did Browne swivel on his toes and hit it to the square leg rope. Swann then committed the worst sin of a spinner, and that was bowling a no ball. No runs were scored from the bat, but Browne made him pay off of the free hit, stepping out of the crease and launching it back over the bowler's head for a one-bounce straight four.
Stoute and Browne seemed to want to counterattack, and they were doing a good job of it. Sidebottom saw his next over going for 7 runs, four of them all at once via a pull through midwicket to the boundary. Pietersen was forced to relax his field. Out went the slips. The men in the circle stood at the edge instead of closer in. More men were dispatched to the deep.
The opening up of the field brought more opportunities for singles, and Browne and Stoute rotated the strike well together. They still found the boundary though, hitting the rope one or two times per over. After being 31 for 5 at the end of 6 overs, they ended more than doubling that at the halfway point of the innings. After 10 overs, the score stood at 65 for the same 5. An unbeaten 51-run partnership had taken the sting out of the England attack.
To prove just that, Swann was then on the receiving end of another maximum, this one also from Stoute. Batting just outside his crease, he took a big step forward and turned Swann's delivery effectively into a half volley, hitting the ball deep into the stands behind the midwicket position. The crowd had been almost deathly silent after the top order collapse, now they were jumping in their seats.
With the batsmen not taking things lying down, Pietersen swapped Sidebottom for Bresnan. He bowled full and straight, forcing the batsman to play at each delivery. It was a surprising moment of calm in the match, with no runs scored and no wickets falling. By the end of his first six balls, he had bowled a rare maiden over in T20 cricket.
Sidebottom switched ends and took over after Swann's quota was up, and he took bowled a couple of beautiful deliveries to Browne. The batsman could do nothing but play them into the off side, where they were happily collected by an applauding cover point. The third ball went to the left of that same fielder, and they chanced his arm. But that man was Collingwood, and he dived acrobatically and stopped the ball before collecting and throwing from a kneeling position. His direct hit found the batsman in a tight spot. The umpire went to his colleague in the booth. The bat was just in as the bails came off. Barely.
Bresnan prepared to bowl his second over. After his first to Stoute, he would have wanted more of the same. Stoute, on the other hand, had other ideas in mind. He continued to bat outside of his crease, and Bresnan saw his first ball being driven along the ground back past him for four. He bowled the second ball a little shorter, a little wider. Stoute drove it to the cover boundary. Bresnan, looking a bit exasperated, bowled a poor ball next, starting on the stumps and heading down leg. Stoute took a step back and played a back foot on drive for a third consecutive four.
One of the commentators, an ex-cricketer from England, became excited and said to start the car. His broadcast partner, an ex-cricketer from Pakistan, stated that it was a very good reference and that Stoute must be a chauffeur in his spare time because he was driving to all corners of the park.
Stoute then played to nobody's surprise, an off drive to the left of long off for a couple before finally parking up that metaphorical car and guiding one down to third man for a single. Bresnan finished the over and walked to his fielding position looking almost shellshocked.
Pietersen decided to bring his strike bowler, Anderson, back. With neither of the two batsmen having seen much of him all match, it took some time to adjust to him, and his first over back went for only three runs. Pietersen then surprisingly opted to let Bresnan bowl again, but he clearly was not the same man who had bowled a maiden just two overs prior. His first ball was short, wide, and with the sort of pace that would make a snail laugh. Stoute seemed to have all the time in the world as he leaned back and cut hard over the man at point, all the way to the boundary for four. That brought up a superb fifty for him, and in a tense match situation.
He took off his helmet and kissed the West Indies logo before pointing his bat to the dressing room and finally accepting a big hug from Browne. The fans all but gave him a full standing ovation. A couple of the English even gave him a pat on the back.
He put back on his helmet and prepared to face the next ball, coolly playing it off his legs down to deep square leg for a single.
With the innings coming to a close, both batsmen tried to go for the big shots, but they were not connecting with them. Eventually they settled down and took the singles and couples on offer instead of trying to hit the cover off of the ball everytime.
By the end of the innings, the all-time record for the sixth wicket partnership in T20 Internationals had been broken, and England had not been able to dislodge either man for 16 overs. After an unbeaten 104 run partnership, West Indies had not only stopped the ship from sinking, they had plugged the leak and were hopefully about to sail to shore.
End of West Indies innings - 118/5(20), Stoute58*(54), Broad 3-9(4)
England need 119 to win at 5.9 per over
The debuting Currency and the patient Chattergoon made their way to the middle as Pietersen arranged his field. Currency took first strike and the intent from England was clear to all. They were going to attack. Big gaps were left in the field as Pietersen put in two slips, a gully, short fine leg, midwicket, mid off, mid on, square leg, and cover. No men out in the deep.
The first ball of Currency's international career was short, just outside off. He defended it easily back up the pitch to the bowler Anderson. The second also gave him his first runs. Anderson bowled a half volley that was duly dispatched past the short midwicket with a good on drive for four.
Anderson came back well, however, with an excellent delivery that took the edge of Currency's bat but dropped short of second slip. The next delivery had Currency trying to glance one off his hips, but the ball took the top edge and gave short fine leg an easy catch. 4 for 1, just a few balls in.
That scoreline would become even worse for the West Indies in the next over, as Broad caught Hyatt plumb in front for his second successive duck at international level. He had yet to score his first run at the top level, and the dismissal would give him nightmares for some time as he shouldered arms to a straight one.
Lewis came to the crease, and after a brief but entertaining stay the last time he took guard, a lot was expected from him. Broad was not going to give him anything to work with, though. The first ball Lewis faced was a short one that Lewis was forced to duck under or risk losing his head. Broad followed it with the yorker, and Lewis was struck on the pads for a big appeal by the fielding team. The umpire shook his head. Replays seemed to show the thinnest of inside edges, but it was not at all very conclusive.
No such doubts with the next ball. Broad started it outside off to the left hander from around the wicket. It came in with the angle and then straightened after pitching. Lewis tried to swipe across the line but missed. The fielders went up almost before the ball hit the pads. The finger went up almost as quickly. West Indies were 5 for 3 and in some trouble.
Banks came out, still adjusting his equipment. He had clearly not expected to be out in the middle so early. But what West Indies needed at the moment was a period of consolidation, and he had the ability to do just that. He played a textbook forward defense stroke to see out the end of the over and then met Chattergoon in the middle for what seemed like the longest of conferences.
Anderson continued for his second over. The batsmen were content to play simple shots out of the manual, running the singles when they were on offer. Not one shot was played in aggression and they ran well. Even a direct hit at the striker's end off of the final ball of the over found the batsman well inside the crease as the run was taken.
Broad had bowled a great first over, and he too, continued for a second. Banks played him out into the covers for a single. Chattergoon then played a good glance off of his legs that ran close the the boundary. The fielder chased hard, turned, and threw. Kieswetter collected and had the stumps down in a flash. Chattergoon landed alongside him in a puff of dust after putting in a dive. The square leg umpire went upstairs.
It was hard to tell. Chattergoon's bat had dug into the pitch a bit and the resulting spray of dirt made it hard to tell if he was over the line or not. Eventually the third umpire ruled it out. West Indies were 13 for 4.
That soon became 14 for 5 as Banks played Broad's last ball of the over into the lap of midwicket for one of the easiest catches anyone is likely to ever see.
West Indies were sinking. The fans, most of whom had been jeering and booing, were now sitting in stunned silence.
Browne and Stoute were effectively the last two recognised batsmen. Only four overs had been bowled and half the side was back in the dressing room.
Pietersen gave the ball to Swann, who was greeted with a cracking shot from Stoute for four behind point. He then guided one down past backward square with a sweep to take a single. Browne took his time in playing Swann, staying on the back foot more often than not and playing the ball off of the pitch. But at least if no further runs were scored in the over, no further wickets fell too.
Sidebottom took up proceedings at the other end, relieving the successful Broad. But just as had happened to his teammate Swann, he too was greeted with a boundary, this one a maximum one over wide mid on for six. That got the crowd to stir again, and as he took a single to put Browne on strike, the cheers grew. Browne then played a cover drive for four to get those cheers to grow even more.
It could still be all for nothing, though. After the six-over Powerplay, West Indies were a paltry 31 for 5.
Swann resumed at the next end, and the batsmen played him carefully. Only when he bowled a short one a few balls in did Browne swivel on his toes and hit it to the square leg rope. Swann then committed the worst sin of a spinner, and that was bowling a no ball. No runs were scored from the bat, but Browne made him pay off of the free hit, stepping out of the crease and launching it back over the bowler's head for a one-bounce straight four.
Stoute and Browne seemed to want to counterattack, and they were doing a good job of it. Sidebottom saw his next over going for 7 runs, four of them all at once via a pull through midwicket to the boundary. Pietersen was forced to relax his field. Out went the slips. The men in the circle stood at the edge instead of closer in. More men were dispatched to the deep.
The opening up of the field brought more opportunities for singles, and Browne and Stoute rotated the strike well together. They still found the boundary though, hitting the rope one or two times per over. After being 31 for 5 at the end of 6 overs, they ended more than doubling that at the halfway point of the innings. After 10 overs, the score stood at 65 for the same 5. An unbeaten 51-run partnership had taken the sting out of the England attack.
To prove just that, Swann was then on the receiving end of another maximum, this one also from Stoute. Batting just outside his crease, he took a big step forward and turned Swann's delivery effectively into a half volley, hitting the ball deep into the stands behind the midwicket position. The crowd had been almost deathly silent after the top order collapse, now they were jumping in their seats.
With the batsmen not taking things lying down, Pietersen swapped Sidebottom for Bresnan. He bowled full and straight, forcing the batsman to play at each delivery. It was a surprising moment of calm in the match, with no runs scored and no wickets falling. By the end of his first six balls, he had bowled a rare maiden over in T20 cricket.
Sidebottom switched ends and took over after Swann's quota was up, and he took bowled a couple of beautiful deliveries to Browne. The batsman could do nothing but play them into the off side, where they were happily collected by an applauding cover point. The third ball went to the left of that same fielder, and they chanced his arm. But that man was Collingwood, and he dived acrobatically and stopped the ball before collecting and throwing from a kneeling position. His direct hit found the batsman in a tight spot. The umpire went to his colleague in the booth. The bat was just in as the bails came off. Barely.
Bresnan prepared to bowl his second over. After his first to Stoute, he would have wanted more of the same. Stoute, on the other hand, had other ideas in mind. He continued to bat outside of his crease, and Bresnan saw his first ball being driven along the ground back past him for four. He bowled the second ball a little shorter, a little wider. Stoute drove it to the cover boundary. Bresnan, looking a bit exasperated, bowled a poor ball next, starting on the stumps and heading down leg. Stoute took a step back and played a back foot on drive for a third consecutive four.
One of the commentators, an ex-cricketer from England, became excited and said to start the car. His broadcast partner, an ex-cricketer from Pakistan, stated that it was a very good reference and that Stoute must be a chauffeur in his spare time because he was driving to all corners of the park.
Stoute then played to nobody's surprise, an off drive to the left of long off for a couple before finally parking up that metaphorical car and guiding one down to third man for a single. Bresnan finished the over and walked to his fielding position looking almost shellshocked.
Pietersen decided to bring his strike bowler, Anderson, back. With neither of the two batsmen having seen much of him all match, it took some time to adjust to him, and his first over back went for only three runs. Pietersen then surprisingly opted to let Bresnan bowl again, but he clearly was not the same man who had bowled a maiden just two overs prior. His first ball was short, wide, and with the sort of pace that would make a snail laugh. Stoute seemed to have all the time in the world as he leaned back and cut hard over the man at point, all the way to the boundary for four. That brought up a superb fifty for him, and in a tense match situation.
He took off his helmet and kissed the West Indies logo before pointing his bat to the dressing room and finally accepting a big hug from Browne. The fans all but gave him a full standing ovation. A couple of the English even gave him a pat on the back.
He put back on his helmet and prepared to face the next ball, coolly playing it off his legs down to deep square leg for a single.
With the innings coming to a close, both batsmen tried to go for the big shots, but they were not connecting with them. Eventually they settled down and took the singles and couples on offer instead of trying to hit the cover off of the ball everytime.
By the end of the innings, the all-time record for the sixth wicket partnership in T20 Internationals had been broken, and England had not been able to dislodge either man for 16 overs. After an unbeaten 104 run partnership, West Indies had not only stopped the ship from sinking, they had plugged the leak and were hopefully about to sail to shore.
End of West Indies innings - 118/5(20), Stoute58*(54), Broad 3-9(4)
England need 119 to win at 5.9 per over
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qpeedore
SOTM Winner - July 2014
Just a quick note. I've decided to restart my save, with the same team. Won't affect the outcome of this match as I already have the second innings already written.
The reason behind it is that I've "lost" the save, as explained above.
This will be the first, and probably only time that the story takes precedence over the actual game itself.
Will have the winner of the prediction contest up later, as well as the second innings and then preview of the next phase.
The reason behind it is that I've "lost" the save, as explained above.
This will be the first, and probably only time that the story takes precedence over the actual game itself.
Will have the winner of the prediction contest up later, as well as the second innings and then preview of the next phase.
qpeedore
SOTM Winner - July 2014
West Indies had pulled themselves out of a very deep hole, and they had Stoute and Browne to thank for it. Due to the efforts of those two men and that record-breaking partnership, they had given themselves something to bowl at. The top order would have to be looked over, but for the moment, they had the second half of a match to play.
As with the first match, McClean opened the bowling. Kieswetter faced the first ball and stamped his authority on the bowler immediately. Forget playing himself in, the batsman stood tall and swung hard, and the ball went several rows back. McClean tidied up nicely, though, tightening his line and length, but still allowed three further runs in the over.
Banks opted against using Stoute at the other end. Whether it was due to fatigue or otherwise, nobody knew. But it was Mohammed who held the ball and he dusted each hand in turn on the pitch before spinning the ball from palm to palm. He began his run up but then pulled out. The batsman was unmoved. Mohammed smiled and nodded.
His first actual delivery was played by Kieswetter into the off side for a single. Another single followed before Kieswetter picked the flipper well and simply paddled it around his legs, using the pace to let it run all the way to the boundary.
In the next over, Lumb got into the thick of things, taking McClean for a good cover drive that beat the diving fielder on its way to the boundary. West Indies did not have a lot to defend, and they were not off to a good start. England were going at near 10 an over early on.
Stoute eventually came on after just one over from Mohammed. A leg side wide was bowled first up, and Banks' head dipped further. It could not possibly have gone any lower when Kieswetter hit an off drive for four. But Stoute was not to be bothered by such things. The very next ball after the boundary, he gave Kieswetter a fuller one that swung away a little. The ball took the edge. Hyatt took the catch at first slip. West Indies were finally into England. 31 for 1.
Pietersen came out and promptly hit his first ball for four. West Indies needed to do something, or else England would run away with the match.
Emrit was the next bowler Banks decided to try. But no luck. The two English batsmen played him away as easily as one would tie their shoelaces. By the time Kelly came into the attack, both batsmen were settled and were finding the boundary at least once an over.
At the end of the Powerplay, England were a commanding 52 for 1.
West Indies' morale was dropping fast. When Mohammed had Lumb caught in the deep in the 9th over, there was not even the usual theatrics from him. He simply raised his fist into the air and then took a drink from the 12th man before getting ready to bowl again.
The going was tough for the West Indies, although the wicket did give them some hope. The boundaries dried up. The singles did not. The bowlers were finding it hard to get a proper line and length, and Banks, under pressure, was not giving them more than one over at a time.
With the bowlers not getting time to settle, it made things even harder. Pietersen and Morgan simply picked off the singles and kept abreast of the relatively easy asking rate. When Stoute had Pietersen trapped on the pads in the 13th over, the appeal was only half-hearted from both bowler and wicketkeeper. A healthier appeal might have resulted in a wicket, as Hawkeye showed the ball clipping the leg stump. Pietersen was on 28 at the time.
He would not make much more. Only two more, in fact. Mohammed got him with the flipper, the extra pace beating his attempted sweep to hit him on the pads. This time there was very little doubt and the umpire raised the finger. Mohammed celebrated this time, doing a forward roll before standing up and taking a bow, then pointing a finger-gun at Pietersen and shooting him, blowing on the barrel that was his index finger.
Still, England were 85 for 3 and well in control of the match.
Bopara came in and it was more of the same. While the boundaries were not exactly frequent, the run rate was by this time well below six and over and singles would win it. Singles were exactly what England found. Banks eventually had to bring his field in. With that brought less singles.
Banks was daring the English team to hit over the infield. And Morgan did just that, hitting McClean over long off for four. But it would be the last four he would hit. McClean pushed the next ball closer to the batsman in both line and length. Morgan tried a similar shot but could not do anything except get the inside edge. Browne behind the stumps gleefully took the catch. But again, the celebrations were muted.
There was no dampening of the celebrations soon afterward, though. Collingwood got an amazing delivery first up, trapped right in the crease in front of the stumps. McClean and Browne both went up in appeal. The umpire only took a moment before raising the finger. Collingwood went for a golden duck, and suddenly McClean was on a hat trick. The crowd began to swell with cheers once more.
Surely, not a win for the West Indies? England were 107 for 5, only 12 runs to get in 2.3 overs. The odds were against the home team. The bookies would no doubt have a field day with anyone betting against England.
Swann walked to the crease to face the hat trick ball. McClean stood at the top of his run up, ball in hand. Banks was next to him. McClean wanted his field set exactly as he said. One slip. A short fine leg, midwicket, backward point, mid on. The men deep were long off, deep square leg, third man, a man on the cover boundary.
The hat trick ball was speared into leg stump, yorker length. Swann got bat on ball and squeezed it down to mid on, who fumbled and allowed the single. Hat trick avoided.
Bopara then got a vicious short ball. Extreme effort from the bowler, who pitched it almost half pitch in order to get it to bounce as high as it did. Bopara just managed to drop his hands in time and let the ball pass harmlessly to the wicketkeeper.
By the end of the over, England needed 10 from 12.
Kelly bowled the penultimate over. He did not get off to a good start, being driven for four by Swann. But he would get his revenge by comprehensively beating him and pegging back the off stump to send Swann packing. But by the end of the over, England only needed 2 from the final six deliveries to win the match. That the West Indies had taken England this far was something, but they would lose the match for sure.
Bopara made sure of that in the final over, hitting the winning runs to take England over the mark.
End of England innings – 119/6(19.2), Morgan 23(23), Mohammed 2-18(4)
England win by 4 wickets
As with the first match, McClean opened the bowling. Kieswetter faced the first ball and stamped his authority on the bowler immediately. Forget playing himself in, the batsman stood tall and swung hard, and the ball went several rows back. McClean tidied up nicely, though, tightening his line and length, but still allowed three further runs in the over.
Banks opted against using Stoute at the other end. Whether it was due to fatigue or otherwise, nobody knew. But it was Mohammed who held the ball and he dusted each hand in turn on the pitch before spinning the ball from palm to palm. He began his run up but then pulled out. The batsman was unmoved. Mohammed smiled and nodded.
His first actual delivery was played by Kieswetter into the off side for a single. Another single followed before Kieswetter picked the flipper well and simply paddled it around his legs, using the pace to let it run all the way to the boundary.
In the next over, Lumb got into the thick of things, taking McClean for a good cover drive that beat the diving fielder on its way to the boundary. West Indies did not have a lot to defend, and they were not off to a good start. England were going at near 10 an over early on.
Stoute eventually came on after just one over from Mohammed. A leg side wide was bowled first up, and Banks' head dipped further. It could not possibly have gone any lower when Kieswetter hit an off drive for four. But Stoute was not to be bothered by such things. The very next ball after the boundary, he gave Kieswetter a fuller one that swung away a little. The ball took the edge. Hyatt took the catch at first slip. West Indies were finally into England. 31 for 1.
Pietersen came out and promptly hit his first ball for four. West Indies needed to do something, or else England would run away with the match.
Emrit was the next bowler Banks decided to try. But no luck. The two English batsmen played him away as easily as one would tie their shoelaces. By the time Kelly came into the attack, both batsmen were settled and were finding the boundary at least once an over.
At the end of the Powerplay, England were a commanding 52 for 1.
West Indies' morale was dropping fast. When Mohammed had Lumb caught in the deep in the 9th over, there was not even the usual theatrics from him. He simply raised his fist into the air and then took a drink from the 12th man before getting ready to bowl again.
The going was tough for the West Indies, although the wicket did give them some hope. The boundaries dried up. The singles did not. The bowlers were finding it hard to get a proper line and length, and Banks, under pressure, was not giving them more than one over at a time.
With the bowlers not getting time to settle, it made things even harder. Pietersen and Morgan simply picked off the singles and kept abreast of the relatively easy asking rate. When Stoute had Pietersen trapped on the pads in the 13th over, the appeal was only half-hearted from both bowler and wicketkeeper. A healthier appeal might have resulted in a wicket, as Hawkeye showed the ball clipping the leg stump. Pietersen was on 28 at the time.
He would not make much more. Only two more, in fact. Mohammed got him with the flipper, the extra pace beating his attempted sweep to hit him on the pads. This time there was very little doubt and the umpire raised the finger. Mohammed celebrated this time, doing a forward roll before standing up and taking a bow, then pointing a finger-gun at Pietersen and shooting him, blowing on the barrel that was his index finger.
Still, England were 85 for 3 and well in control of the match.
Bopara came in and it was more of the same. While the boundaries were not exactly frequent, the run rate was by this time well below six and over and singles would win it. Singles were exactly what England found. Banks eventually had to bring his field in. With that brought less singles.
Banks was daring the English team to hit over the infield. And Morgan did just that, hitting McClean over long off for four. But it would be the last four he would hit. McClean pushed the next ball closer to the batsman in both line and length. Morgan tried a similar shot but could not do anything except get the inside edge. Browne behind the stumps gleefully took the catch. But again, the celebrations were muted.
There was no dampening of the celebrations soon afterward, though. Collingwood got an amazing delivery first up, trapped right in the crease in front of the stumps. McClean and Browne both went up in appeal. The umpire only took a moment before raising the finger. Collingwood went for a golden duck, and suddenly McClean was on a hat trick. The crowd began to swell with cheers once more.
Surely, not a win for the West Indies? England were 107 for 5, only 12 runs to get in 2.3 overs. The odds were against the home team. The bookies would no doubt have a field day with anyone betting against England.
Swann walked to the crease to face the hat trick ball. McClean stood at the top of his run up, ball in hand. Banks was next to him. McClean wanted his field set exactly as he said. One slip. A short fine leg, midwicket, backward point, mid on. The men deep were long off, deep square leg, third man, a man on the cover boundary.
The hat trick ball was speared into leg stump, yorker length. Swann got bat on ball and squeezed it down to mid on, who fumbled and allowed the single. Hat trick avoided.
Bopara then got a vicious short ball. Extreme effort from the bowler, who pitched it almost half pitch in order to get it to bounce as high as it did. Bopara just managed to drop his hands in time and let the ball pass harmlessly to the wicketkeeper.
By the end of the over, England needed 10 from 12.
Kelly bowled the penultimate over. He did not get off to a good start, being driven for four by Swann. But he would get his revenge by comprehensively beating him and pegging back the off stump to send Swann packing. But by the end of the over, England only needed 2 from the final six deliveries to win the match. That the West Indies had taken England this far was something, but they would lose the match for sure.
Bopara made sure of that in the final over, hitting the winning runs to take England over the mark.
End of England innings – 119/6(19.2), Morgan 23(23), Mohammed 2-18(4)
England win by 4 wickets
qpeedore
SOTM Winner - July 2014
NH: Welcome to this, the presentation ceremony at the end of what was a comfortable victory for England despite the local team taking them into the final over. Nasser Hussein here and behind me is the panel, which I'd like to introduce. Jeremy Longfellow stands on the left, ICC representative for these matches in Jamaica. Next to him is Lawrence Rowe, former West Indies player, and finally the man of the match selector, John Guesty. Now first up I'd like to call on the West Indian captain to come up. Omari, tough luck today but you took them down to the last over.
OB: Yeah, obviously the loss is harder to swallow knowing that we took them so far, but in the end we had some positives to take out of the match for sure.
NH: You guys did not get off to a great batting start, and it's the second match in a row in which that has happened. Is it that the team is adjusting to playing at the top level?
OB: Nah, I think these guys have all had the chance to play against some of the best in the world, either through A Team tours or practice matches or even in my case, the English County circuit. So I think that the team has the exposure, but obviously it's a different environment with all the fans and everything. We fell away at the top, but Stoute and Browne did an excellent job of getting us back on track.
NH: Speaking of Stoute and Browne, a record breaking partnership between the two of them. What did you think of that?
OB: Of course that was a brilliant partnership between the two, and we needed someone to step up at the time and just bat. They did that very well and hopefully if we get into the next stage we will see more from them.
NH: Thank you...Omari Banks, ladies and gentlemen. Now I'd like to call on Kevin Pietersen, the winning captain today...Kev, a bit shaky near the end but you guys always seemed in control.
KP: Yeah, I mean no matter who you're playing you can't underestimate them, and this West Indies team, I tell you it's got a lot of fight in it. We came into this match expecting a tough time and we certainly had it but we stuck to our game and came out with the win in the end.
NH: 118, a lowish total on a pitch that seemed like it had a few more runs in it. Were you guys aiming to finish things off quickly?
KP: Nah, I mean at the end of the day in these opening matches if you get a win it doesn't really matter, you'll be into the next stage. We weren't too bothered by run rates or anything, we just wanted to win and we got the important victory.
NH: Ireland next. Would you like to change anything when you play them?
KP: Haha, Nass you know that I can't really answer that. That's something we need to sit down as a team and look over the footage of today and address any issues if they come up.
Thank you...Kevin Pietersen folks, collecting the winners' cheque from Mr. Rowe. Now I'd like to call on John Guesty who will let us know his selection for the Man of the Match. John, your thoughts?
Guesty: Well there were a few choices. First of all you had Browne and Stoute to consider, two of the better T20 innings I've seen played under difficult circumstances. Then you had the bowling of Stuart Broad, who went for only 9 runs but picked up 3 wickets, and he is the man I have chosen today.
NH: Stuart collects his medal and cheque from Mr. Longfellow...Stuart, a few words? Tell me what it was like bowling out there.
SB: It's never really easy bowling here. The pitches tend to favour the batsmen, but with enough effort you can restrict them and I told myself that all I needed to do was put the ball in the right places and everything would go my way.
NH: Three wickets for nine runs in a Twenty20. How does this bowling performance rate for you?
SB: I would say it's up there. It's just a prelim match, it's not the Ashes or anything but it's still an effort that I'm happy of and hopefully if I keep working at it there will be more of the same to come.
NH: Thanks Stuart, and with that, it concludes this presentation ceremony. Let's take it back upstairs to Ian Bishop and David Lloyd.
(Guesty98 has won the prediction contest from my first run-through of the predictions. He unfortunately has not replied to my PM as yet, and I couldn't wait any longer. Apologies for that, Guesty. You're still in the presentation though, albeit written by myself.
Will calculate total points tomorrow during the day, and then probably have the preview up in the evening.)
OB: Yeah, obviously the loss is harder to swallow knowing that we took them so far, but in the end we had some positives to take out of the match for sure.
NH: You guys did not get off to a great batting start, and it's the second match in a row in which that has happened. Is it that the team is adjusting to playing at the top level?
OB: Nah, I think these guys have all had the chance to play against some of the best in the world, either through A Team tours or practice matches or even in my case, the English County circuit. So I think that the team has the exposure, but obviously it's a different environment with all the fans and everything. We fell away at the top, but Stoute and Browne did an excellent job of getting us back on track.
NH: Speaking of Stoute and Browne, a record breaking partnership between the two of them. What did you think of that?
OB: Of course that was a brilliant partnership between the two, and we needed someone to step up at the time and just bat. They did that very well and hopefully if we get into the next stage we will see more from them.
NH: Thank you...Omari Banks, ladies and gentlemen. Now I'd like to call on Kevin Pietersen, the winning captain today...Kev, a bit shaky near the end but you guys always seemed in control.
KP: Yeah, I mean no matter who you're playing you can't underestimate them, and this West Indies team, I tell you it's got a lot of fight in it. We came into this match expecting a tough time and we certainly had it but we stuck to our game and came out with the win in the end.
NH: 118, a lowish total on a pitch that seemed like it had a few more runs in it. Were you guys aiming to finish things off quickly?
KP: Nah, I mean at the end of the day in these opening matches if you get a win it doesn't really matter, you'll be into the next stage. We weren't too bothered by run rates or anything, we just wanted to win and we got the important victory.
NH: Ireland next. Would you like to change anything when you play them?
KP: Haha, Nass you know that I can't really answer that. That's something we need to sit down as a team and look over the footage of today and address any issues if they come up.
Thank you...Kevin Pietersen folks, collecting the winners' cheque from Mr. Rowe. Now I'd like to call on John Guesty who will let us know his selection for the Man of the Match. John, your thoughts?
Guesty: Well there were a few choices. First of all you had Browne and Stoute to consider, two of the better T20 innings I've seen played under difficult circumstances. Then you had the bowling of Stuart Broad, who went for only 9 runs but picked up 3 wickets, and he is the man I have chosen today.
NH: Stuart collects his medal and cheque from Mr. Longfellow...Stuart, a few words? Tell me what it was like bowling out there.
SB: It's never really easy bowling here. The pitches tend to favour the batsmen, but with enough effort you can restrict them and I told myself that all I needed to do was put the ball in the right places and everything would go my way.
NH: Three wickets for nine runs in a Twenty20. How does this bowling performance rate for you?
SB: I would say it's up there. It's just a prelim match, it's not the Ashes or anything but it's still an effort that I'm happy of and hopefully if I keep working at it there will be more of the same to come.
NH: Thanks Stuart, and with that, it concludes this presentation ceremony. Let's take it back upstairs to Ian Bishop and David Lloyd.
(Guesty98 has won the prediction contest from my first run-through of the predictions. He unfortunately has not replied to my PM as yet, and I couldn't wait any longer. Apologies for that, Guesty. You're still in the presentation though, albeit written by myself.
Will calculate total points tomorrow during the day, and then probably have the preview up in the evening.)
qpeedore
SOTM Winner - July 2014
So, I believe I've added correctly. The current running totals for the World T20 prediction contests are as such:
Guesty98 - 30
joejoe18 - 30
Aditya - 20
Jack Ryder - 20
Davoo - 13
Dipak - 14
Prithvi - 11
User2010 - 10
toby123 - 5
surendar - 5
Guesty98 - 30
joejoe18 - 30
Aditya - 20
Jack Ryder - 20
Davoo - 13
Dipak - 14
Prithvi - 11
User2010 - 10
toby123 - 5
surendar - 5
qpeedore
SOTM Winner - July 2014
May 7, 2010
West Indies vs. Sri Lanka
World T20, Super Eight
With one victory against Ireland and a game where they pushed England to the final over, West Indies have won over a lot of supporters. Their chances are slim of progressing to the semifinals though, with the ever-strong Australia and India also in their group. Today, however, they go up against Sri Lanka. The latter team will be riding high after winning both of their own preliminary matches in convincing fashion and quickly establishing themselves as one of the teams to be wary of in this tournament.
The West Indians need to sort out their batting at the top, as for the past two matches it was up to the middle and lower middle order to rescue them from danger. Their bowling has been not only commendable but outright penetrating, with wickets falling at regular intervals in their preliminary matches. One needs to wonder what would happen if there had been just 10 more runs on the board against England.
Conditions and pitch
There has been some rain overnight, which delays the start of this match by some thirty minutes. As a result, the outfield will be a bit slow early on, even with the improved drainage of the ground since the 2007 50-over World Cup. The pitch will not be absolutely dry, with the faster bowlers hopefully getting the ball to move around after pitching. The clouds overhead have all but gone away, though, and after the initial shine on the white ball goes away, expect very little swing.
Batting will become easier in the second innings, but for those batsmen who can ride through the first 4 or five overs of the day and then get themselves stuck in, there are runs to be had today.
Teams
WEST INDIES
Sewnarine Chattergoon (Bat)
William Perkins (Bat)
Evin Lewis (Bat)
Omari Banks (CAPT – All)
Danza Hyatt (VC - Bat)
Kevin Stoute (All)
Patrick Browne (WKB)
Rayad Emrit (Bowl)
Richard Kelly (Bowl)
Dave Mohammed (Bowl)
Kevin McClean (Bowl)
Again the single change in the West Indies team, with Perkins returning. The word from the camp as to why he had been replaced for the game against England was that he was suffering from a stomach flu, however he is now back to full fitness and will no doubt look to set the record straight this time. Otherwise, this is a team that has shown they love to bowl. Expect big things from that department again today.
Watch out for
Richard Kelly – An unusual choice, but as one of the first-change bowlers, he has to ensure that he keeps it tight while also being threatening enough to the batsmen.
Danza Hyatt – Two successive ducks in his first two international matches, this man has to be hungry for runs, and if he gets a chance today, he may very well score big.
SRI LANKA
Kumar Sangakarra (CAPT - Bat)
Chamara Kapugedera (Bat)
Angelo Matthews (All)
Mahela Jayawardene (Bat)
Dinesh Chandimal (WK)
Tillekeratne Dilshan (All)
Nuwan Kulasekera (Bowl)
Suraj Randiv (Bowl)
Ajantha Mendis (Bowl)
Lasith Malinga (Bowl)
Muttiah Muralitharan (Bowl)
This is a Sri Lankan team that is playing superbly at the moment, and with the nature of players in the squad, even an average game for any of them is still a sight to behold. One concern, however, is that they may be putting too much focus on their bowlers and a few quick wickets would expose their long tail.
News is that Sangakarra has had a confirmed finger injury which prevents him from picking up the gloves, giving the young Chandimal his second game of the tournament.
Watch out for
Mahela Jayawardene – You will never associate this player with raw power, but he more than makes up for it with his timing and technique. Simple shots that would net other batsmen a couple of runs seem to pick up speed to the boundary when he plays them.
Muttiah Muralitharan – The cricketing world has run out of superlatives for this bowler. Talks are that he may be retiring after this competition, and he will want to exit on a high.
The toss
Everyone is out in the middle for the toss and as Sangakarra throws the coin into the air, Banks makes his call and is revealed to be the winner. He has no second thoughts, immediately opting to bowl first. He says that with the overnight rain and the damp outfield, it will be hard for the batsmen to get the ball to the boundary even if they pierce the inner circle. The pitch also seems to offer some help to the bowlers and he wants to take advantage of that before the sun dries everything up. If by the end of the Powerplay they have Sri Lanka two or three down for an average total, they will be on their way to a good bowling performance.
Sangakarra says that he definitely would have bowled first as well had he won the toss, but that's the way the game goes sometimes. He knows that his team has the ability to make a big score, and even 130 might just be a winning total with the bowling lineup that they had, but they would definitely be aiming for at least 150.
West Indies vs. Sri Lanka
World T20, Super Eight
With one victory against Ireland and a game where they pushed England to the final over, West Indies have won over a lot of supporters. Their chances are slim of progressing to the semifinals though, with the ever-strong Australia and India also in their group. Today, however, they go up against Sri Lanka. The latter team will be riding high after winning both of their own preliminary matches in convincing fashion and quickly establishing themselves as one of the teams to be wary of in this tournament.
The West Indians need to sort out their batting at the top, as for the past two matches it was up to the middle and lower middle order to rescue them from danger. Their bowling has been not only commendable but outright penetrating, with wickets falling at regular intervals in their preliminary matches. One needs to wonder what would happen if there had been just 10 more runs on the board against England.
Conditions and pitch
There has been some rain overnight, which delays the start of this match by some thirty minutes. As a result, the outfield will be a bit slow early on, even with the improved drainage of the ground since the 2007 50-over World Cup. The pitch will not be absolutely dry, with the faster bowlers hopefully getting the ball to move around after pitching. The clouds overhead have all but gone away, though, and after the initial shine on the white ball goes away, expect very little swing.
Batting will become easier in the second innings, but for those batsmen who can ride through the first 4 or five overs of the day and then get themselves stuck in, there are runs to be had today.
Teams
WEST INDIES
Sewnarine Chattergoon (Bat)
William Perkins (Bat)
Evin Lewis (Bat)
Omari Banks (CAPT – All)
Danza Hyatt (VC - Bat)
Kevin Stoute (All)
Patrick Browne (WKB)
Rayad Emrit (Bowl)
Richard Kelly (Bowl)
Dave Mohammed (Bowl)
Kevin McClean (Bowl)
Again the single change in the West Indies team, with Perkins returning. The word from the camp as to why he had been replaced for the game against England was that he was suffering from a stomach flu, however he is now back to full fitness and will no doubt look to set the record straight this time. Otherwise, this is a team that has shown they love to bowl. Expect big things from that department again today.
Watch out for
Richard Kelly – An unusual choice, but as one of the first-change bowlers, he has to ensure that he keeps it tight while also being threatening enough to the batsmen.
Danza Hyatt – Two successive ducks in his first two international matches, this man has to be hungry for runs, and if he gets a chance today, he may very well score big.
SRI LANKA
Kumar Sangakarra (CAPT - Bat)
Chamara Kapugedera (Bat)
Angelo Matthews (All)
Mahela Jayawardene (Bat)
Dinesh Chandimal (WK)
Tillekeratne Dilshan (All)
Nuwan Kulasekera (Bowl)
Suraj Randiv (Bowl)
Ajantha Mendis (Bowl)
Lasith Malinga (Bowl)
Muttiah Muralitharan (Bowl)
This is a Sri Lankan team that is playing superbly at the moment, and with the nature of players in the squad, even an average game for any of them is still a sight to behold. One concern, however, is that they may be putting too much focus on their bowlers and a few quick wickets would expose their long tail.
News is that Sangakarra has had a confirmed finger injury which prevents him from picking up the gloves, giving the young Chandimal his second game of the tournament.
Watch out for
Mahela Jayawardene – You will never associate this player with raw power, but he more than makes up for it with his timing and technique. Simple shots that would net other batsmen a couple of runs seem to pick up speed to the boundary when he plays them.
Muttiah Muralitharan – The cricketing world has run out of superlatives for this bowler. Talks are that he may be retiring after this competition, and he will want to exit on a high.
The toss
Everyone is out in the middle for the toss and as Sangakarra throws the coin into the air, Banks makes his call and is revealed to be the winner. He has no second thoughts, immediately opting to bowl first. He says that with the overnight rain and the damp outfield, it will be hard for the batsmen to get the ball to the boundary even if they pierce the inner circle. The pitch also seems to offer some help to the bowlers and he wants to take advantage of that before the sun dries everything up. If by the end of the Powerplay they have Sri Lanka two or three down for an average total, they will be on their way to a good bowling performance.
Sangakarra says that he definitely would have bowled first as well had he won the toss, but that's the way the game goes sometimes. He knows that his team has the ability to make a big score, and even 130 might just be a winning total with the bowling lineup that they had, but they would definitely be aiming for at least 150.
qpeedore
SOTM Winner - July 2014
Play – West Indies vs. Sri Lanka
Sangakarra took his guard and played a few practice shots as McClean and Banks had a talk at the top of the run up. Sangakarra had not had the best of tournaments thus far, having being struck on the glove in the first match and retiring hurt before making a duck in the second. His form was not at all good, but he was the sort of batsman who could bounce back from it in an instant. McClean would have other ideas about that, though.
He bowled a genuine loosener first up, a shorter wider one that sat up and begged to be hit. Sangakarra responded with a cut shot that backward point dived across to parry to the ground and limit him to just a single. Not even a half chance, but then again he did get his hand to the ball. If the catch had stuck, there was no telling what the celebrations would have been like.
The second delivery, this one to Kapugedera, was much more accurate. It pitched on a good length outside off stump and came in, passing the inside edge on its way to the wicketkeeper. There was a half appeal from the bowler, but there was no edge and Kapugedera survived. He got off the mark with the next ball, a nervy looking on drive and a scrambled single. McClean only allowed three further runs in the over, finishing well after his poor first ball.
As had become the norm, Stoute took up the attack from the opposite end. And as had become the norm, his control of line and length was impressive. The batsmen were getting bat onto ball, but could not really get it away, instead having to settle for singles here and there. It was only when Kapugedera threw everything he had behind the fifth ball of the over that he got the first boundary of the innings.
McClean continued his spell, and saw Kapugedera still in his aggressive mood attempt a cut shot that took the top edge and went down to third man for a single. The next ball was nothing short of beautiful. He delivered it at something near 93 miles an hour, pitched it on middle stump, and had it brushing Sangakarra's back pad before crashing into the stumps to make an absolute mess of them. Had the ball not hit the stumps, it was a definite LBW call anyway. McClean leaped into the air and almost ran all the way to third man with his celebration as Sangakarra had to walk off, another failure in the tournament and his team 14 for 1.
Angelo Matthews, normally reserved for a bit of explosion later on in the innings, surprisingly walked out at number 3. Many had expected Jayawardene to come to the middle, but it may have been an intentional tactic on the part of the Sri Lankan coaching staff to both give Matthews more time in the middle and also to throw West Indies off with the game plan.
It seemed to work, too. With the dangerous Matthews in the middle during the Powerplay overs, Banks looked a bit indecisive as he set his field, changing fielders around no less than three times before the next ball. That ball was not particularly a bad one, but it was met with an excellent shot from Matthews, who took a step back and frighteningly close to his stumps before pulling the ball over midwicket's head for a one-bounce four. He then drove the next one sweetly through the covers, but the damp outfield caused the ball to slow up and allow the fielder to make a superb dive as he pulled the ball back, inches from the rope.
McClean was much more confident to Kapugedera, even if the batsman was looking to attack also. He bowled shorter and closer to the batsman. Too close to cut, but he went for the cut anyway. The result was a top edge straight into the waiting hands of Browne behind the wicket. 21 for 2.
Jayawardene walked out and seemed to have no trouble with his timing first up, cracking the ball off of the bat. But he could not pierce the infield and no run resulted.
Stoute continued his good, controlled bowling, and had a good second over that resulted in only six runs. Banks gave McClean a third over on the trot, searching for wickets. But Matthews would not be troubled by that and while McClean bowled well, it was met with good shots from the batsman, the highlight of which was another excellent cover drive. This time the fielder could not stop it and the ball crossed the rope easily.
Emrit relieved Stoute, and Matthews continued to play his shots, getting another four in that over. Jayawardene seemed content to let the more aggressive batsman have most of the strike, and he easily found the gaps for the singles. By the time Kelly came on to bowl, the Powerplay was over and Sri Lanka had scored 42 runs.
With the fielding restrictions over, Banks let things relax. Kelly did not have the pace of either Stoute or McClean, but he displayed good control and with the field spread, only singles resulted. That only seemed to fuel Matthews on further, and he let loose against Emrit in the next over, taking him for 14 runs with three fours. The best shot of the three had to have been a straight drive that bisected long off and long on almost perfectly. Matthews had entered the 40s is quick time, and as Jayawardene decided to get himself amongst the boundaries against Kelly in the next over, the West Indies' confidence seemed to dip.
Mohammed came into the attack and saw his first ball promptly dispatched to the boundary by Matthews to get him onto 49. The fifty came off of the very next ball, only his 28th, as he swept one down to fine leg for a single. He was in ominous form, and West Indies seemed to have no answer to him.
Mohammed, however, did have something for Jayawardene, and got one to grip and turn from leg stump, past the outside edge, and clip off stump. He went for 20 and had taken Sri Lanka to 85 via a good aggressive partnership with Matthews.
With a new batsman at one end, West Indies focused on keeping Matthews at the non-striker's end for as much as possible. Kelly returned to trap Chandimal right back on the crease for a straightforward LBW decision, and suddenly Sri Lanka had lost two quick wickets with the addition of only three runs.
Two quick wickets immediately became three quick wickets. Dilshan tried to go for everything off of his very first ball, and only succeeded in getting more height than distance. Both long off and long on ran in, but Emrit at long on called for the catch and took it after a juggle or two. There was no need for that sort of shot from Dilshan, and he had every right to walk away disgusted with himself.
It meant that Kelly was on a hat trick. Sri Lanka still held a firm grip on the match thus far, but the West Indians were fighting back. Matthews was left with the rather lengthy tail, and he was not even on strike. He spoke to Kulasekera at length once the new man was in the middle.
Whatever he said must have gone in one ear and out the other, as Kelly gave him one just outside off and the batsman tried a huge drive that missed everything. It did not stop everyone on the field from appealing, however, but the umpire was not pressured and made the right call of not out. Kelly then angled one into the pads, and again there was a massive swing and miss. And again there was a massive appeal from everyone on the ground and about twenty thousand people in the stands as well. Still not out, and replays showed the ball sliding past leg. By mere inches. When he finally got bat onto ball off of the final ball of the over, Sri Lankan hearts could finally beat properly again.
Matthews was on strike for the next over, and Banks spread the field to allow the easy single. Matthews pushed his luck and did so, letting Kulasekera face. He got his first run with a single down to long on, and generally the rest of the over was kept tight.
Matthews hit two boundaries off of Kelly in the next over to keep the run rate up, and then he took on the chinaman of Mohammed, hitting the first six of the match high over long on and into the stands. Matthews was frustrating the West Indies, and something needed to be done.
Banks decided that he needed to lead from the front and he brought himself on to bowl. Matthews was on strike, and he took the single early on in the over. Kulasekera showed that he at least has some ability with the bat when he took the fourth ball of the over for four, but that was only after playing and missing twice. He tried to reenact the same shot off of the fifth. Banks had pitched it a bit wider and flighted it a bit more, however. The result was a thick edge behind. Sri Lanka were 122 for 6.
Randiv came out and blasted two fours but was no match for the returning Stoute, who had him playing straight to short third man. Matthews then tried to farm the strike and succeeded more often than not. While Mendis was on strike, West Indies attacked. Still, thanks to Matthews, Sri Lanka had given themselves a great total and with their bowling, it was going to take something special for West Indies to chase successfully.
End of Sri Lanka innings – 165/7(20), Matthews 86(52), Kelly 2-28(4)
West Indies need 166 to win at 8.3 per over
Sangakarra took his guard and played a few practice shots as McClean and Banks had a talk at the top of the run up. Sangakarra had not had the best of tournaments thus far, having being struck on the glove in the first match and retiring hurt before making a duck in the second. His form was not at all good, but he was the sort of batsman who could bounce back from it in an instant. McClean would have other ideas about that, though.
He bowled a genuine loosener first up, a shorter wider one that sat up and begged to be hit. Sangakarra responded with a cut shot that backward point dived across to parry to the ground and limit him to just a single. Not even a half chance, but then again he did get his hand to the ball. If the catch had stuck, there was no telling what the celebrations would have been like.
The second delivery, this one to Kapugedera, was much more accurate. It pitched on a good length outside off stump and came in, passing the inside edge on its way to the wicketkeeper. There was a half appeal from the bowler, but there was no edge and Kapugedera survived. He got off the mark with the next ball, a nervy looking on drive and a scrambled single. McClean only allowed three further runs in the over, finishing well after his poor first ball.
As had become the norm, Stoute took up the attack from the opposite end. And as had become the norm, his control of line and length was impressive. The batsmen were getting bat onto ball, but could not really get it away, instead having to settle for singles here and there. It was only when Kapugedera threw everything he had behind the fifth ball of the over that he got the first boundary of the innings.
McClean continued his spell, and saw Kapugedera still in his aggressive mood attempt a cut shot that took the top edge and went down to third man for a single. The next ball was nothing short of beautiful. He delivered it at something near 93 miles an hour, pitched it on middle stump, and had it brushing Sangakarra's back pad before crashing into the stumps to make an absolute mess of them. Had the ball not hit the stumps, it was a definite LBW call anyway. McClean leaped into the air and almost ran all the way to third man with his celebration as Sangakarra had to walk off, another failure in the tournament and his team 14 for 1.
Angelo Matthews, normally reserved for a bit of explosion later on in the innings, surprisingly walked out at number 3. Many had expected Jayawardene to come to the middle, but it may have been an intentional tactic on the part of the Sri Lankan coaching staff to both give Matthews more time in the middle and also to throw West Indies off with the game plan.
It seemed to work, too. With the dangerous Matthews in the middle during the Powerplay overs, Banks looked a bit indecisive as he set his field, changing fielders around no less than three times before the next ball. That ball was not particularly a bad one, but it was met with an excellent shot from Matthews, who took a step back and frighteningly close to his stumps before pulling the ball over midwicket's head for a one-bounce four. He then drove the next one sweetly through the covers, but the damp outfield caused the ball to slow up and allow the fielder to make a superb dive as he pulled the ball back, inches from the rope.
McClean was much more confident to Kapugedera, even if the batsman was looking to attack also. He bowled shorter and closer to the batsman. Too close to cut, but he went for the cut anyway. The result was a top edge straight into the waiting hands of Browne behind the wicket. 21 for 2.
Jayawardene walked out and seemed to have no trouble with his timing first up, cracking the ball off of the bat. But he could not pierce the infield and no run resulted.
Stoute continued his good, controlled bowling, and had a good second over that resulted in only six runs. Banks gave McClean a third over on the trot, searching for wickets. But Matthews would not be troubled by that and while McClean bowled well, it was met with good shots from the batsman, the highlight of which was another excellent cover drive. This time the fielder could not stop it and the ball crossed the rope easily.
Emrit relieved Stoute, and Matthews continued to play his shots, getting another four in that over. Jayawardene seemed content to let the more aggressive batsman have most of the strike, and he easily found the gaps for the singles. By the time Kelly came on to bowl, the Powerplay was over and Sri Lanka had scored 42 runs.
With the fielding restrictions over, Banks let things relax. Kelly did not have the pace of either Stoute or McClean, but he displayed good control and with the field spread, only singles resulted. That only seemed to fuel Matthews on further, and he let loose against Emrit in the next over, taking him for 14 runs with three fours. The best shot of the three had to have been a straight drive that bisected long off and long on almost perfectly. Matthews had entered the 40s is quick time, and as Jayawardene decided to get himself amongst the boundaries against Kelly in the next over, the West Indies' confidence seemed to dip.
Mohammed came into the attack and saw his first ball promptly dispatched to the boundary by Matthews to get him onto 49. The fifty came off of the very next ball, only his 28th, as he swept one down to fine leg for a single. He was in ominous form, and West Indies seemed to have no answer to him.
Mohammed, however, did have something for Jayawardene, and got one to grip and turn from leg stump, past the outside edge, and clip off stump. He went for 20 and had taken Sri Lanka to 85 via a good aggressive partnership with Matthews.
With a new batsman at one end, West Indies focused on keeping Matthews at the non-striker's end for as much as possible. Kelly returned to trap Chandimal right back on the crease for a straightforward LBW decision, and suddenly Sri Lanka had lost two quick wickets with the addition of only three runs.
Two quick wickets immediately became three quick wickets. Dilshan tried to go for everything off of his very first ball, and only succeeded in getting more height than distance. Both long off and long on ran in, but Emrit at long on called for the catch and took it after a juggle or two. There was no need for that sort of shot from Dilshan, and he had every right to walk away disgusted with himself.
It meant that Kelly was on a hat trick. Sri Lanka still held a firm grip on the match thus far, but the West Indians were fighting back. Matthews was left with the rather lengthy tail, and he was not even on strike. He spoke to Kulasekera at length once the new man was in the middle.
Whatever he said must have gone in one ear and out the other, as Kelly gave him one just outside off and the batsman tried a huge drive that missed everything. It did not stop everyone on the field from appealing, however, but the umpire was not pressured and made the right call of not out. Kelly then angled one into the pads, and again there was a massive swing and miss. And again there was a massive appeal from everyone on the ground and about twenty thousand people in the stands as well. Still not out, and replays showed the ball sliding past leg. By mere inches. When he finally got bat onto ball off of the final ball of the over, Sri Lankan hearts could finally beat properly again.
Matthews was on strike for the next over, and Banks spread the field to allow the easy single. Matthews pushed his luck and did so, letting Kulasekera face. He got his first run with a single down to long on, and generally the rest of the over was kept tight.
Matthews hit two boundaries off of Kelly in the next over to keep the run rate up, and then he took on the chinaman of Mohammed, hitting the first six of the match high over long on and into the stands. Matthews was frustrating the West Indies, and something needed to be done.
Banks decided that he needed to lead from the front and he brought himself on to bowl. Matthews was on strike, and he took the single early on in the over. Kulasekera showed that he at least has some ability with the bat when he took the fourth ball of the over for four, but that was only after playing and missing twice. He tried to reenact the same shot off of the fifth. Banks had pitched it a bit wider and flighted it a bit more, however. The result was a thick edge behind. Sri Lanka were 122 for 6.
Randiv came out and blasted two fours but was no match for the returning Stoute, who had him playing straight to short third man. Matthews then tried to farm the strike and succeeded more often than not. While Mendis was on strike, West Indies attacked. Still, thanks to Matthews, Sri Lanka had given themselves a great total and with their bowling, it was going to take something special for West Indies to chase successfully.
Code:
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Sri Lanka v West Indies
World Cup 20 - Super Eight - 7 May 2010
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Sri Lanka - 1st Innings
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K Sangakkara b McClean 6
C Kapugedera c Browne b McClean 8
A Mathews not out 86
M Jayawardene b Mohammed 20
D Chandimal lbw b Kelly 1
T Dilshan c Emrit b Kelly 0
N Kulasekara c Browne b Banks 15
S Randiv c Perkins b Stoute 12
A Mendis not out 14
L Malinga
M M'itharan
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Extras: (nb1,w1,b1) 3
TOTAL: (7 wkts, 20 overs) 165
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O M R W
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K McClean 4 0 33 2
K Stoute 4 0 33 1
R Emrit 2 0 23 0
R Kelly 4 0 28 2
D Mohammed 4 0 34 1
O Banks 2 0 13 1
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Fall of Wickets:
1-14 2-21 3-85 4-88 5-88
6-122 7-139
**********************************************End of Sri Lanka innings – 165/7(20), Matthews 86(52), Kelly 2-28(4)
West Indies need 166 to win at 8.3 per over
Last edited:
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