Sportsfreak is now disease free and rocking along again, i picked this up to prove that they have no STD's.
Test Series: 1st test drawn. Lots of rain and bad drainage in Dunedin. 2nd test drawn: pretty even, but neither captain was brave enough to push for victory when it was close.
20/20 Series: 1st game won by the Windies on a tie-breaker. 2nd game won by New Zealand. Drawn. Nothing much to remember there.
ODI Series: 1st match rained out, no reserve day. 2nd match effectively turned into a T20 match due to rain, WI won; no reserve day. 3rd match actually took place, damp drop-in pitch helped NZ to comfortable win. 4th match well set up for close finish; rain abandoned, no reserve day. 5th match well set up for close finish; rain, NZ sneak through on D/L in the last 2 balls. A hollow 2-1 win to New Zealand.
So a tour is over before it even began, and the 2 sides sitting above the minnows in the pecking order not really finding a way to separate.
Both sides, of course, are rebuilding and spent most of the rain delays telling us this. So what did we learn about this rebuilding process given that there’s not a lot else on which to reflect.
Today we look at the Windies, who fitted into 3 groups.
The 5 Man Army
Ever since the glory years of the 80s, the Windies have been carried by a handful of star players, normally centred around an Hooper, Walsh, Ambrose and Lara.
This team was the same; with the 5 star players carrying the burden.
Gayle was magnificent. Although tactically inert, he dominated all 3 parts of the tour. His 197 in the Napier test combined the Gayle we know with another disciplined batsman, and the way he flicked between the two every session made this one of his best test innings. He then produced a master display against the world’s leading ODI bowler to win the T20 shootout. And in the final ODI he produced one of the best paced ODI centuries you could see.
Chanderpaul was at his side all the way. Unless he was facing knee-high full-tosses first ball he was almost immovable in the tests. The tourists were weakened when he missed the next few matches, but he was back to his best as Gayle’s ally in Napier. Seems to be getting better with age.
Sarwan never really got going, but still managed to win the Christchurch T28 single-handedly.
Edwards and Taylor consistently bowled well over 140, and when Edwards gets it right he’s one of the best around. OK; they are no Holding and Roberts but they are still better than the Australian opening attack, as a random example, at the moment. And with Taylor getting some runs there’s hope that the batting might not finish at #6 any more.
Some of these guys might come right
For all the ridiculousness of nerdy white guy high-fiving Gayle Brendon Nash did enough throughout to suggest he’s worth persevering with. Trouble is he can’t hit the ball well enough for limited overs cricket, and his bowling isn’t really test standard.
Apparently Benn is a test and T20 specialist but not suitable for ODIs, which pretty much sums up West Indian selection standards at the moment. That’s a shame because he bowled well; a left arm Roger Harper.
And at a time when Andre Nel is having time off to chat to his goats on the veld, it was refreshing to see Darren Powell. He really is a total nutter, and the fact that McCullum could get into his head so easily was about the only reminder of the latter’s star quality throughout the tour. If he can channel his peculiar brand of nuttiness a bit better, he’ll support the other 2 well.
There’s still a bit of rabble though
Chattergoon has a great name, but that 13 that took up the entire first session in the Napier test was real bamboo under the toenails torture.
X Marshall has a name that some people might think is cool, but all those drugs must have affected his ability to see the ball properly.
Ramdin has played in 29 tests now. How anyone who can’t catch a ball and looks disinterested when batting briefly has managed that is one of those strange things that can not be explained easily.
The selectors seem to like Lionel Baker, possibly because of his pearl earrings. But he is not the answer.
So a mixture really. Still reliant on the main guys, but there is enough potential coming through to indicate they are approaching the corner, if not turning it yet.
Seriously though, Sportsfreak is a good side, no viruses.
cricketwithballs
www.cricketwithballs.com... We constantly get sodomized down the legside
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