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Down, down, deeper and down

Bangladesh’s 62 against Sri Lanka was depressing but there have been much worse … here are the lowest team totals since World War Two

The Eden Park scoreboard tells a sorry tale © Cricinfo

26 – New Zealand v England Auckland, 1954-55
England took a first-innings lead of 46 in the second Test of the series, but on a far-from-difficult pitch, New Zealand were bundled to an innings defeat in 104 minutes. England’s pace attack of Frank Tyson and Brian Statham, the brisk seamers of Bob Appleyard and the spin of Johnny Wardle (who finished with 5-5-0-1) found little resistance, and once John Reid and Bert Sutcliffe, New Zealand’s two quality batsmen, had departed cheaply (Sutcliffe’s 11 was the only score in double figures) the rest folded. It was – and remains – the lowest Test total, beating South Africa’s two scores of 30 against England in 1984-95 and 1924.42 – New Zealand v Australia Wellington, 1945-46
New Zealand again, this time in their first Test against Australia (and their last for another 27 years). “It had been so wet in Wellington for a week before the scheduled start on March 29 that it was not feasible to mow the outfield,” Walter Hadlee, New Zealand’s captain, explained. “The pitch was saturated and a new one was cut out alongside the prepared one.” He won the toss, batted, and his side reached 37 for 2 on the stroke of lunch – then lost eight wickets for five runs. Naturally we are disappointed,” Hadlee said with all the understatement of those less media-savvy times. “We failed and that is all there is to be said.” It was the same story in the second innings, 54 all out and an innings defeat.

Geoff Arnold and Chris Old celebrate India’s rout © The Cricketer

42 – India v England Lord’s, 1974
A bizarre match. The first three days were hot and sunny, and midway through Saturday’s play India were 131 for 0 in reply to England’s 629. By the close, they had been bowled out for 302 and were 2 for 0 following on. “There are lots of runs left in the pitch,” wrote John Woodcock after the rest day. But the morning was overcast and the ball, which had done little, suddenly started moving significantly, both off the pitch and through the air. In Geoff Arnold and Chris Old, England had two bowlers ideally suited to the conditions. In 70 minutes Old took 5 for 21, Arnold 4 for 19 and India were routed. They only lost nine wickets as Chandrasakar was injured and so unable to bat, but it made little difference.46 – England v West Indies Port of Spain, 1993-94
England began this innings with a chance for victory. Their only solace by the end was that they had avoided their lowest Test score, by one run. The damage was done on the third evening. Mike Atherton fell lbw to the first ball of the innings, and the level of incompetence thereafter was best illustrated by Mark Ramprakash’s crass run-out to the fifth ball of the same over. It was downhill from then on and an hour later England closed on 40 for 8. “It was the worst hour of my life,” reflected Atherton, the situation made worse by the fact that England had been in control of the match throughout and needed just 194 to pull the series back to 2-1. In The Independent Martin Johnson wrote: “There were rumours that England’s sponsor Tetley Bitter would double its financial support if its name was removed from the team shirts.”47 – New Zealand v England Lord’s, 1958
Heavy overnight rain meant that New Zealand were caught on a drying pitch and against Jim Laker (4 for 13) and Tony Lock (5 for 17) they were almost clueless. Again, Reid and Sutcliffe were the main line of resistance, Sutcliffe’s dogged 18 the top score. Reid swished Lock into the Tavern Stand for six and then holed out to mid-on trying another big hit, Sutcliffe opted for defence, while Lock polished off the tail with 4 for 1 in 49 balls. New Zealand fared little better in their second innings, scoring 74, and with 22,000 in the ground and the match over by 3.30pm, the two sides played an exhibition match.

Steve Harmison celebrates on his way to 7 for 12 © Cricinfo

47 – West Indies v England Kingston, 2003-04
In the nine years since England’s humiliation at Port-of-Spain, West Indies cricket had gone into sharp decline, and from 13 for 0 early on the fourth day, they lost ten wickets for 34 runs. Steve Harmison shredded them with 7 for 12, and it seemed the side had hit a new low. It later emerged that West Indies had trained once in the five days leading up to the match, instead attending psychological sessions, ironically watching motivational videos of basketball legend Michael Jordan stressing the importance of practice. And as the post-mortems started, several West Indies players were found joining in parties in the stands.51 – West Indies v Australia Port of Spain, 1998-99
The moment when the reality of a decade of decline finally hit home. In the first Test West Indies were set an improbable 364 to win, but they never came close. Within an hour they had slumped to 16 for 5, and were left to claw their way past some of Test cricket’s most unwanted records, aided by nine overthrows gifted by the Australians. In 19.1 overs and 102 minutes, they were humiliated. “Cricket is my life,” Brian Lara, the captain, said afterwards. “I think it’s important that before I retire that I lead West Indies back on the way to the top.” He did his utmost for the rest of the series, which was eventually drawn 2-2 thanks to three Lara centuries of matchless brilliance. But the Trinidad debacle still lingered. “Afterwards there was some angry finger-pointing and heated words between players and officials, while the mercifully small crowd swarmed round the pavilion and shouted, `Fire them, fire them,’ to no-one in particular,” noted Paul Weaver in The Guardian. Others shouted `Rubbish’ to everyone in particular.

Unhappy reading from The Oval © Cricinfo

52 – England v Australia The Oval, 1948
The Times reported that England’s batting was deplorable while Australia’s bowling, fielding and catching was superb. In two hours and 25 minutes on a drying – but far from treacherous – Oval pitch England were blasted away by Ray Lindwall (6 for 19). Only Len Hutton, who opened the innings and was last man out for 30, showed any kind of technique. The next highest score was Norman Yardley’s 7. Australia found the going much easier and closed on 153 for 2, but the day is best remembered as the one on which Don Bradman was bowled for a second-ball 0 in his final Test innings.53 West Indies v Pakistan Faisalabad, 1986-87
Another West Indies low, but this one stands out as it came at a time they were the unchallenged world No. 1. In the opening Test they took a first-innings lead of 89 and were left chasing 240. But on a crumbling pitch Imran Khan blasted out both openers and then Abdul Qadir exploited the conditions to the full to take 6 for 16. It was West Indies’ third defeat in 54 Tests. They bounced straight back with an innings victory in the next Test.53 Pakistan v Australia Sharjah, 2002-03
Pakistan’s dismal effort came 24 hours after they had been bowled out for 59 in a ‘home’ match at Sharjah (sides refused to tour Pakistan in the aftermath of September 11). The conditions were uncomfortable – both days were played in sweltering heat – but that didn’t bother the Australians. Pakistan succumbed to “a feeble procession of wafts and drives” reported The Guardian. “It feels a little bit hollow I must admit,” said Steve Waugh, Australia’s captain, as he rubbed salt in a gaping wound. “You expect to work a little bit harder to win a Test but we’ll still take it.” It was the lowest two-innings total (112) in Pakistan’s 50-year Test history, and they were in effect defeated by Matthew Hayden’s 119. It was the fourth lowest match total by one team in Test history.54 New Zealand v Australia Wellington, 1945-46
54 West Indies v England Lord’s, 2000
54 Zimbabwe v South Africa Cape Town, 2004-05
Three scores tie for 11th. The first was the second innings of New Zealand’s first Test against Australia mentioned above. The second came on a remarkable second day at Lord’s where spectators saw all four innings of the match. England, replying to West Indies’ 267, were bowled out for 134, but the high fives had hardly finished before West Indies’ own second innings was falling apart at the seams. Andy Caddick bowled 13 overs unchanged from the Nursery End and took 5 for 16, including 5 for 7 in 9.5 overs after tea. West Indies made 54 and England went on to win a nail-biter by two wickets on the third evening. Zimbabwe’s score against South Africa was amassed in a little more than the first session at Cape Town, and by the close South Africa had underlined the massive gulf in class between the sides by scoring 340 for 3, a lead of 286. It broke the record for the biggest lead on a first day’s play in a Test match (England, 233 v Australia at Lords in 1896).

Gayle the Cool Cat blows South Africa away

‘I made some adjustments out in the middle, and it is working for me’ © AFP

“If Clive Lloyd is the Big Cat, then Chris Gayle is the Cool Cat,” a member of the West Indian support staff let on. He was once offered a lift by Gayle, from the team hotel in Kingston to a restaurant close by, and what should have been a five minute trip took close to an hour. Gayle took his own time getting in the car; even longer turning the key in the ignition; fiddled with the stereo getting the music going … everything just took so much longer, and time seemed to stand still.And that it does when he bludgeons the ball as he did against South Africa in the second semi-final today at Jaipur. At times it appeared as if Gayle was the only man in the stadium, standing in the middle, bathed in light, blasting the ball to all parts; the fielders did not have to move, it seemed not to matter who was bowling or what sort of ball was bowled: it just had to go, and fast.”I’m a moody guy, very very moody,” Gayle drawled at the end of the match, a big grin plastered across his face. “You see me doing ridiculous things at times. Sometimes I talk to myself a lot and try to motivate myself when I’m too laidback. At other times I just try to relax, cracking a joke to someone out in the field. Rather than standing around and doing nothing I try to do something on the ground. I want to be involved in the game at all times.”But perhaps it’s just the way of performers. When you put them on stage and the curtain rises, they’re one personality – confident, charming, expressive. And off it they’re no different from you and I; relaxed, leading seemingly normal lives. Gayle is a bit like that. On one day he can be the life of the party, garrulous, extroverted, cracking jokes, dancing like a fiend, and on another he can just be seated quietly at the bar, nursing a drink, barely saying a word to anyone. It’s much the same with his batting.For bowlers, the real question to ask is not whether Gayle is in form or not. It’s not whether the pitch suits him or not. It’s just a question of which Christopher Henry Gayle has turned up to the pitch. On the day it was not the quiet one, blocking or dropping anchor. The very first ball from Shaun Pollock – who was coming off figures of 7-0-20-2 in South Africa’s demolition of Pakistan – was flat-batted back past the bowler for a boundary. The next ball was played even better, with total control and a straight bat, and the result was the same.There was some suggestion that Gayle found Pollock’s pace agreeable. If that was the case he certainly didn’t mind the extra zip of Makhaya Ntini and Andre Nel. A clip through midwicket off Nel, an audacious slap over midwicket off Nel, and Graeme Smith was forced to pull his best bowlers out of the attack. Smith brought himself on, and with Jacques Kallis, began to restore some order, but Gayle quickly disabused them of such notions, reverse-sweeping Smith to the point fence. The fours came at a steady clip, but it was the sixes that really drove home the point. One each off Pollock and Kallis showed intent, but it was a blow against Robin Peterson, full stride down the pitch, massive heave of the bat, which wasn’t even especially well timed yet sailed high over long-on, that signaled it was Gayle’s day.But those who dismiss him as being unpredictable or unreliable should see that it has not merely been his day, it’s been his tournament, and his year. Gayle has scored 434 runs in this tournament, with three centuries, and is far and away the topscorer, with a game still to play. When he scored 10 on the day, he’d brought up 1000 runs for the calendar year, at an average of over 40.

‘You see me doing ridiculous things at times. Sometimes I talk to myself a lot and try to motivate myself when I’m too laidback’ © AFP

Two days before the semi-final, Gayle had chatted to the media after a practice session. “I made some adjustments out in the middle, and it is working for me,” he said of his batting and recent success. “There is a lot of difference in my batting now, I am just trying to play straight. When I get a start, I try to capitalise on it and not give it away.” And he didn’t give it away, unbeaten on 130 as the winning runs were drilled down the ground and West Indies cantered to victory with six wickets and as many overs to spare.The Australians, who are already in the final, will remember Gayle well. In their encounter earlier in the tournament the normally chilled out Gayle was all keyed up, and some might say it was his constant chirping and encouragement that lifted the team and broke a crucial partnership. Brian Lara thought there might be more in store for the Australians in the big final. And Lara thought Gayle, who has scored heavily all tournament, will want to make a mark in the biggest game of them all. “It’s a brand new game,” said Lara. “We have requirements of our openers and Chris has fulfilled them in the tournament. I’m almost sure that he doesn’t want to leave centre-stage to anyone on the final. He’ll be very keen to get out there and replicate what he did today.”Ask Gayle what he’d make of it if he was sitting out watching himself bat, and the answer rolls of with no hesitation. “I don’t need to watch myself. I know what I am already – flamboyant,” he said. “But one thing I can tell you, if I were to watch myself, it’s going to be pretty, definitely. It’s got to be pretty.” When he bats as he did today, even the opposition, despite the hiding they’re receiving, have got to take out a moment and admire Gayle for his strokeplay.

PIA defeat Karachi Harbour inside two days

Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) made short work of Karachi Harbour, through a convincing nine-wicket victory, with over two days to spare in their Pentangular Cup match at the Multan Cricket Stadium on Thursday.PIA had gained a first innings lead of 77 in the opening day, after having made 172 in their first innings following Karachi Harbour’s crash to 95 all out. PIA’s Fazl-e-Akbar ran through the latter’s second innings with figures of five for 23 in 13 overs as Karachi were bowled out for 151 in their second innings. PIA needed just 75 runs to win and they attained the target with the loss of one wicket.Fazl-e-Akbar was ably supported by fellow pacemen Najaf Shah and Jannisar Khan, who picked up two wickets each while Kamran Sajid, the medium pacer, eliminated teenaged left-hander Fawad Alam (24), who had started to look dangerous for a while.PIA thus made amends for a similar nine-wicket defeat at the hands of Faisalabad in their first-round match at Lahore last week. While PIA will get to rest in the third round of the tournament, Karachi Harbour will be playing against Sialkot in their next match starting at the Gaddafi Stadium in Lahore from Tuesday April 11.Faisalabad continued to dominate their second-round Pentangular Cup match against national champions Sialkot, as they finished the second day at the Gaddafi Stadium on Thursday, 200 runs ahead in the first innings.Faisalabad resumed at their overnight score of 354 for 5 and were all out for 408. Sialkot in reply had slumped to 208 for seven by the day’s close. They still require another 51 to avert the follow-on.Shahid Nazir (3 for 60), Asad Ali (3 for 58) and Ahmed Hayat struck crucial blows as none of Sialkot’s first six batsmen managed to reach even the 30s. Tahir Mughal, the captain, crossed the barrier and was unbeaten on 37 at stumps, having batted for a little over an hour and a quarter, facing 59 balls and hitting four boundaries.There were useful contributions by most Sialkot batsmen but none really got going. Earlier, Asim Butt, the fast-medium bowler, hastened the end of Faisalabad’s knock by capturing six wickets for 85 runs.The overnight unbeaten pair of Misbah-ul-Haq and Mohammad Salman took their sixth-wicket partnership to 138 runs, after which the last four wickets added only 14 more. Misbah missed his century by just seven runs, having made his 93 off 160 balls with 11 fours while Salman scored 52.

Cricket Australia rules on players in unofficial events

Players who appear in unofficial events will have their contracts cancelled under policy guidelines announced by Cricket Australia. The conditions do not apply to the Indian Premier League (IPL), which is sanctioned by the Indian board, but they do affect those considering joining the Indian Cricket League (ICL).The decision follows ICC regulations and similar guidelines forced Shane Bond, the New Zealand fast bowler, to terminate his national deal. No current Cricket Australia contract holders have publicly expressed their desire to be part of the ICL, but there is potential for younger domestic performers to be attracted to the competition. Stuart Law and Ian Harvey took part in the original tournament in India in December, but both have finished their inter-state careers in Australia.In one of two conditions released by Cricket Australia it said “selectors will treat players who take part only in ICC-approved matches more favourably than those who do not”. The other clause stated “players will not be offered contracts or be permitted to continue to be a party to player contracts if, during the term of those contracts, those players take part in unofficial cricket events”.The ruling pushes Australians towards the IPL and the planned Champions Twenty20 competition that is due to involve domestic teams from Australia, India, South Africa and England.

US players' association becoing a reality

An association of all US cricketers, intended to represent the 10,000-odd regular players in the USA, is on the drawing board and is expected to announce its formal existence in November.The name of the association has not been decided. It could be called the American Cricketers Association (ACA), so as not to get its acronym confused with the USACA. Membership to ACA will be open to all cricketers who do not serve in executive or administrative positions in any US cricket league or organization, and are playing members of any registered cricket club in the USA.The need for such an organization has been felt over the past few years in US cricket, but gathered momentum over the past few seasons. The shocking performances of the USA team at the ICC Trophy made US cricketers realize that the best talent was simply not being selected to play, because of US cricket politics. Then the tussles over sending state teams to the NLC Interstate Tournament, where many players complained they were threatened with serious consequences if they participated, seem to have galvanized the ACA into action. And the current stalemate in US cricket politics left most of them with a bad taste in their mouth. Only a properly organized ACA could stand up for cricketers’ rights in such situations, it was felt, and the outlines of an ACA began to form on the drawing board.The first aim of the ACA is to develop a national membership, based on common goals that are to be fully defined and approved. After this is accomplished, ACA could officially request that an ACA representative with non-voting privileges be included in every selection committee for US national teams, and would report to ACA and USACA on the fairness of the proceedings. If serious problems were found with the selections, the ACA report would be presented to the USACA Board for action – if the issues were not resolved, ACA could institute legal proceedings against the USACA and report its findings to ICC. Eventually, the same procedures would be applied to regions selecting teams for a national tournament.So far, the organizers of the ACA have operated on a low-key basis. They have posted memos and invitations to US cricketers to express interest in the overall idea, and have promised that a draft outline of a proposed constitution will be ready in November. This will be finalized by the end of that month, whereupon it is expected to be finally adopted by the cricketers.So far, there has been no recognition, let alone comment, on the proposed American Cricket Association on the part of USACA, CLP or MLC. Unofficially, many USACA and CLP officials have been decidedly lukewarm to the idea; a CLP official has even been quoted as saying that cricket administration such as match schedules, team selection et cetera, was no business of the players, whose job was to play!MLC has taken a more cautious approach. While considering the idea to be “somewhat premature”, it has expressed full willingness to discuss player concerns openly with players themselves, and pointed out that the change in the format of the Interstate Tournament came about largely through player input.On its part, the ACA organizers are optimistic and committed. They wish to remain anonymous for now because they do not want to add to the storms and squalls whirling around US cricket, but they have posted an e-mail address, [email protected], for those who may be interested, and are reporting a good response to their original announcement. In a month or two, they promise, we will know more. The wait could be a worthwhile one.

Pagnis and Yadav put Central on top

ScorecardAmit Pagnis’s century helped Central Zone, the defending champions, make an emphatic start to their Duleep Trophy campaign and finish with 299 for 3 at the end of the opening day against South at Surat. Hemang Badani’s decision to field first backfired as Pagnis and Jyoti Prasad Yadav, who made 87, put the South bowlers to the sword. Lakshmipathy Balaji didn’t have any success in his 14 overs and it was left to Ramakrishnan Ramkumar, the left-arm spinner from Tamil Nadu, to snap up two wickets.
ScorecardJoginder Sharma and Amit Mishra, the duo from Haryana, routed the visiting Zimbabwe President’s XI for just 94 on the first day at the Wankhede Stadium. Joginder, the medium-pacer, ripped through the top order and finished with a rich haul of 6 for 21 while Mishra, the legspinner, mopped up the tail. North added 62 by the end of the day and, after the reverse against East in the earlier game, were well on their way to gaining a much needed bonus point.

King optimistic, Smith raring to win

Can Tino Best change West Indian fortunes? © Getty Images

After losing their fourth consecutive series to South Africa, West Indies’ coach, Bennett King, has said that their approach will be as positive in the fourth Test – which begins in Antigua tomorrow – as it has been through the series.”People have noticed an improvement in the way the players have been approaching the cricket on the field, but it has not turned into results just yet,” King was quoted by AFP. “Coming into this role, I was not expecting to all of a sudden see West Indies become the No. 1 side in the world. Things take time. It cannot be fixed in a matter of months, but over a period of time.”What the period of time is, I do not know, but if they are not improving from match to match, then I’ll start asking myself questions about if I am doing the job I am supposed to be doing,” he continued. “While the players are still in the process of improving, and they are giving me that feedback, I’ll continue going down the same path for the time-being.”There were two changes to the squad, with Tino Best replacing Reon King, while Ryan Hinds made way for Narsingh Deonarine.Best, who has not played competitive cricket since the England tour last August due to a back injury, said he was raring to go in the fourth Test without feeling the pressures that are part of a comeback. “It is always a good opportunity to play for the West Indies. I relish the opportunity,” Best was quoted in the Jamaica Observer. “I think I’m fit. I’m 100%. I’ve been working hard. The physical trainer is doing a great job so far.”I don’t feel under any pressure. That’s the number one thing you get out of your mind, any pressure on your mind. You just want to go and relax and feel confident. As long as you put on that maroon cap you always feel confident. Just work hard.”However, South Africa are looking to continue piling the misery on their distraught opponents. Graeme Smith indicated that his side would not take things lightly despite winning the series. “One thing we learnt from the eight or nine months of tough times is that we cannot afford to take a Test match win, Test match form or personal form for granted, so we will be looking to perform well out there every single day of the match.”Some people may look back at our victories in Trinidad and in Barbados and may consider them easy, but there were far from being easy wins,” he said. “We have worked very hard for our two victories under some trying conditions. We should never be satisfied with our position, and we should look to take our game up a level or two each time.”

Rahul Dravid's one-man show

Rahul Dravid: setting up yet another classic win? © Getty Images

Amit Varma and S Rajesh discuss the second day of the Jamaica Test
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Streaming Audio: Real :: WMA
Audio length: 7.58 minsRahul Dravid has set up many of India’s greatest wins, such as at Headingley, Adelaide and Rawalpindi, but in each of those Tests other batsmen had also pitched in. In contrast, he’s virtually doing it alone at Jamaica, and his half-centuries here are worth big centuries at any other Test. Amit Varma and S Rajesh discuss what a monumental role Dravid is playing in this Test, as well as this is turning out to be such a low-scoring pitch – it’s not all about the pitch.Listen in.Download MP3 (right click and select “save target as”; 1.4 mb
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Regional conflicts mar Busta Cup

Regional cricket associations have been knocked for seemingly withholding their best players from representing the West Indies ‘B’ team in the Busta Series.Additionally, team captain Roland Holder feels the cream of the regional Under-23s, with the exception of Test players, should be made to play for the ‘B’ team if it is to make a greater impact.A lot of the territories need to be honest in their nominations for the ‘B’team if it is going to serve the purpose for which it is intended, the experienced former Barbados batsman told NATIONSPORT yesterday.We had a couple of players who could not make their national trials or, in the case of one or two from the Leewards and Windwards, who could not make their national side.It was Holder’s forthright view that a player who is put forward to represent the West Indies ‘B’ team should be someone who is on the verge of making his national team.I think most territories have selected their 16, kept the best of the reserves and then sent basically what has not been a true representation of this team.As a reference, he pointed to Guyana fast bowler Reon Griffith who was kept in their 13-man squad for the first five matches. Griffith did not play a single match and was only released to the ‘B’ team for the sixth round.I know all the territories want to win . . . [but] it is all about the development of West Indies’ cricket, said the 34-year-old Holder, who played successfully for Barbados in regional competition between 1986 and 2001.In cases like that, I think we need to be honest with ourselves.West Indies ‘B’, which is participating in the Busta Series for the second successive year, are languishing at the bottom of the table ahead of their final match against Barbados, starting tomorrow at Kensington Oval.However, there have been encouraging signs, among them centuries from Guyanese Krishna Arjune and debutant Donovan Pagon.For a team which has passed 250 in six of their 11 innings and has only been dismissed for fewer than 200 on one occasion, four defeats in six matches might not been an accurate reflection of their performance.Defeats will always be defeats. It means that you didn’t play better or as well as the opposition, Holder said.We have been batting reasonably well consistently. We have scored on average 500 runs per game.The only problem is that we tend to score most of those runs in the second innings. By then it’s usually playing catch-up cricket.Holder described the overall performance of the team as indifferent.It is very difficult under this present structure to get the sort of results you are looking for granted I’ve seen lots of improvements in all of these players, he said.What needs to happen is that the WICB (West Indies Cricket Board) decides that the best Under-23 side, excluding those who have played Test cricket, be selected to play as this team.Under such a proposal, promising players such as prolific Windward Islands opener Devon Smith, West Indies youth captain Narsingh Deonarine, Barbadian fast bowler Tino Best and fellow pacer Darren Powell of Jamaica would have to play for the West Indies ‘B’ ahead of their national sides.

Jamaica crush Windwards to win Carib Cup

Scorecard

Nekoli Parris on the attack for Combined Campuses and Colleges against Trinidad & Tobago © The Nation
 

Left-arm spinner Nikita Miller took seven out of the 18 wickets to fall on the second day in St Elizabeth as Jamaica crushed Windward Islands by 10 wickets to win the 2008 Carib Cup.Miller had remarkable figures of 4 for 6 off 8.2 overs as Windwards collapsed for 61 in the first-innings, surrendering a lead of 171. He took 3 for 60 during Windwards’ follow-on as they were dismissed for 187, despite Andre Fletcher’s unbeaten 103, leaving Jamaica a target of 17 to win the championship. Jamaica’s openers Chris Gayle and Brenton Parchment knocked off the runs in the third over. The win gave Jamaica a regional double, and the 12 points they gained against Windwards took their tally to 58, which cannot be overtaken by any other team.”It is a great feeling to end this game within two days and to take thetitle with such authority,” Gayle told reporters after the match. “I have to say well done to the team.”
Scorecard
Rain curtailed play on the second day between Guyana and Leewards Islands but Ramnaresh Sarwan’s unbeaten 89 and Shivnarine Chanderpaul’s 82 helped Guyana move on to 299 for 6, with a lead of 95.Guyana resumed their innings on 138 for 4, 66 runs behind Leewards’ 204 in the first-innings. Chanderpaul and Sarwan steadied the innings with a 145-run stand for the fifth wicket, which gave Guyana the lead. Chanderpaul attacked offspinner Steve Liburd, hitting him for a four and a six, before edging to Runako Morton at first slip. Derwin Christian joined Sarwan and had scored 13 when offspinner Anthony Martin trapped him leg before wicket at 279 for 6. Sarwan was on 89 and Esuan Crandon on 15, when rain halted play.
Scorecard
Simon Jackson and Chadwick Walton scored half-centuries to lead Combined Campuses & Colleges’ (CCC) fightback against Trinidad & Tobago on the second day in Bridgetown. Having conceded a massive first-innings lead of 240 after being dismissed for 97, CCC’s batsmen regrouped to post 185 for 3 in the second innings and trail by only 55 runs.Jackson scored 11 fours during his 83 off 173 balls while Watson struck seven fours and a six, during his unbeaten 52 off 74 balls.Earlier T&T had secured a sizable lead after resuming on 224 for 5. they were eventually dismissed ten minutes before lunch after Ravi Rampaul took advantage of some mediocre bowling to score his second first-class fifty.T&T’s wickets were shared by offspinner Kevin McClean and captain Shirley Clarke, who took 4 for 54 and 4 for 53 respectively.

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