West Indies v India - Series Summary

WEST INDIES WON THE SERIES 3-1
Whilst West Indies eventually took the series at a canter it must be remembered that India gave them a run for their money to begin with, winning the first Test in Jamaica and then holding on heroically for the draw in Trinidad. It was not until Curtly Ambrose came to the fore in the second half of the series that West Indies really asserted their authority, and with Garner and Marshall also finding their form in the latter stages it was a barrage of relenting pace that finally did for the Indians.

The recalled George Headley led the run scoring for the hosts, almost half his runs coming in one innings in Guyana (but what an innings!) and Viv Richards looked to be rediscovering his best form by the end of the series after what had been a somewhat extended slump. The opening positions are still up for grabs though, with neither Greenidge nor new boy Lawrence Rowe able to stake a solid claim, and whilst Dujon continued to provide valuable runs down the order - indeed, he actually topped the batting averages - his displays behind the stumps were somewhat below par.

If truth be told, neither side fielded particularly well, but whilst West Indies were able to compensate the Indians' poor out cricket went a long way to costing them the series. The tourists dropped sixteen catches over the course of the five games and with their bowling, Prasanna apart, lacking any sort of penetration, this was simply unacceptable. Gavaskar's stellar form with the bat papered over the cracks to some extent, but the likes of Pataudi, Manjrekar and Umrigar hit as many lows as they did highs, and the way in which India's batting simply disintegrated in the last two Tests would have been a source of both concern and embarrassment for the selectors.

West Indies' eighth consecutive series win guarantees that they will end Season VI on top of the rankings, whilst India remain in sixth place and are now in danger of being overtaken by perennial basement dwellers, New Zealand. For now though the focus switches to Sri Lanka, where Australia's visit for a one-off Test brings the season to a close.

Series Averages
(click to enlarge)

Players of the Series: CEL Ambrose & SM Gavaskar

West Indies v India - Fifth Test

Antigua Recreation Ground, St John's

West Indies: CG Greenidge, LG Rowe, GA Headley, IVA Richards, CL Walcott, *GStA Sobers, +PJL Dujon, MD Marshall, AME Roberts, MA Holding, CEL Ambrose.
India: SM Gavaskar, M Prabhakar, DB Vengsarkar, VL Manjrekar, PR Umrigar, *MAK Pataudi, Kapil Dev, +SMH Kirmani, J Srinath, EAS Prasanna, BKV Prasad.

Debuts: Nil
Umpires: Mahboob Shah (PAK) & RS Dunne (NZL)
Toss: West Indies

Having started the tour so well it all came down to a case of do or die for India in Antigua, but the momentum was now firmly with West Indies, a draw being enough to secure an eighth successive series victory. Injury meant that Worrell, Garner and Griffith all remained in Barbados, but the selectors were able to call on the handy trio of Walcott, Marshall and Roberts as replacements, and Pataudi's incorrect call at the toss allowed Garry Sobers' team first use of a hard, glistening surface at the ARG.

Lawrence Rowe's 80 turned out to be
the highest innings of a low scoring match

The strokemakers were expected to be favoured on such a pitch, but 13 wickets fell on a dramatic first day as West Indies were bowled out for 314 and then responded by reducing the Indians to a precarious 13-3 by the close. The early part of the hosts' innings was built around Lawrence Rowe's first ATG fifty, and when he was out for 80, bowled by one that Prasanna held back a touch, two further fifties from Sobers - his first of the series - and Dujon combined with a boisterous 31 from Roberts to steer the innings past 300.

India's bowlers had performed well although the tail somewhat gifted Prasanna a five wicket haul, but their fielding had again been poor. Both Rowe (on 66 at the time) and Dujon (on 28) were given lives when Prasad and Kirmani respectively grassed a pair of simple catches - Kirmani's fumble off the bowling of Prabhakar was a real howler - and this profligacy was compounded when Marshall removed both Gavasakar and Manjrekar with what turned out to be the last two balls of the day, leaving the tourists deep in the mire. Vengsarkar and Umrigar threatened to stage a recovery on day two, but from the relative heights of 60-3 the innings fell apart as the spin of Sobers picked apart a batting order that was being traumatised by pace from the other end, and West Indies' skipper finished with the eyebrow-raising figures of 5-11 from 9.5 overs as India crumbled to 101 all out, equalling their lowest ever total in the process.

Sobers' bowling came off the sidelines
to devastating effect on the second day

India had batted very poorly and were asked to follow-on some 213 runs in arrears, but led by a confident innings of 79 from Vengsarkar they made a much better fist of things second time round, and had progressed to 174-4 when Vengsarkar lost his middle stump to Marshall late on the second evening. There were no further casualties before the close, but on the third morning the rampaging Marshall simply tore through the lower order like a tornado through Texas, and when hostilities ceased the Indians had been bowled out for 196 to hand West Indies victory by an innings and 17 runs before we had even reached lunch.

Marshall's analysis of 5-12 from 16.3 overs ensured that most onlookers now had both eyebrows firmly elevated, and at the hastily arranged presentation ceremony the Indian players milled around in a near catatonic state as the magnitude of their defeat began to sink in. After starting the series in such positive fashion they had been bowled out for under 200 in each of their last four innings, and the final two Tests were completed in less than five days put together. The four-pronged pace attack fielded by West Indies after their shock defeat in the first Test gradually wore down the Indians' resolve, and the denouement here in Antigua tightens still further West Indies' grip on the number one position in the ATG world.

Malcolm Marshall and Jeff Dujon, two of the main
architects of West Indies' victory in both match and series

Score Summary
WI 1st Inns 314 (Rowe 80, Sobers 62, Dujon 50; Prasanna 5-55)
IND 1st Inns 101 (Sobers 5-11)
IND 2nd Inns 196 (Vengsarkar 79, Gavaskar 46; Marshall 5-12, Ambrose 4-47)

WEST INDIES WON BY AN INNINGS & 17 RUNS

1st & 2nd innings scorecards (click to enlarge)

Close of play
Day 1 - India 1st innings 13-3 (Vengsarkar 4*; 5 ov)
Day 2 - India 2nd innings 179-5 (Pataudi 18*, Kapil Dev 4*; 48 ov)
Day 3 - India 2nd innings 196 (62.3 ov) - end of match

Notes
▪ India's 101 in the first innings equals their lowest ever total
▪ Ambrose passed 100 career wickets
▪ This was the shortest ever completed Test match, both in terms of time (14 hours and 19 minutes) and of overs bowled (189.3)
▪ West Indies have now won eight successive series

Man of the Match: MD Marshall

West Indies v India - Fourth Test

Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados

West Indies: CG Greenidge, LG Rowe, GA Headley, IVA Richards, FMM Worrell, *GStA Sobers, +PJL Dujon, MA Holding, CC Griffith, CEL Ambrose, J Garner.
India: SM Gavaskar, M Prabhakar, DB Vengsarkar, VL Manjrekar, PR Umrigar, *MAK Pataudi, Kapil Dev, +SMH Kirmani, J Srinath, EAS Prasanna, BS Bedi.

Debuts: Nil
Umpires: Mahboob Shah (PAK) & DJ Constant (ENG)
Toss: India

Whilst the late withdrawal of Malcolm Marshall with a hamstring strain may have disappointed the local fans, fellow Bajan Charlie Griffith was rushed into the side as a late replacement and the bowling of another favourite son of Barbados, Joel Garner, was to the fore as India's batting was destroyed on a remarkable first day at the Kensington Oval. Pataudi won the toss and batted on a pitch that promised to provide both pace and bounce, but he was soon regretting his decision when Gavaskar played on against Ambrose for just 2 in the sixth over. Garner then proceeded to tear through the middle order and when Prabhakar, who had been promoted to open in place of the axed Engineer, finally departed for 33 after two hours at the crease, India were 56-4 and in distinct trouble.

Fee, fi, fo, fum...Ambrose and Garner tore India apart on the first day

Umrigar dug in to provide a small ray of hope for the tourists, but wickets continued to tumble around him as Ambrose now wrought havoc, and shortly after tea India had been bowled out for just 129, Umrigar top-scoring with 35. Ambrose and Garner picked up five wickets apiece as the Indians emphatically failed to deal with West Indies' two giant fast men, but the hosts quickly stumbled to 75-4 in reply as Prabhakar and Srinath, who was making his first appearance of the series, continued the dominance of ball over bat. The West Indians had also been shaken by the sight of Frank Worrell being stretchered off the field after ducking into a ball from Prabhakar that didn't really get up, and although he is expected to make a full recovery, what was later revealed to be a hairline fracture of the skull means that Worrell will take no further part in the series.

So, with the score effectively 75-5 West Indies were now under unexpected pressure, but an epic innings from Viv Richards shifted the momentum firmly back in favour of the hosts over the course of the next couple of sessions. It could have been a different story had Prabhakar clung on to a sharp slip catch off Srinath before Richards had scored, and Prabhakar's error was to prove enormously costly as Richards set about dismantling an Indian attack that lacked the resources to take full advantage of the conditions in the manner of Ambrose and Garner. Richards was actually outscored initially by Dujon, who contributed a valuable fifty as West Indies moved past India's total before stumps on the first day, but on day two he took over as he blasted his way to a stunning century.

Viv Richards' vintage century scuppered any hopes of an Indian recovery

Richards' partnership with Dujon had been worth 87, and with Holding and Ambrose both contributing useful tail end runs West Indies were finally bowled out for 311 and a lead of 182, Richards remaining undefeated on 153, an innings that included eighteen fours and six sixes. India now had it all to do, but in a repeat of the events of the first day the tourists were pounded with pace and by close of play the scoreboard read a sorry looking 124-6, with only a valiant, unbeaten 80 from Gavaskar preventing total humiliation. He fell early on day three though, Ambrose picking him up for the second time in the match as Dujon reacted brilliantly to grab onto the ball on the rebound after Greenidge failed to hold on at first slip, and although Kirmani delayed the inevitable with a defiant innings of 47, India's final total of 187 meant that West Indies required just six runs to win.

With the match not even having reached its halfway stage, Greenidge and Rowe duly secured an emphatic ten wicket victory and along with it the series lead, and although Ambrose's first ever ten wicket haul gave him the man of the match award, Richards' pyrotechnic century will also live long in the memory. After beginning in such positive fashion India now face the prospect of ending the tour with nothing, and their powers of recovery will be put to the test when the teams meet in Antigua for the final match of what has been a highly entertaining series.

Score Summary
IND 1st Inns 129 (Ambrose 5-24, Garner 5-34)
WI 1st Inns 311 (Richards 153*, Dujon 57)
IND 2nd Inns 187 (Gavaskar 84, Kirmani 47; Ambrose 5-64)
WI 2nd Inns 6-0

WEST INDIES WON BY 10 WICKETS

1st & 2nd innings scorecards (click to enlarge)

Close of play
Day 1 - West Indies 1st innings 159-4 (Richards 54*, Dujon 54*; 36 ov)
Day 2 - India 2nd innings 124-6 (Gavaskar 80*, Kirmani 8*; 40 ov)
Day 3 - West Indies 2nd innings 6-0 (1.5 ov) - end of match

Notes
▪ West Indies recorded their first ever 10 wicket victory
▪ Richards passed 6000 career runs
▪ This was the shortest completed Test in terms of overs bowled (190.2)

Man of the Match: CEL Ambrose

West Indies v India - Tour Match

Barbados XI v Indians
Kensington Oval, Bridgetown
3 Day Game
Umpires: HBD Jordan & LH Barker
Toss: Barbados XI

Barbados XI: G Challenor, SL Campbell, SM Nurse, CA Best, JED Sealy, *JDC Goddard, DAJ Holford, +DA Murray, VA Holder, ST Clarke, WW Daniel.
Indians: SM Gavaskar, M Prabhakar, VL Manjrekar, VS Hazare, DB Vengsarkar, *MAK Pataudi, Kapil Dev, +SMH Kirmani, J Srinath, EAS Prasanna, BS Chandrasekhar.

India needed to regroup following their third Test defeat in Guyana, and on a placid strip at the Kensington Oval they played out a tame draw with John Goddard's Barbados XI ahead of the Test here later in the week.

The hosts batted with enterprise on the first day, with Carlisle Best slamming fifty off just 43 balls after the early loss of both openers, and after Best eventually went for 81 out of a stand of 137 with Seymour Nurse, a further 191 runs were piled on for the fourth wicket as Derek Sealy played second fiddle to the increasingly dominant Nurse. India's bowlers toiled in the unhelpful conditions as Nurse made his way to a confident century, but the pace of his scoring slowed somewhat as he approached 200, forcing Goddard to extend the innings almost until lunch on the second day in order for Nurse to reach his milestone.

Nurse's undefeated 200 dominated what
turned out to be a relatively mundane draw

Barbados had reached 412-4 when the declaration came, and in reply the Indians batted on past tea on the third and final day, paying scant regard to the match situation as they simply opted for what amounted to a glorified net session. Clarke, Daniel and Holder struggled to extract any life from what was by now a truly dead wicket, and it was the medium pace of Goddard and Sealy that posed the most telling questions as all bar Hazare of the Indians' top order got some runs under their belts.

Manjrekar's five and a half hour 90 was the most significant contribution for the tourists, whilst Pataudi's quickfire 69 provided the most entertainment as the Indians meandered their way to a final total of 355 in the game's final hour, the match ending as a draw with Barbados reaching 23-1 in their second innings. India would probably be very happy to play the Test on a similar pitch to the one used here, but with the series poised at 1-1 with two to play one can only speculate as to the instructions issued to the ground staff ahead of what promises to be a pivotal fourth Test match.

Score Summary
BAR XI 1st Inns 412-4 dec. (Nurse 200*, Best 81, Sealy 78)
IND 1st Inns 355 (Manjrekar 90, Pataudi 69)
BAR XI 2nd Inns 23-1

MATCH DRAWN

1st & 2nd innings scorecards (click to enlarge)

Close of Play

Day 1 - Barbados XI 1st innings 348-3 (Nurse 166*, Sealy 70*; 101 ov)
Day 2 - Indians 1st innings 129-4 (Manjrekar 33*, Pataudi 0*; 48.3 ov)
Day 3 - Barbados XI 2nd innings 23-1 (12 ov) - end of match