The much promoted two-day Barbados International Motor Rally which began yesterday was sure to compete for spectator support on a 166 square mile Island populated by approximately 250,000 people with the first one-day match between the West Indies and Sri Lanka.
And so, yesterday, close to 10,000 fans with renewed belief in the regional team flocked the Kensington Oval ground to rally round the West Indies.
By the end of the day all the smiles from the first half of the match had disappeared as once again the West Indies failed to produce a knock out punch after having their opponents on the ropes for the first half of the fight.
A splendid unbeaten 64 from skipper Brian Lara could not prevent his team from being bowled out for 146 in 40.4 overs to lose the first Cable and Wireless One-Day-International by 55 runs.
The vocal crowd almost perfected the Mexican wave and provided non-stop motivation as Mervin Dillon with 3-39 spearheaded an efficient display in the field by the home team to restrict Sri Lanka to a modest total. The 201 all out in 48.4 overs proved more than enough later in the day, however, as the home team never recovered from a terrible start.
Off spinner Muttiah Muralitharan was again the main wicket-taker with 3-17 from seven overs while pacers Chaminda Vass (2-16) and Prabath Nissanka (2-27) lent excellent support on a good batting track.
The West Indies, like they did in the World Cup, were off to a horrible start as both openers fell for ducks and despite another one man show from the skipper who struck four fours from 127 balls, the Windies were all out with 9.2 overs to spare.
Wavell Hinds walked across his stumps and was bowled behind his back by Nissanka in the second over while Vass for the umpteenth time, easily disposed of Chris Galye who edged a catch to the ‘keeper two runs later.
Ricardo Powell surprisingly came out at number three ahead of Lara and was LBW to Vass for five while Ramnaresh Sarwan threw his wicket away with a careless back drive after hitting two fours in eight.
The home team was at that stage 19-4 in the sixth over. Danger man Muralitharan had not bowled a ball as yet and the spectators, who were behind their team all day, were stunned into silence at the shocking turn of events.
Even the bright sunny day became gloomy with a brief shower stopping play at 23-4 in the eighth over. The sun returned but the fan’s depressing mood hardly changed despite a brief period when Lara took on the spinners with some delightful shots in a losing cause.
The 34 year-old Lara showed why he is arguably the world’s best batsman with magnificent strokeplay that kept hope alive when all seemed lost at 121-9.
But the task was too gigantic, even for the great double world record holder.
Marlon Samuels showed flashes of brilliance but his tendency to be loose again showed up as he drove at pacer Dharshana Gamage with no movement of his feet and was caught behind at 75-5. His 29 lasted 42 balls and he reached the boundary five times.
With half of the team gone, no one looked willing, or competent against the turning ball to keep Lara’s company for any extended time.
The experienced Jacobs again showed his discomfort to spin bowling and after a few near misses off Muralitharan, eventually got bat on ball, only to be taken at point for 14 at 105-6.
Muralitharan has confused the best of batsmen with his big turning off-breaks, skidding flippers and leg-breaks with the same action.
One almost felt sorry for 20-year-old David Bernard who got himself into a huge tangle and was bowled between his leg for a second ball duck as ‘Murali’ took two wickets in the over to leave the Windies on 106-8 in the 31st over.
Vasbert Drakes (4) attempted an impossible second run to long on and was run out at 118-8. Dillon (2) for reasons only known to himself, played an ambitious sweep off ‘Murali’ and spooned a simple catch to short fine-leg with his captain at the other end and lots of overs to go.
Lara got to his fifty-second, one-day fifty in his 217th match and tried to farm the strike. He and Collymore (3) added 25 for the last wicket in five overs to bring the crowd back to life with a partnership which flattered to deceive.
It eventually ended when Collymore was LBW to spinner Tillakaratne Dilshan with 56 needed from 52 balls much to the dismay of the expectant crowd who were already counting victory number four in a row after Sri Lanka had just managed to reach the 200 mark.
Earlier, West Indies, using the same 11 players who defeated Australia in their last One-Day International in Grenada, won the toss on a day blessed with glorious sunshine and asked Sri Lanka to bat first on a straw-colored track with good pace and carry for the bowlers. Sri Lanka, playing their first one-day game at Kensington, were off to a terrible start when Dillon struck with the third ball of the series before the visitors had scored.
The tourists lost their most devastating batsman when the left handed Sanath Jayasuriya touched a delivery which left him to the ‘keeper to spark almost instant celebrations.
Skipper Marvan Atapattu joined Romesh Kaluwitharana and the pair added 46 in nine overs on a lush green sward before off-spinner Samuels removed the Sri Lanka captain with his fourth ball.
Atapattu, who hit three fours from 36 balls in his 22 and survived a difficult chance off Dillon low to Jacobs’ left off an inside edge on 13, was beaten in the flight and offered Samuels an easy return catch in the 10th over.
Despite taking a wicket and conceding just a single in his first over, Samuels was replaced by Drakes. Collymore was given the top end and, with the wind behind his back, induced Kumar Sangakarra (2) to edge a ball to second slip only to see the usually reliable Powell floor the catch with the score on 47.
Kaluwitharana was troubled by the probing Collymore as he attempted to up the tempo as the rejuvenated home team limited Sri Lanka to 57-2 from 15 with the field restrictions in place.
Urged on by the drum pounding and flag waving crowd, also entertained by comedian Mac Fingal in the popular Kensington stand and the energetic Carib Girls gyrating to pulsating music from the sound system in the Carib Beer stand, West Indies looked sharp in the field.
‘Home boy’ Collymore beat the bat on a number of occasions in his impressive spell in scorching heat as the Windies maintained control.
Bernard soon got rid of Sangakarra for 15 in the twenty-first over at 83-3 as the left-hander attempted to hit his way out of trouble and was taken by Sarwan on the cover boundary.
By the half way stage of the innings Sri Lanka were 101-3 with a run rate of 4.04 per over as Lara used his bowlers intelligently.
Sri Lanka, slipped to 112-5 as two wickets fell in the space of two overs and six runs. Hinds captured a wicket in his first over when he removed Mahela Jayawardena (8) and should have had another had Samuels at mid-on not grassed a difficult diving catch to let off Kaluwitharana on 51.
Kaluwitharana’s fighting knock of 54 from 75 balls with four boundaries, ended in the next over when he was adjudged run out after New Zealand’s Billy Bowden, the games most entertaining and hyper-active umpire flambouyantly called for the third ‘eye’.
Drakes, recalled to bowl at the ‘death’ sent Dilshan’s off stump cart wheeling to end his innings of 27 from 46 balls and leave Sri Lanka on 171-6 with five overs left in their innings.
Dillon also back for a final spell, bowled Vass for 10 and had Kumar Dharmasena well caught down the leg side by Jacobs for 40 from 54 balls on his way to figures of 3-39 from 9.4 overs as two wickets fell in the forty-seventh over.
Collymore got rid of Muralitharan (2) in the next over as Samuels, running in from mid wicket, took a smart tumbling catch.
The innings ended in the penultimate over when Gamrage (1) was run out by a direct hit from Collymore to complete an impressive West Indies performance in the field.
That the West Indies struggled to overhaul a small total is all too a familiar story and if they aim to counter the high class spin of Muralitharan and the quality swing bowling of Vass, the top order will need to show a lot more discipline and commitment in the remaining matches starting from today.