FEARLESS IN THE BOX COLUMN - DAY 4 - SUNDAY 6TH APRIL, 2008

SPORTS: FEARLESS IN THE BOX – DAY FOUR ( SUNDAY 6^TH APRIL, 2008)– of the 2^nd Test Match between the West Indies and Sri Lanka

 

By Andre E Baptiste

 

                                     --- A PRICELESS VICTORY FOR THE WEST INDIES---

 

I’m sitting in the West Indies Cricket Board Corporate Box still waiting for a call from a man who doesn’t trust me, hoping he’ll have answers about a man I don’t trust, which may clear the name of a man no one gives a damn about. To distract myself from this uneasy vigil – and from an uneasy feeling of comfort, that my Sunday Morning prayers at Santa Rosa RC in Arima would work wonders for the West Indies on Day 4, I looked around the box for other smiling faces and found only one.

She was not so slim( without being skinny), elegant, had long hair  and was very pretty. She smiled at me and I smiled back appreciatively, all I needed now, was for her to speak …and this though is where it all changed….” Would you like coffee or tea..Mr Fearless One”. So now it was obvious she did not work at the West Indies Cricket Board, no wonder she was happy whatever the outcome on Sunday.

Overnight rain in Port of Spain, had left many in doubt about the conditions.

Captain Chris Gayle walked briskly to the crease with his opening partner  Chattergoon. Both were purposeful, but ineffective, their departures in consecutive overs (5th and 6^th), left the West Indies tottering at 24-2.

Marlon Samuels limped to the crease, his bat dragging, as his head remain bowed and he never settled so when he inevitably fell to Chaminda Vaas, it was not a surprise, but a conclusion, waiting to happen.

West Indies vice Captain Ramnaresh Sarwan is in a rich vein of form, back to back half centuries in all three innings( 80,72 and 57) in this series to date has given the injury prone right hander a tremendous level of self confidence and he began his innings a la – Sir Vivian Richards-. Intent on domination and destruction, - Sarwan the flamboyant - , whirled and blazed his willow, much like multi talented coconut vendor chipping away to the husk to give to his willing customer, the final product.

Sarwan has always been a showman, he has learned well under Brian Charles Lara and he immediately sought to break the rhythm of Muralitharan, with some risky drives and cuts.

His partner, the ultra consistent, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, had recovered from his mishap in the first innings and set out his stall for the battle and sought to ensure, his wicket would have been purchased in expensive currency (not Guyanese).

Sri Lanka then panicked, their Captain Jayawardene loss his composure and seem at loss for ideas, even going so far as to change the field placing for no reasons. The right (Sarwan) and Left (Chanderpaul) combination had the third ranked test playing nation looking like schoolboys with no money at a University party.

Sarwan’s tenth test century ( 102) and Chanderpaul’s 46^th  test half century( 86 not out) were too much for a Sri Lanka bowling team, that is too thin without three of their front line bowlers in Malinga ,Maharoof and Fernnando. Their partnership of 157 for the fourth wicket

Can we really separate them, money and sports, on Sunday all of that was forgotten? In the end the West Indies won and  Sri Lanka loss and while the margin of the victory would suggest that West Indies won comfortably but for three days the Sri Lankans had given as good as they had got, the only problem was they all forgot the script on the fourth day and lost the plot. Only two teams (India and West Indies) have made 250 or more in the fourth innings here on this ground to win a game. This is the third occasion. A win here after eight years( including losing the last five matches played at the Oval).

Or dare we say it, THE WEST INDIES team played good, sensible cricket. This was a PRICELESS victory for the West Indies cricket team, and all of us in and from the Caribbean.

 Bing.. bing.. bing..  (It is the phone, it is ringing), could it be because the man I don’t trust is finally to calling me when it is all over. This proves how dangerous it is to ever believe that a bookie can give you good inside information on the outcome of a cricket match.

 

:: AB