Cool, calm assessment of West Indies batting required
The last afternoon of this Third Test nearly brought the West Indies team to their collective knees
Colin Croft
03-Apr-2001
The last afternoon of this Third Test nearly brought the West Indies team to their collective
knees. Whatever is done now, there must be some cool, calm assessment, honestly done, to understand
the situation with the batting of this team, especially on the last day.
It is as if the West Indies only play for four days of the Test match, but it should be noted that a Test match still lasts five days. Maturity and ability wrapped in one is
needed. Perhaps, Shivnarine Chanderpaul could be the answer here.
Serene at 59-1 in mid-afternoon, the West Indies middle order again shook, cracked and, as nearly as
is possible without capitulating fully, just survived, as South Africa applied real pressure. The
home team just averted going 2-0 down in the series. Had that happened, there would have been no
coming back for the West Indies and it would have been, again, their batsmen who had let them
down.
As quick as a flash, the West Indies disintegrated to 64-4 and then, from about 17 overs, to 82-7,
as leg-spinner Nicky Boje, 4-17, and Jacques Kallis and Lance Klusener turned
the screws. Even without Allan Donald, the South African attack is formidable and on the
final evening all of the other bowlers took up the slack left by Donald's absence. As was the case
in the Second Test in Trinidad & Tobago, the South African bowlers again showed great
professionalism as they tried everything to dismiss the West Indians.
Chris Gayle, with 48, was the only batsman to get to double figures in the West Indies
second innings. Then followed some gamesmanship, tremendous acting that should have earned them Oscars from Merv Dillon and Dinanath Ramnarine, antics that caused an immediate meeting
between the ICC match referee Mike Denness and West Indian team officials. The West Indies
play out the gloom to 88-7. It was a very distasteful display, but within the rules of the game, if
not the spirit of the game.
Earlier, South Africa were themselves in trouble, at 97-6, an overall lead of only 164, as the West
Indies spinners, Carl Hooper and Ramnarine, tried to restrict South Africa's lead to below 200.
Ramnarine bowled well, even if Hooper may have been using him just too much at times. Hooper
himself seems keen to do as much bowling now as a fully fledged off-spinner, and not just spelling
his fast bowlers, as was the case in the past. At least, Ramnarine did get his first five-wicket
haul, 5-78 from 33.1 overs.
Had the West Indies caught better in this Third Test, they might have even won the game, but that
could be said by the South Africans too.
Thanks again to Darryl Cullinan, with 82, and Shaun Pollock, with 40, South Africa escaped. Cullinan
has now made a century and a half-century in successive Tests. This guy must like the Caribbean.
The final word must go to Ridley Jacobs, the now veteran wicket-keeper batsman, who scored his
maiden Test century at the Kensington Oval. As the saying goes "Nothing happens before its time."
Jacobs should have been playing for the West Indies long before his eventual advent in South Africa
in 1998/9, and I mentioned that way back in 1996. Now he averages about 60+ against them, and
there is so much more to come.
Psychologically, South Africa will be out front now, going to Antigua & Barbuda for Test No. 4.
The West Indies have just two days to catch up. Things are getting tougher for the team in second
position.