ICC Champions Trophy, 2006-07

At Ahmedabad, October 8, 2006 (day/night). West Indies won by nine wickets. West Indies 2 pts. Toss: Zimbabwe.

A desperately one-sided contest eased West Indies into the defence of their title - their poor form since winning in England in 2004 had forced them to pre-qualify this time - and did nothing to reassure the wider world that Zimbabwe could compete at this level. Only a late flourish from Utseya took them past the lowest score in the Champions Trophy, the USA's 65 against Australia in 2004. The bowlers did nothing exceptional, but they didn't need to: a modicum of pace and accuracy was enough to ruin the callow Zimbabwean batting. Gayle lopped off the tail with three quick wickets, then displayed a similar determination not to dawdle when he batted. He did take 17 balls over his first two runs, but then hit 39 off his next 17. He was dropped twice in Rainsford's fifth over, before eventually mis-pulling to midwicket. That gave the small crowd a chance to see 16 minutes of Lara, playing his first innings on Indian soil since the 1996 World Cup semi-final.

Man of the Match: C. H. Gayle.