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News Letter
Fri May 31 2002
Issue No: 69

India go one-up with comfortable win at Barbados

Having never won at the Kensington Oval, India must have been surprised themselves at the absolute ease of their victory over the West Indies in the third one-dayer. Sourav Ganguly caused a flutter when he asked his hosts to bat, but his bowlers backed him up well. Tinu Yohannan and Ajit Agarkar picked three wickets apiece, and apart from Ramnaresh Sarwan (44), none looked like extending much-needed support to Carl Hooper, who held fort in vain at one end. A target of 187, therefore, was hardly enough to test a power-packed Indian line-up, and Dinesh Mongia, playing his first international match of the tour, grabbed the opportunity with both hands to hit 74 at number three. Along with Ganguly's 41 and Tendulkar's sedate 34 at number four, Mongia's knock was more than enough to see India canter home in 43.5 overs. Now it is the West Indies' turn to feel pressured as they go to Trinidad having to win both matches over the weekend to take the series.

Ganguly, Wright laud Indian team

It was probably as close to perfect as the Indian team could get. In a performance that would have done a lot to alleviate the disappointment of losing a closely-fought Test series, the tourists defeated the West Indies for the first time in a match at the Kensington Oval.

The watershed victory saw India go 1-0 up in a series that has been effectively reduced to a best-of-three contest after the first two one-dayers at Sabina Park had been washed out.

Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly who impressed with his captaincy in the game, was understandably elated. "It was a good overall performance, and we did well in all departments of the game," he said. "When you play that way, more often than not, you are going to win."

Many commentators had criticised his decision to insert the West Indians after winning the toss. The Indian skipper's defence was meticulous. "The decision to bowl first was made due to a combination of several things - they played only three frontline bowlers, the wicket had a bit of juice in it in the morning, and we had seven batsmen," he explained.

Ganguly also took the opportunity to praise Dinesh Mongia and fats bowler Tinu Yohannan for the role they played in fashioning the win. "Tinu bowled pretty well. He hadn't played much cricket for the last two months, and it's good to see him hit the length when he came on to bowl. The wicket had a bit of carry in the morning, and he used the conditions well," he observed.

Coach John Wright to chimed in with his plaudits. Praising the squad he said, "The youngsters certainly add energy to the team. If you look down the order it's the best fielding side we've put out in years."

Linsworth Headley: I'm honoured to be his son

The sons of both Bradmans - white and black - decided against playing cricket for a career. But while Sir Don's son even changed his surname to eliminate any public scrutiny, Linsworth Headley, George Headley's eldest son, kept his, even as he excelled in a different field. Linsworth Headley finished sixth in the 1964 Tokyo Olympic Games in the 100m and fourth in the 4x100m relay. "Had he gotten a knighthood, he would have been happier," says Linsworth Headley of his father. "You see, he got nothing while he was alive. We now have his statue at Sabina Park, a road here is named after him – but he could not see these things. He didn't know how to drive, and he had no car. But whenever he was out of the house, within five minutes he was picked up by a car. He was known as the People's Champion." An apt sobriquet indeed.

  • Former off-spinning great Erapalli Prasanna attributes India's win to a lacklustre West Indian performance. Click Here
  • Disagree with Erapalli Prasanna? Send in your own views to "The Writer in You." Click Here
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This day in 1928 witnessed the birth of Pankaj Roy, most remembered for his world-record 413-run opening partnership with Vinoo Mankad in a Test against New Zealand at Chennai. In 43 Test appearances for the country, Roy scored 2442 runs at 32.56. He also had the honour of leading India in a solitary Test against England at Lord's.

West Indian captain Carl Hooper blamed complacency for his side's poor performance at the Kensington Oval, but it cannot be denied that the Indians played some good cricket. With two matches to go, the visitors could win the series with even one more victory. But the Caribbean side will not buckle so easily, and that will ensure some fantastic cricket in this weekend's double-header at Trinidad.

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Dinesh Mongia
Man of the Match
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Who has made the highest individual score in an India - West Indies one-dayer?

Previous Question

How many matches have the West Indies lost when Viv Richards made a century?

Answer:None



"We've grown up reading about and watching cricket in the Caribbean. Some of the biggest names in game have come from the West Indies, and it's quite a special feeling to do well here." Dinesh Mongia, Man of the Match at Barbados

"We desperately wanted to win today, but I just don't think we turned up to play cricket. It's probably because of the Test series win. We seem to have put our feet up and lost momentum." Carl Hooper



"Ideally, Rahul Dravid should be dropped from the one-day side, and Ajay Ratra should be included. Six batsmen with occasional fireworks from Ajit Agarkar should be able to make a defendable score." Amitava Pramanik


Carl Hooper, by claiming his counterpart Sourav Ganguly's catch on Wednesday, equalled Viv Richards record of the most catches - 101- by a West Indian fielder.

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