Rain has final say; India win series 2-1

Dhonis men register fifth series triumph on the trot

The match started an hour late following heavy rains just after India skipper Mahendra Singh Dhoni won the toss and elected to field, forcing the umpires to reduce it to a 49-over-a-side affair.

West Indies were 27 for one in 7.3 overs when rain interrupted play for the second time after they had lost the crucial wicket of skipper Chris Gayle for a duck.

Runako Morton (12 not out) and Ramnaresh Sarwan (12 not out) were at the crease when play was called off.

With this victory, India registered only their second bilateral series triumph in the Caribbean. The last time they won a series in West Indies was in 2002 under Sourav Ganguly’s captaincy, when they also pulled off a 2-1 victory after the first two one-dayers at Sabina Park in Kingston had been washed out without a ball being bowled.

This was India’s fifth consecutive bilateral one-day series triumph. The sequence began with a 3-2 victory on home turf against Pakistan in November 2007, and was followed by a 3-2 triumph in Sri Lanka in September 2008, India’s first ever one-day series triumph on Lankan soil.

India’s next two series wins were a lot more comprehensive. Kevin Pietersen’s side was mauled 5-0, the last two matches abandoned after England left for home following the 26/11 attacks in Mumbai.

Earlier this year in New Zealand, the Indians hammered the hosts 3-1, in the process also recording their maiden win in New Zealand and adding to the legend of Dhoni the skipper.

India had won the first match of this series by 20 runs, while the West Indies came back strongly in the second, hammering the Dhoni-led side by eight wickets.

However, riding on Dhoni’s brilliance, India took an unassailable 2-1 lead by winning the third one-dayer by six wickets with a ball to spare in a match truncated badly due to rains.

Electing to field on Sunday, Ishant Sharma gave India a dream start, picking up the vital wicket of Gayle off the second ball of the innings, caught behind by Dhoni with the hosts failing to open their account.

From there on, the West Indian batsmen found runs hard to come by against the accurate bowling of Ishant and Ashish Nehra. The hosts’ struggle can be gauged from the fact they failed to strike a single boundary in the 7.3 overs they faced.
Dhoni was named the man of the series for his consistently brilliant batting performances.

Ticket prices for T20

The International Cricket Council, meanwhile, announced low-priced tickets for the 2010 Twenty20 World Cup in a bid to host sold out matches in the Caribbean next year.
“Tickets have been priced to ensure the venues are as full as possible for all 42 matches,” said an ICC statement.

In another attraction for fans, the ICC has also decided to provide free entry to Under-16s for all matches in Guyana and all first round matches in St Lucia. The highest-priced ticket for all men’s first round and Super Eights matches is just USD 15 while all women’s group games will be free entry.

For either of the two semi-final men’s and women’s double-headers in St Lucia on May 13 and 14, ticket range starts from just $10 for adults and $6 for Under-16s. The top ticket-price for the final day is only $40. Tickets are set to go on sale in the Caricom market on November 1, 2009, with sales to the rest of the world commencing  two weeks later, on November 15. ICC chief executive Haroon Lorgat said the idea was to make sure the third edition was also as successful as the first two.
Agencies

SCORE BOARD

WEST INDIES

Gayle c Dhoni b Ishant    0
Morton (not out)    12
Sarwan (not out)    12
Extras (LB-1, W-1, NB-1)    3     
Total (for 1 wkt, 7.3 overs)    27
Fall of wicket: 1-0.
Bowling: Ishant 4-0-17-1, Nehra 3.3-1-9-0.