Lara-less Windies slump to defeat

The West Indies suffered a disappointing loss to Australia 'A' in their last warmup match before the VB Series. In the absence of their captain Brian Lara, the West Indies suffered a collapse of 6/18 as they fell short in pursuit of Australia A's 9-243.

Winning the toss and bowling first, the West Indies struck early, with Pedro Collins in particular finding a good rhythm. The Australia A top order failed to fire, with Saturday's star David Hussey managing only 5. They fell to a perilous 5-84, with only Mike Hussey holding the innings together. He combined with Cameron White, who again hit a half century to resurrect the innings. A partnership of 88 boosted Australia A's total to respectability, and a late surge from White and Hauritz led Australia A to their eventual 9-243. The West Indies pacemen found some valuable form, with the wickets spread between King (3), Bravo and Dillon (2), and Collins (1). Marlon Samuels also picked up a wicket, while Chris Gayle bowled an economical 10 overs for 30 runs.

Chris Gayle again got the West Indies off to a vibrant start with the bat, hammering 43 from 33 balls, but again failing to make a decisive impact. He was first to fall, followed by Xavier Marshall for only 1. The West Indies appeared on target for most of their innings, with solid contributions from Hinds (53), Sarwan (35) and Samuels (31). Hinds was unluckily given out with the score at 115, but the runout of Samuels proved the turning point. From 4-174, the West Indies subsided, losing 6 wickets for 18 runs to lose by 51 runs. Brett Lee found form ahead of the triangular series, taking 2/35 from his 10.

Brian Lara, Chris Gayle and Dwayne Bravo all head to Melbourne to take part in the Asia vs. Rest of the World XI tsunami appeal match, but for the rest of the team, this was their last chance to gain match practice ahead of the VB Series, which begins in Melbourne on the 14th of January.

Score Summary:
AUSTRALIA 'A' 9 for 243 from 50 overs
MEK Hussey 70 (115), CL White 59 (68); RD King 3/61 (10), DJJ Bravo 2/31 (6)

WEST INDIANS 192 all out from 43 overs
WW Hinds 53 (86); B Lee 2/35 (10)

Posted by Adam