Windies sweep Test series against England
Thursday, 12 March 2009
Fifth Test, Trinidad (day five, close): England 546-6 & 237-6 drew with West Indies 544 & 114-8
England fell agonisingly short of victory as West Indies held on to draw the final Test and win the series 1-0, reports BBC.
The Windies were set 240 from a minimum 66 overs and after losing three wickets in the first 19, never chased it.
Graeme Swann took 3-13 and when the eighth wicket fell there were still 20 balls remaining, but Denesh Ramdin (17) held out as they closed on 114-8.
Earlier Kevin Pietersen's 16th Test ton and a fluent 61 from Matt Prior saw England add 155 and declare at lunch.
It is the first time the Windies have held the Wisden Trophy for nine years, and their first major series success for five years.
But England will feel they should have won 2-1, having taken nine wickets in Antigua and come within just two strikes of victory here.
They gave themselves two sessions to bowl out the home side and packed men around the bat in a frantic effort to force the win.
Seamer James Anderson was outstanding with his reverse swing to claim 3-24 but, with the crowd on the edge of their seats, England ran out of overs.
Skipper Andrew Strauss will no doubt come under fire again for not declaring early enough, and the 1-0 series defeat drops England to sixth in the rankings.
But things looked as though they would be different when Paul Collingwood took a stunning low catch in the seventh over to dismiss makeshift opener Lendl Simmons, and tension began to mount in the home dressing room desperate to experience the winning feeling again.
Swann saw off Devon Smith after the opener played a wild swipe and was pinned leg before after a referral as England's hopes grew.
Ramnaresh Sarwan, the man who began the day with 612 runs from six innings, played his usual stylish range of strokes despite the situation, and successive driven boundaries off Monty Panesar brought up the West Indies 50.
England fell agonisingly short of victory as West Indies held on to draw the final Test and win the series 1-0, reports BBC.
The Windies were set 240 from a minimum 66 overs and after losing three wickets in the first 19, never chased it.
Graeme Swann took 3-13 and when the eighth wicket fell there were still 20 balls remaining, but Denesh Ramdin (17) held out as they closed on 114-8.
Earlier Kevin Pietersen's 16th Test ton and a fluent 61 from Matt Prior saw England add 155 and declare at lunch.
It is the first time the Windies have held the Wisden Trophy for nine years, and their first major series success for five years.
But England will feel they should have won 2-1, having taken nine wickets in Antigua and come within just two strikes of victory here.
They gave themselves two sessions to bowl out the home side and packed men around the bat in a frantic effort to force the win.
Seamer James Anderson was outstanding with his reverse swing to claim 3-24 but, with the crowd on the edge of their seats, England ran out of overs.
Skipper Andrew Strauss will no doubt come under fire again for not declaring early enough, and the 1-0 series defeat drops England to sixth in the rankings.
But things looked as though they would be different when Paul Collingwood took a stunning low catch in the seventh over to dismiss makeshift opener Lendl Simmons, and tension began to mount in the home dressing room desperate to experience the winning feeling again.
Swann saw off Devon Smith after the opener played a wild swipe and was pinned leg before after a referral as England's hopes grew.
Ramnaresh Sarwan, the man who began the day with 612 runs from six innings, played his usual stylish range of strokes despite the situation, and successive driven boundaries off Monty Panesar brought up the West Indies 50.