Morton (109) anchors Windies

Making use of brilliant sunshine but in front of a disappointing crowd, Morton, a Nevisian who now resides in Trinidad and Tobago made 109 and anchored the regional team’s innings of 263 for six wickets after captain Brian Lara won the toss and elected to bat in the sixth and penultimate ODI against the Zimbabweans.

However, after the West Indian innings and two stoppages when the opposition batted, the match was abandoned.

At 4.02 pm, with Zimbabwe neatly poised at 72 runs for two wickets off 12.1 overs, in pursuit of a revised target of 191 in 30, umpires Steve Bucknor and Billy Bowden waited a further 35 minutes before deciding that the newly-relaid outfield was too soggy to continue.

It was also disheartening for the 150 underprivileged children who occupied the KFC, RBTT and Carib Beer Stands at the south-eastern end of the ground.

The youngsters were invited to witness the match by WI captain Brian Lara and the Pearl and Bunty Lara Foundation (named after Lara’s deceased parents).

The first delay of play came at 1.55 pm with Zimbabwe at seven without loss and, after the target was altered under the Duckworth-Lewis system.

Zimbabwe captain Terrence Duffin guided his reverse sweep straight into the gloves of wicket-keeper Carlton Baugh while the out-of-form Piet Rinke was run out by Lara’s return to the keeper, after Vusi Sibanda sought a single to square leg.

Earlier Runako Morton registered his second One-Day International century; Ramnaresh Sarwan notched his 19th half-century at this level, including his 3,000th run; and Shivnarine Chanderpaul his 36th one-day half-century as the West Indies posted 263 for six in their allotted 50 overs.

Out of sorts opener Chris Gayle was bowled by dreadlocked pacer Tawanda Mupariwa for two, nonchalantly attempting a straight drive but Morton and Sarwan turned the tide decisively in the home team’s favour with a second-wicket partnership of 134 in 26.1 overs.

Morton feasted on an array of half-volleys and long-hops served by medium-pacers Anthony Ireland, Keegan Meth and Piet Rinke, as he motored to 50 in 66 balls with nine fours and a cover-driven six while the West Indies’ 100 took 20.2 overs to arrive.

But the spin pair of Ryan Higgins (leg) and Prosper Utseya (off) stifled the scoring rate to the extent that the West Indies took an additional 144 deliveries to reach 200, losing four wickets in the process.

Sarwan reached 54 off 62 balls with five boundaries, mostly square off the wicket, before he attempted to cut Higgins and was bowled while Lara walked off on his own accord— after shuffling across the crease as usual— and edging the leg-spinner to Taylor, even though no Zimbabweans appealed.

When Ireland replaced Higgins, who finished his ten-over spell for 39 runs, Morton changed gear and posted his century with a thunderous on-driven boundary, taking a further 80 deliveries to reach the landmark.

The right-handed opener launched a counter-attack in the same over but it could not last, as he skied the pacer to Mupariwa at long-on.

Marlon Samuels was run out the following delivery, as he failed to beat Elton Chigumbura’s throw to Taylor as Chanderpaul risked a suicidal run to backward point while Dwayne Smith was comprehensively bowled by Mupariwa attempting a shot to mid-on.

Chanderpaul and Carlton Baugh, returning to the team for the first time since the 2004 tour of England, gave the innings the impetus it required all along, as they added an unbroken seventh wicket stand of 57 in 5.1 overs.

The ex-WI captain sped to 51 off 44 balls with two fours and two sixes over midwicket while Baugh chipped in with 25 off 15 with three fours and a six over square leg.