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Canada Scotia Bank Tri-Nation ODI series…Gayle (110*) blows Windies to 7-wicket victory against Canada
By Sean Devers
Twenty-eight year-old Skipper Chris Gayle smashed an unbeaten 110 as the West Indies galloped to a seven-wicket victory against host Canada in the final of the Scotia Bank Tri-Nation One-Day International cricket series at the Maple Leaf North-West Ground, King City yesterday to finish unbeaten in the series which also included Bermuda.
Replying to Canada’s 179 all out in 46.6 overs, West Indies reached 181-3 with 135 balls remaining in the contest although the regional side lost two wickets for eight runs with victory in sight.
The left-handed Gayle attacked the Canada bowling, which included former Guyana first-class medium pacer 30-year-old Eion Katchy, with disdain in his pugnacious 77-ball innings which was decorated with 14 fours and six sixes as the Jamaican raced to his 16th ODI ton his 186th match at this level.
Gayle, the only batsman to register a 20/20 International century, dominated an 88-run opening stand with Guyanese Sewnarine Chattergoon before the 27-year-old Chattergoon was bowled by 21-year-old seamer Harvir Singh Baidwan in the 13th over.
Chattergoon’s 27 lasted 42 balls and included three boundaries and made way for the arrival of wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh in the absence of Ramnaresh Sarwan who missed yesterday final.
Baugh and fellow Jamaican Gayle flayed the home team bowlers on a good track before Baugh, selected ahead of Denish Ramdin and Patrick Browne because of his superior batting, fell with victory 15 runs away when he was bowled by Balaji Rao for a 41-ball 29 with four fours.
Former West Indies under-19 Skipper and Guyana’s newest West Indies player, Leon Johnson joined the belligerent Gayle but unlike in the last match when he notched up his maiden ODI fifty in only his second such outing, Johnson was also bowled by Balaji Rao for one at 173-3.
Xavier Marshall, who hit a record 12 sixes in his maiden ODI ton in the previous match was unbeaten on four as victory was formalized in the 28th over.
Balaji Rao finished with 2-50 from seven overs while Katchy (0-34 from four overs) and Skipper and former Guyana left-arm spinner Sunil Dhaniram (1 over for 19 runs) were expensive as Gayle entertained the crowd.
Earlier, Canada, who beat Bermuda but lost to the West Indies in the preliminary rounds, were invited to bat first and were in early trouble when Mohammad Iqbal was run out by Chattergoon for a duck with just a run on the board.
Thirty-year-old Rizwan Ahmed Cheema who made his ODI debut in this series, again showed his class and hit an entertaining 61 to follow up his 89 against the West Indies in his last match.
His rapid half-century included eight fours and three sixes and lasted just 45 balls but once the Pakistani born right-hander was dismissed by Daren Powell at 99-4 in the 15th over, only Sri Lankan born Ramesh David of the other batsmen reached 20 with a cameo 28 with five fours.
India born Keeper Ashish Bagai (3) Guyana born Abdul Samad (4), who made his ODI debut five years ago, were sent back in quick succession by pacer Jerome Taylor who finished with 3-33 while Dhaniram was run out by the nimble Australian born Jamaican Brendan Nash for a second-ball duck.
Karun Jethi offered some resistance towards the end of the innings hitting three fours in 18 before he too failed to beat Nash’s throw while Katchy, batting at number eleven, made 12 before he was bowled by the impressive Taylor as Canada were all out with 3.1 overs remaining.
Left-arm spinner Nikita Miller took 2-18 from 10 overs and Nash 1-33 from 10 to end a good day at the office for the Jamaicans in the side.
With the Champions trophy scheduled for Pakistan from September 12 now postponed to next year October, the West Indies players will return home to prepare for the regional one-day tournament and next year’s home series against England.
The venue for the regional One-Day competition could be in limbo since a reliable source close to West Indies Cricket Board has indicated that the competition, scheduled to commence next month in Florida, could be shifted from the USA.
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