Late afternoon wickets keep Windies in hunt

May 03, 2015 Sports

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Anderson (6-42), Blackwood (85) share 2nd day honours  

By Sean Devers in Barbados In association with Carib Beer & Noble House Seafoods
Before another full house at the Kensington Oval, England spearheaded by James Anderson’s 17th five-wicket haul, ended the second day of the third and final Test against West Indies, with the contest intriguingly placed

in a match the host must win to avoid a series defeat.
Anderson shared honours with Jermaine Blackwood, who scored an aggressive 85 on a riveting day in which 18 wickets tumbled for 245 runs in 77.5 overs on a track still good to bat on.
Blackwood batted 146 minutes, 88 balls and hit 11 fours and four sixes as West Indies, replying to England’s 257 were dismissed for 189. The 32-year-old Anderson captured 6-42 for England who ended the day on 39-5 in their second innings, with a lead of 107 with five wickets in hand.
Gary Ballance (12) and Stokes (8) are the not out batsmen after a late afternoon burst from Jerome Taylor, Shannon Gabriel, Jason Holder and Veerasammy Permaul kept hopes alive of a sensational win in a game not likely to last five days.
By the close, England had lost Jonathon Trott (9), first innings centurion Alistair Cook (4), Ian Bell (0), Joe Root (1) and Moeen Ali (8) to leave the visitors on 39-5 with Taylor taking 2-16 , Gabriel 1-4, Holder 1-7 and Permaul 1-7 to set up an interesting day today.
Play resumed with the visitors on 240-7 and they fell for 257, forty minutes into the

opening session with Taylor (3-36) taking all three wickets to clinically mop up the tail on a day is which a male English streaker scampered onto the field and was eventually caught by Police officers.
Taylor had Bajan-born Ray Jordon (3) caught behind at 247-8 and then dismantled the stumps of Chris Broad (10) and James Anderson (0) in two balls. Holder (2-34), Gabriel (2-47) supported with the ball for the hosts who were off to a horrendous start.
Kraigg Braithwaite, one of batsmen depended on to play a ‘long innings’ got a ball which left him, found the edge and was smartly taken at third slip by Jordon for a second-ball duck as Anderson struck.
Shai Hope was off the mark in Test Cricket in fortuitous manner when he edged Broad through the slip cordon to the boundary.
Darren Bravo was badly dropped at second slip by Alistair Cook off Broad before he had scored before Television replays confirmed Hope (5) was taken low down at second slip by Cook off Anderson and the West Indies were wobbling on 5-2.
Bravo continued to flirt with danger and got off the mark with an impetuous drive at a wide

ball which flew past a leaping Jordon at third slip and down to the boundary.
Marlon Samuels got going with gorgeous back foot punch off Broad which reached the cover boundary like a bullet. But Bravo looked very loose and a wicked bouncer from Anderson nearly took his head off to the delight of the English dominated capacity crowd.
Samuels’ second scoring shot was a stunning cover drive for four, but on a track which was still good for batting, Broad and Anderson bent their backs and passed the outside edge of both batsmen as they produced prodigious movement in sultry conditions.
Samuels (9) was beaten for pace and trapped LBW to Anderson as the Caribbean team slipped to 21-3 to bring veteran Shiv Chanderpaul, no stranger to such situations, to the crease.
Although the 40-old Guyanese has not reached 50 in this series, the experience of 164 Tests (the most by any West Indian) and his tremendous record on this ground where he scored his first Test ton against India in 1997, he was still a threat.
Chanderpaul, who has 30 Test centuries with four of them being at this ground where has scored the most Test runs by any batsman, tucked the balls into the gaps as he started his innings quietly and by Lunch was on nine.
Bravo (9) was with him and, with their team on 37-3 they knew their job was a huge one and that occupying the crease was very important if they hoped to put any pressure on the tourists.
After the interval, Bravo never suggested permanence was taken at slip off Ali before the West Indies had added to their Lunch time score.
Blackwood joined Chanderpaul, who began this game 112 runs away from Brain Lara’s record of the most Test runs by a West Indian and the left-hander from Unity Village, tickled Ali to fine leg boundary before flicking him for two to go into double figures.
Before Friday, nobody had scored a Test hundred at this ground since Chanderpaul’s unbeaten 112 against Australia in 2012 and the aging ‘Tiger’ needed to repeat that feat if the West Indies hoped to avoid defeat.
The 50 was posted in 81 minutes with a neat tuck off his legs by Blackwood off Anderson for a boundary before he deposited Ali for six and pulled him for a couple of fours.
Under a clear blue, sky Chanderpaul rocked back and cut Ali for two before swiveling and pulling him for four as the off-spinner bowled too short.
But with the partnership on 45, Jordon held a brilliant right-handed catch at slip as Chanderpaul edged a forceful punch to a ball that bounced from off-spinner Joe Root. Chanderpaul’s 25 lasted 71 minutes, 66 balls and included three fours but left him still short of 100 runs in this series and 87 short of Lara’s record.
Chanderpaul’s demise sunk the West Indies to 82-5 and brought Skipper Denish Ramdin (13) to the wicket but he soon edged a big drive at Broad leave his team on 107-6.
Holder (5) was removed by Stokes at 124 but Blackwood continued to play aggressively and dumped Root for a huge six. The 23 year-old reached his fourth Test fifty to add to the ton he scored in Antigua. His half-century came from 98 minutes, 61 balls and included eight fours and two sixes.
Blackwood counter-attacked and along with Permaul took the score to 139-7 by Tea with Blackwood on 67 and Permaul on one.
After the break, the 150 was posted in the 45th over with a pulled boundary by Blackwood while Permaul, who played a glorious cover drive followed up with a commanding hook off Anderson before a firm tuck off his body was held at short leg as Anderson removed Permaul (18) at 162-8.
Taylor took the attack to the bowlers hitting two fours and a six in an 8-ball 15 but with Blackwood on 73 Taylor irresponsibly attempted another brainless big shot and was bowled by Anderson to epitomize why West Indies cricket continues to struggle due to a lack of basic common sense.
Blackwood, desperate to get his second Test hundred with the last pair at the crease, danced into Anderson and lofted him back over his head for six to gallop into the 80s. However, a stupendous catch by Ali on the boundary orchestrated Blackwood’s demise off Anderson.
Scores: England 257 (Cook 103, Moeen 58, Taylor 3-36) and 39 for 5 (Ballance 12*, Stokes 0*) lead West Indies 189 (Blackwood 85, Anderson 6-42) by 107 runs.

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