West Indies tame England Lions
West Indies tame England Lions
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Thursday, 21, Jun 2007 08:41
West Indies have made a solid start to the one-day leg of their tour by beating an England Lions side by seven wickets at New Road, Worcestershire.
Reduced to a 24-over fixture after rain curtailed play earlier in the day, a quick-fire partnership of 130 between promising wicketkeeper-batsman Denesh Ramdin (73) and hard-hitting Runako Morton (72 not out) allowed the tourists to reach their target with five balls to spare.
An opening partnership of 75 between England Lions captain Vikram Solanki and Will Jefferson generated early momentum in the home team's innings, with Gloucestershire's Alex Gidman also contributing to the cause with a run-a-ball 34.
However, an economical spell of three wickets for 16 runs from an allotted five overs from part-time bowler Marlon Samuels enabled a depleted West Indies side to exert some control over proceedings and restrict England to 174.
Swing bowler James Anderson made early inroads into the West Indians' top order, dismissing newly-appointed one-day skipper Chris Gayle for eight.
Ramdin and Morton took a liking to England prospect Stuart Broad's bowling thereafter and although the rangy seamer finally accounted for Ramdin, the Leicestershire player went for 41 from his five overs.
Many of the England players involved in today's fixture will be hoping they have caught the attention of England coach Peter Moores, with the 44-year-old suggesting that his team had the potential to perform despite their poor showing at the World Cup this spring.
"What's really exciting about the one-day game is that we've got scope because we've got some really good players." he said.