da jogodeouro： Under absolutely wonderful weather conditions for cricket, thefirst “Test” match between the West Indies “A” and the visitingIndian “A” team got under way today at the Queens Park Oval, PortOf Spain, Trinidad & Tobago, West Indies
da 888： Colin Croft20-Nov-1999Under absolutely wonderful weather conditions for cricket, thefirst “Test” match between the West Indies “A” and the visitingIndian “A” team got under way today at the Queens Park Oval, PortOf Spain, Trinidad & Tobago, West Indies.Key players from either team were passed fit at the very lastminute. Jimmy Adams, the West Indies “A” team captain, apart of the West Indies senior team’s batting line-up to tour NewZealand soon, and who is nursing a knee injury, passed himselffit at the last practice session the day before the game.Dodda Ganesh, one of the very few players in India “A” team withinternational experience, and a useful fast bowler, was passedfit on the morning of the game. He has a thigh injury.India “A” won the toss and elected to bat. However, whileconditions overhead were excellent, the pitch was somewhat slowand the bounce variable. The outfield was also rather slow, aresult of the recent rains in the Eastern Caribbean.At lunch, India “A” were 59-1 from 27 overs, the going prettyslow. The not out batsmen were Gagan Khoda, on 38, and SridharanSriram, on 0. The first batsman out was Jagdish Arun Kumar, caught at short leg, off RawlLewis, the leg-spinner from Grenada. Thebatsman was besides himself with anger and it took great personalrestraint for him not to destroy his bat after getting out toa poor delivery, in the 26th over, just before lunch; 58-1.The opening batsmen had done a good job for their country.Both of the West Indies “A” team’s new fast bowlers, GoldwynPrince of the Leeward islands and Dwight Mais of Jamaicaimpressed on the slow pitch. They bowled at a good length,worked up some reasonable pace and also got some movement fromthe slow pitch. Their efforts, however, were not initially goodenough to dislodge the steady, if staid, openers, Khoda andArunkumar. The pitch was so slow, and the outfield similarlyunyielding, that scoring was very difficult. In the meantime,Nixon McLean, the most experienced West Indian “A” team bowler,one who had played Test cricket, looked out of sorts and palpablyout of rhythm.Khoda had just gotten to a well-compiled 50 when he played halfforward to the persevering Prince and was adjudged LBW in over37, 79-2. Khoda had hit only three boundaries, a six off of thebowling of Rawl Lewis, almost back over the bowler’s head, andtwo fours.The Indian “A” team captain, Hrishikesh Kanitkar, another Indianplayer with some international experience, then took a painful 44minutes and 37 balls in compiling only 5 before he tried to drivea short delivery from the Jamaican off-spinner, Chris Gayle, onlyto see another Jamaican, captain Jimmy Adams, dive at full lengthto his left at short extra-cover to take a wonderful catch; India”A” 95-3 in over 49.That soon became 98-4 when Mais, again bowling at a full length,got a delivery to cut back into Jacob Martin, another Indian “A”player with some international experience. The ball struck thepads exactly adjacent to the middle stump; out LBW for 2 in over52.Tea on the first day was taken with India “A’ on 108-4, withSridharan Sriram on 19 not out and Mohammed Kaif on 6 not out.Sriram became Lewis’s second victim, and the West Indies “A”‘sfifth, when he misjudged a beautifully flighted leg-break, droveat it, and Darren Ganga snapped up a sharp chance at slip.Sriram had come in at the fall of the fist wicket and had battedall of 145 minutes, facing 105 deliveries, hitting only one 4,for his 25; India”A” 116-5 in over 65.The India “A” batsmen, Mohammed Kaif and Samir Dighe then playedperhaps the most enterprising cricket of the day, so farrealizing 63 runs for their very valuable sixth wicketpartnership. They looked very accomplished for their 30 not outand 24 not out respectively, Dighe being the more aggressive ofthe two.The West Indies “A” team fielding was quite good, but thebowling, especially that of Nixon McLean and to a lesser extent,Rawl Lewis, was somewhat disappointing. At the close of thefirst day of four, India “A’ were 179-5 from the allotted 90overs, with the West Indian “A” leg-spinner, Lewis, getting twoof the wickets. The game continues tomorrow, Saturday 20November.
