South Africa defeats West Indies in Barbados to clinch Test series
South Africa defeated hosts' West Indies in a humiliating manner in the 3rd Test at Barbados to clinch the series 2-0. South Africa ended their tour of the Caribbean on a high note by recording success in all three forms of cricket. And to add icing on the cake, they also remained unbeaten throughout the tour. Their last victory came in Barbados, which was once considered the citadel of West Indian cricket.
Morne Morkel was the man of the moment for the visitors as he wrapped up the West Indian batting in a fiery spell of fast bowling. Despite Chanderpaul’s heroics, West Indies failed to post a competitive target on the scoreboard. Chanderpaul along with Shane Shillingford tried a last ditch effort to salvage some respect for the hosts. But their stand was broken when Shillingford was bowled by a spectacular delivery. The lower order for the West Indies, which preceded Shillingford, failed to cope with the lethal onslaught by Morkel and Steyn. Morkel attacked Sulieman Benn from around the wicket, allowing the ball to move both ways and troubled him to a great extent. Sulieman soon ran out options as he was beaten by the ball that moved inwardly which shattered his stumps. Kemar Roach was the next man to go back to pavilion as he edged the ball to Mark Boucher off the bowling of Morkel.
On the other hand, Chanderpaul held the other end with praiseworthy resistance. He batted most sensibly but was powerless as his partners on other end kept losing their wickets. Debutant Brandon Bess was the last man to lose his wicket as he was caught out in the slips after he failed to judge a short pitched delivery. Morkel was instrumental for the visitors as he cleaned out the tail in just three overs. Chanderpaul was unbeaten at 71 runs as West Indies capitulated for 161 runs in the second innings.
South Africa was given a target of 47 runs to chase. Roach surprisingly displayed plenty of aggression as he removed three South African batsmen within no time. But it was too little, too late for the Caribbean players as South Africa sealed the Test series with a thumping seven wicket win in Barbados. South Africa won the series 2-0.
For the West Indies, the series against South Africa was an eye-opener as they lost in all three formats of cricket. They need to bring radical changes in their domestic setup in order to improve the dismal condition of cricket in the West Indies. Captain Chris Gayle asked the West Indian batsmen to shoulder more responsibility after his team's 5-0 drubbing in the ODI’s. However, West Indies’ batsmen were the main culprits in the Tests series once again. Dale Richards, who came in this Test in place of Travis Dowlin, lost his wicket cheaply in both innings. The same can be said for Narsingh Deonarine.
On the other hand, South African captain Graeme Smith is pleased with the performance of his team in the Caribbean. The visitors completely dominated the hosts in all departments and in all forms of cricket. South Africa achieved a clean sweep in the T20’s and ODI series by wrapping up the Tests with a 2-0 drubbing in Barbados. This tour has brought some solace to the South African squad after their drubbing in the tour of India and the T20 World Championships. Talking to reporters, Smith said, “It's been a terrific series for us. We can’t hide away from the disappointment we experienced in the World Twenty20. We’ve asked each other to step it up, make sure that happens in every training session, and we performed to the best of our ability”.
Speedsters Dale Steyn and Morne Morkel were vital for South Africa’s success and played a key role in dismantling the West Indian batting line-up. They shared 29 wickets between them in the series. Commenting on their importance, Smith said, “They are an important part of the Test line-up, the firepower they bring and their wicket-taking ability is crucial for our success. As a captain it's about balancing, how much you really want to use them and getting the most out of it”. He further said, “Especially in this heat and these types of conditions, it's about ensuring each bowler is effective and that they're trying to achieve something. That's the goal for me as a captain”.
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