West Indies eyeing series sweep: Andre Russell – Cricket News Update
All-rounder http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754 in the ongoing 5-match ODI series, the first match of which the hosts won by 9 wickets on July 5, played at the Sabina Park in Kingston, Jamaica.
“This is the time now when we can make use of the resource we have,” Russell said. “We have a very good team, we're playing at home and we have the home advantage. I'm looking at a whitewash.”
The Windies have consistently been floundering near the bottom of the ICC’s team rankings, and have not won a bilateral ODI series against a Test-level opposition for more than four years (barring teams such as http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Zimbabwe-c3045).
They recently secured a 2-0 T20 series win against New Zealand (who are ranked at number 8 on the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/ICC-World-Cup-2011-c100625’s ODI team rankings – one spot below the Windies), and their 9-wicket win in the first ODI of the series serves as a glimmer of hope for a team on the look-out for that elusive international series win.
“I think it's very good for West Indies cricket because it's a while we haven't won a series and we came very close to winning a series against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746, the top one-day side,” Russell said.
The West Indies put up a valiant fight against Australia in March this year, during an ODI series they were expected to lose, and ended it on a draw. The budding confidence was then tested in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013, where the Windies were unable to win a single match – however, the current series against New Zealand offers them a chance to end their losing streak in ODIs.
With batsmen such as http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sunil-Philip-Narine-c91869, the team secured a comprehensive victory in the first one-day, which Russell believes will enable them to dominate the remainder of the series.
The first match featured some impressive performances, including http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Smith-c90598 (65).
The victory earned them a 1-0 lead, and the Windies will be looking to keep the momentum going in the second one-day, scheduled to take place at the same venue on July 7.
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