Windies hit back

HARARE, (Reuters):

RESOLUTE lower order batting and aggressive fast bowling saved the West Indies real embarrassment on the first day of their opening first-class tour match against a Zimbabwean President's XI.

The tourists were reduced to 77 for six wickets before scrambling to 191 all out after being put into bat. They then reduced the President's XI to 111 for eight before bad light stopped play eight overs early.

The West Indies emerged with the upper hand at the end of a day on which 18 wickets fell on a pitch that assisted the bowlers throughout.

Only a partnership worth 62 for the eighth wicket between Neil McGarrell and Dinanath Ramnarine took the West Indies towards semi-respectability after they had taken lunch on 108 for seven.

McGarrell struck four boundaries in the third over after the break from Douglas Hondo, but he fell three runs short of his half century when he edged Mluleki Nkala to wicketkeeper Colin Delport. His 47 came off 63 balls and included nine fours.

Ramnarine followed soon afterwards, bowled by the impressive Paul Strang for 28.

Colin Stuart and Reon King added 22 for the last wicket before Stuart was last out for 11, caught by the keeper off Nkala.

Opening bowler David Mutendera did much of the early damage, picking up three wickets in a penetrating and accurate spell.

He removed Leon Garrick with the first ball of the match, the opener slashing loosely to Sean Ervine in the gulley.

Chris Gayle also went for a duck, leg before wicket in Mutendera's next over, and the bowler claimed his third wicket with the score on 24 when Shivnarine Chanderpaul edged to Delport for eight.

Wavell Hinds made 13 before he attempted a pull off Hondo and spliced the ball back to the bowler, while Marlon Samuels was caught by Delport off Ervine for 12 to leave the West Indies on 63 for five.

Ramnaresh Sarwan was the sixth wicket to fall, leg before to Gary Brent for a confident 29 off a delivery that kept low to the right-hander. Stand-in captain Ridley Jacobs followed with the score on 101, clipping Brent straight to Hondo at square leg for 13.

The President's XI started even more calamitously in reply as King and Stuart ripped through the top order to reduce the hosts to 12 for three.

Stuart trapped Gavin Rennie plumb in front for a duck, Guy Whittall was bowled by a beauty from King which clipped his off stump and Dirk Viljoen was also leg before to Stuart for one immediately after tea.

King then removed Ervine for nine as the batsman edged to wicketkeeper Jacobs, and although Hamilton Masikadza looked by far the most comfortable of the Zimbabwean batsmen, he top-edged a sweep off leg-spinner Ramnarine and Jacobs sprinted to the leg side to take a diving catch.

Delport undid a sound start and some good fortune by hitting Ramnarine straight to Hinds at mid-wicket when he was 20 and Brent made just one before he was leg-before to McGarrell.

Ramnarine picked up his third wicket shortly before the close when Nkala, on 21, drove the ball to Sarwan at cover.

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