Tony Becca - From The Boundary THE SHORT two-match Test series between the West Indies and Zimbabwe is over.
The West Indies won it one-nil and although there are those who believe that all is well that ends well, such was their performance in the first Test that the West Indies should be far from happy.
Hot favourites to win the series, the West Indies escaped by the skin of their teeth in the first Test. Although they hit-back to win the second by 128 runs, not even captain Brian Lara, who has been doing his best to motivate the players to make them believe in themselves, can be confident as he looks forward to South Africa in December.
According to Lara, Zimbabwe played 10 days of Test cricket and were very determined. But for their second innings in the second Test when their batsmen - under pressure and up against some creditable bowling - looked like nervous novices, they did play some good cricket.
They are minnows of Test cricket and the West Indies went close, very close, to losing the first Test, and therefore almost never won the series.
EMBARRASSED
The West Indies may not believe that they were embarrassed, but even if they were not, they certainly went close to it, very close.
Apart from the manner in which some of them, most of them, got out at times, their batsmen fumbled like novices against the spin of Ray Price. Apart from young Fidel Edwards in the first Test and the second innings in Bulawayo, their bowlers lacked consistency in line and length and their fielding, the urgency in the field, was nothing compared to Zimbabwe's fielding.
In welcoming the victory, it is important to note that the victory in Bulawayo was set up by Lara, who, in scoring 191, not only notched his 22nd Test century but also became the West Indies leading run-getter.
In celebrating the victory, therefore, the West Indies should raise a toast to the captain. But for his stroke-filled masterpiece, the West Indies, who were routed for 128 in the second innings after Lara failed to keep out a beauty from pacer Heath Streak, after some of their batsmen slit their own throats with reckless strokes, may well have been really embarrassed.
HIGH POINT
Lara's batting apart, the high point of the West Indies performance was the bowling of offspinner Omari Banks in the second innings.
Wavell Hinds, who played some lovely strokes, scored 81 in the first innings, and Ramnaresh Sarwan, who looked good at times, scored 65, and both deserve a pat on the back.
Banks though was brilliant throughout the second innings while pocketing three wickets for 35 runs off 15 overs.
In the first innings, probably because of a lack of confidence, he bowled too fast, too short, and did not make an impression. In the second innings, however, he bowled a bit slower, he flighted the ball, he got it to spin, he varied his pace, his line, and his length quite well, he got a few to go straight through, and he certainly was impressive - so impressive that he should be definitely one of the four specialist bowlers against South Africa.
According to Lara, the series was a good work-out in preparation for South Africa. If he really believes that, if he is not simply trying to lift the spirit of his players, if it is not just an attempt to console the fans, then based on his performance in Bulawayo, Banks must be part of his plan to beat South Africa.
