West Indies vice-captain Ramnaresh Sarwan flicks the ball down the legside on the way to scoring 116, during action on the second day of the third Test match in the Digicel Series, at Warner Park, St. Kitts, yesterday.
BASSETERRE, St. Kitts (CMC):
DAREN GANGA and Ramnaresh Sarwan completed impressive centuries but evening rain thwarted West Indies' progress on the second day of the third Digicel Test against India at Warner Park yesterday.
When heavy showers swept across the ground during the tea break, West Indies were 420 for five, a total that was built on Ganga's career-best 135 and Sarwan's 116 on his 26th birthday.
It was Ganga's third Test century and Sarwan's ninth hundred at this level in which he enjoyed the distinction of hitting six successive fours in an over.
The pair featured in a second- wicket stand of 203 after joining forces at 143 for one following the dismissal of Chris Gayle for 83 on the first day.
It allowed West Indies to enjoy a satisfactory extended pre-lunch session in which they scored 155 runs and lost two wickets after resuming at their overnight 207 for one. But India contained the flow of runs in the post-lunch session, limiting the scoring to 58 runs while taking a further two wickets.
West Indies, resuming from their overnight 207 for one, flayed India in the morning session when Ganga and Sarwan were in full flow.
SIX FOURS
Sarwan, who started the day on 44, moved from 75 to 99 in one over from pacer Munaf Patel in which he struck six consecutive fours.
The first ball was hit through extra-cover, while the second was pulled through forward square-leg.
Sarwan gave a chance to the third ball which Yuvraj Singh barely got his finger tips onto the ball at extra-cover, before an inside edge from an attempted cut carried the fourth ball into the fine-leg boundary.
The fifth ball of the over was cut between second slip and gully and the sixth, which was a no-ball, was cut through the covers. The seventh ball was cut to the fielder at gully.
Ganga, resuming on 64, played with more enterprise than the first day. He was dismissed 20 minutes before lunch when he played on to Patel after occupying the crease for just under six and a half fours in which time he faced 293 balls and struck 15 boundaries.
Patel then struck a key blow by having West Indies captain Brian Lara lbw for 10.
West Indies went to lunch at 362 for lunch, but slowed on the resumption in a period in which they lost Sarwan and Dwayne Bravo.
Sarwan was lbw to pacer Sreesanth as he attempted to play across the line after batting for 267 minutes.
He faced 174 balls and hit 17 fours and a six.
There will be a 9:30 a.m. start on the remaining three days of the match.
SCOREBOARD
WEST INDIES 1st Innings
(overnight 207 for one)
C Gayle b Patel 83
D Ganga b Patel 135
R Sarwan lbw b Sreesanth 116
B Lara lbw b Patel 10
S Chanderpaul not out 24
D Bravo c wkpr Dhoni b Harbhajan Singh 21
M Samuels not out 8
Extras (lb12, nb11) 23
TOTAL (5 wkts, 125 overs) 420
To bat: D. Ramdin, P. Collins, J. Taylor, C. Collymore.
Fall of wickets: 1-143, 2-346, 3-356, 4-371, 5-406.
Bowling: Munaf Patel 27-4-120-3 (nb8), Sreesanth 25-7-67-1 (nb1), Kumble 37-7-100-0 (nb2), Harbhajan Singh 29-2-96-1, Sehwag 7-1-25-0.
INDIA V. Sehwag, W. Jaffer, VVS Laxman,R. Dravid, Yuvraj Singh, M. Kaif, +M. Dhoni A. Kumble, S. Sreesanth, Harbhajan Singh, M. Patel.
Toss: West Indies.
Umpires: Rudi Koertzen, Brian Jerling. TV replays: Clancy Mack.
Match referee: Jeff Crowe.
Sarwan and Ganga score centuries
