Chris Gayle’s 132 not out in his 100th one-day international took West Indies into the Natwest Series final with a seven-wicket win against England at Lord’s in London on Tuesday.
Not even a total of 285 for seven featuring a record stand of 226 between all-rounder Andrew Flintoff (123) and Andrew Strauss (100) — the Middlesex captain’s maiden one-day international 100 — could prevent England extending a losing-streak batting first that stretches back to last year’s World Cup.
It also means that every completed game in this tournament has been won by the team fielding first.
West Indies, who face New Zealand at the Rose Bowl on Thursday, will be up against the already-qualified Black Caps in Saturday’s Lord’s final.
Gayle, together with Ramnaresh Sarwan (89), put on 187 in 188 balls for the second wicket as they took the game away from England.
Left-handed opener Gayle, the man-of-the-match, faced 165 balls with one six and three fours as West Indies won with five balls to spare.
Ricardo Powell added late impetus with a dashing 33 not out off 22 balls in an unbroken stand of 68 with Gayle.
Elated West Indies captain Brian Lara told reporters afterwards: ”Winning the toss was very important. Putting England under pressure by taking two early wickets was also very good.
”Hopefully the toss can be in our favour come Thursday and Saturday. We haven’t been to too many finals lately but it’s a great feeling knowing we can play this good on a such a very important occasion.”
Lara added: ”It was a great effort by Flintoff and Strauss, two brilliant centuries, but we were always in the game.”
Gayle (24), whose nine one-day international hundreds have all come overseas, said: ”Once myself and Sarwan set up the game, eventually Ricardo came in and batted really well. He took a lot of pressure off me as well.”
Dejected England captain Michael Vaughan, whose exit for eight meant he’d scored just 47 runs in five series innings, said: ”The lads are gutted and I’m gutted for them.”
Opener Vaughan, talking about his own form, added: ”I just haven’t played well enough.”
”If I play like that I’m not going to score runs at six or seven,” said Vaughan, who insisted he was not about to ”press the panic button” and drop down the order.
It was tough on Flintoff who for the second match in a row found himself making 100 in a losing cause after his 106, his maiden one-day international century, in Sunday’s six-wicket reverse against New Zealand.
But England were left rueing the fact that the containing all-rounder was unable to bowl because of an ankle injury.
Paul Collingwood and Vaughan’s combined 10 overs cost 68 runs, while fast spearhead, Stephen Harmison, usually a reliable source of wickets, had an equally fruitless return of 10 overs for 51.
Left-hander Strauss and Flintoff’s stand of 226 rescued England from the depths of 54 for three against a Windies attack lacking pacemen Jermaine Lawson (flu) and Ravi Rampaul (shin).
It was an England one-day international record for all wickets surpassing the previous best of 213 set by Neil Fairbrother and Graeme Hick against the West Indies at Lord’s in 1991.
Flintoff faced 104 balls with six sixes and eight fours with Strauss in for 116 balls with two sixes and eight fours.
In reply, Darren Gough had man-of-the-match Gayle (19) dropped in the covers by Strauss before James Anderson put down Sarwan, on 16, off his own bowling.
England needed to take every opportunity that came their way but saw another slip away when Strauss only had to lob the ball to bowler Collingwood to run out Sarwan on 54. But instead he went for the direct hit and missed. — Sapa-AFP