Andrew Flintoff claimed a hat-trick for England
yesterday as they defeated West Indies by 26 runs
to claim the Digicel One Day series 3-2.
PHOTO: CRICINFO

Andrew Flintoff took a hat-trick as England achieved their first one-day series victory in the West Indies by winning the deciding game by 26 runs. In a match reduced to 29 overs per side Kevin Pietersen (48) and Ravi Bopara (44) shared 80 from 14 overs and Paul Collingwood hit an unbeaten 35. Chasing 173, the home side lost Chris Gayle for a third ball duck but Dwayne Bravo shared 55 with Kieron Pollard.

Both fell in two balls and Flintoff soon settled it, finishing with 5-19.
It was a jubilant finale to a long winter for England, which threatened to go without a victory following Test and one-day series defeats in India and a 1-0 reverse in the Test series here. Flintoff’s dramatic hat-trick is the first by an England player in overseas one-day internationals.

There was a four-hour delay because of the wet outfield but the match was all set to begin as a 33-over contest. England started badly, losing skipper Andrew Strauss to the first ball of the second over as Ravi Rampaul made an immediate impact in his first one-day international for over a year. Pietersen struck imperious drives through the covers for four off successive Fidel Edwards deliveries as 35 came from the six overs of the compulsory powerplay.

The fifty stand was recorded from as many balls, Pietersen thumping a Rampaul slower ball straight down the ground for six and Bopara also clearing the ropes with a pull off Darren Sammy. Sammy, the first St Lucian to play for the West Indies, dived forward but it flicked up off his wrists and appeared to bounce on the ground then be trapped under him as he lay on the turf and claimed the catch.

Four wickets fell for 24 in five and a half overs, Bopara’s enterprising innings ending when he top-edged a flick to leg. Collingwood recorded the 50 stand from 45 balls in the final over with a deft glance for four but the big moment came in the first over of the Windies innings.The England all-rounder claimed 2-7 from his opening three-over spell, first dismissing Ramnaresh Sarwan, whose fluent 23 ended when he backed away to one that bounced just that touch more and got a thin edge through to keeper Prior.

Flintoff, often approaching 90mph despite the placid surface, maintained the pressure with some accurate bowling short of a length, and when Lendl Simmons recklessly top-edged to mid-on it left 128 still needed from 119 balls. Bravo did his best to revive the rate, one astonishing forcing shot off the back foot against Dimitri Mascarenhas flying straight over long-off for six.

But Collingwood chipped in with the wicket of the third key batsman Chanderpaul, who top-edged a pull straight to substitute fielder Ian Bell at deep square-leg and the requirement was 104 from 89 with only six wickets remaining. At the 20-over stage both teams had lost four wickets but England had scored 10 more runs. The Windies chose overs 23 and 24 for their batting powerplay, and Pollard sliced his second six, recording the fifty stand as the Windies dragged themselves back on terms.

However, Bravo sliced to point and from the first ball of the next over Pollard drove down the ground where Collingwood was perfectly positioned to take a safe catch at long-on. Still the occasional boundary offered a glimmer of hope, with 33 needed from 16, but the redoubtable Flintoff yorked Denesh Ramdin to claim the seventh wicket. Rampaul fell to a full toss and Benn was beaten all ends up as the formidable Flintoff claimed his best international figures.