United Arab Emirates v West Indies
Wisden's review of the 41st match, United Arab Emirates v West Indies
15-Apr-2016
At Napier, March 15, 2015. West Indies won by six wickets. Toss: West Indies.
West Indies left it to their last group match to qualify for the knockouts - though they had to wait a few hours for Pakistan to beat Ireland in Adelaide before their progress was confirmed. To complicate matters, Cyclone Pam was approaching New Zealand's northeast coast, prompting UAE captain Mohammad Tauqir to joke that his team were more worried about getting home than about West Indies: "Our employers are waiting for us." In the event, the UAE were blown away long before Pam arrived. Some seething short balls from Holder, and Taylor's pace and aggression, reduced them to 46 for six, including Krishnachandran's third duck of the tournament. And it needed a stand of 107 between Amjad Javed and Nasir Aziz - equalling the World Cup record for the seventh wicket, set 18 days earlier in Brisbane by Javed and Shaiman Anwar against Ireland - to avert a rout. It was the UAE's first century partnership for any wicket against a Test-playing nation. But 175 was hopelessly inadequate. Chris Gayle was left out to rest his back, and West Indies lost Dwayne Smith and Samuels to lazy wafts, but Charles - in his first ODI for 14 months - reached 50 in 34 balls, and Carter steered them home with his maiden international half-century. FIRDOSE MOONDA
Man of the Match: J. O. Holder.
West Indies left it to their last group match to qualify for the knockouts - though they had to wait a few hours for Pakistan to beat Ireland in Adelaide before their progress was confirmed. To complicate matters, Cyclone Pam was approaching New Zealand's northeast coast, prompting UAE captain Mohammad Tauqir to joke that his team were more worried about getting home than about West Indies: "Our employers are waiting for us." In the event, the UAE were blown away long before Pam arrived. Some seething short balls from Holder, and Taylor's pace and aggression, reduced them to 46 for six, including Krishnachandran's third duck of the tournament. And it needed a stand of 107 between Amjad Javed and Nasir Aziz - equalling the World Cup record for the seventh wicket, set 18 days earlier in Brisbane by Javed and Shaiman Anwar against Ireland - to avert a rout. It was the UAE's first century partnership for any wicket against a Test-playing nation. But 175 was hopelessly inadequate. Chris Gayle was left out to rest his back, and West Indies lost Dwayne Smith and Samuels to lazy wafts, but Charles - in his first ODI for 14 months - reached 50 in 34 balls, and Carter steered them home with his maiden international half-century. FIRDOSE MOONDA
Man of the Match: J. O. Holder.