Chris Taylor and Will Gidman, plus a big helping hand from the weather, enabled
Gloucestershire to earn a draw against Essex in their County Championship
clash at Colchester

20-Aug-2011
Scorecard
Chris Taylor and Will Gidman, plus a big helping hand from the weather, enabled
Gloucestershire to earn a draw against Essex in their County Championship
clash at Colchester.After being set a huge victory target of 388 in 88 overs, the visitors finished
on 231 for 5, with Taylor striking an unbeaten 103 and Gidman making 57 in an
unbroken stand of 133 spanning 106 minutes.They had come together with their side on 98 for five and went on to defy a
succession of bowling changes to guide their team to safety, although rain
deprived Essex of 28 overs in which to force a victory that would have kept
alive their slender promotion aspirations. The visitors’ hopes of launching their victory bid on a sound footing were soon dashed.Richard Coughtrie departed without a run on the board, caught in the slips by
Ryan ten Doeschate off the bowling of Maurice Chambers, and David Masters snared
two more wickets before the 50 was raised.Kane Williamson was caught behind by James Foster for 19 and then Tom Westley’s
safe pair of hands at second slip accounted for opener Chris Dent (16). Gloucestershire avoided further mishap before lunch, taken at 71 for three, but were plunged into further trouble immediately afterwards by Graham Napier.First he had skipper Alex Gidman (18) easily caught by wicketkeeper Foster from
a thin edge and then breached the defences of Hamish Marshall (seven) to leave
the stumps in disarray. By this stage, with half of their side back in the pavilion cheaply, the best
the visitors could hope for was a draw. A total of 62 overs still remained, with
their last recognised pair together.Taylor, having come in at the fall of the second wicket, was now well
entrenched and completed a fighting half-century that contained half a dozen
fours. At the other end, Will Gidman was offering obdurate support as they carried the
total to 131 before rain forced a suspension in play.When play did resume, Essex were left with 22 overs to try to force victory but
Taylor and Gidman denied them with considerable ease whilst putting together an
unbroken partnership of 133.Earlier in the day, Essex added a further 45 runs from six overs before
declaring on 288 for five immediately after Jaik Mickleburgh was run out for 84
– a knock that included eight boundaries. Skipper Foster finished unbeaten on 46
from 40 balls, but not before he was involved in the final of several heated
incidents in this match.It featured Jon Lewis, who appeared to obstruct Foster as he completed a
single. Angry words were exchanged before umpire Steve Gale stepped between the
two players and the game continued.On the second day, Alex Gidman had angrily remonstrated with the same official
after being given out lbw whilst on the opening day, Gale had reversed his
decision against Ten Doeschate – much to the annoyance of the Gloucestershire
players. Essex finished with 10 points and Gloucestershire eight points.

Hamish Bennett, the New Zealand fast bowler, will miss next month’s tour of Zimbabwe due to a sore back

ESPNcricinfo staff16-Sep-2011Hamish Bennett, the New Zealand fast bowler, will miss next month’s tour of Zimbabwe due to a sore back.A lower back soreness has put Bennett out of contention. “It seems like the trouble is muscular, the scans show nothing. I’ve just got to stop bowling for a few weeks and become pain-free, then I can resume gradually again,” Bennett was quoted as saying in the . “It’s really frustrating obviously but could be a lot worse, I guess. Things should settle down fairly quickly, I’m told.””Unfortunately injuries are just part and parcel of being a fast bowler. I’m just due for a better run and hope I can get that over the remainder of the season.”Bennett, 24, has had a string of injuries since his surprise elevation to the national side last year. He suffered a groin strain on the opening day of his Test debut in India, ruling him out of the series. Earlier this year, an ankle injury put him out of the second half of New Zealand’s run to the semi-finals in the World Cup.

Steven Finn will play domestic cricket for Otago in New Zealand following England’s one-day tour of India

ESPNcricinfo staff18-Oct-2011Steven Finn will play domestic cricket for Otago in New Zealand following England’s one-day tour of India. He will be available for a month from early November to early December in a period that includes four Plunket Shield matches.England don’t have any international commitments in the final two months of the year before their tour to UAE to play Pakistan in January. The period overseas will allow Finn to push his case for selection having been on the fringes of the Test side during the home season where he only played once against Sri Lanka at Lord’s.”I felt it was crucial to get some four day cricket under my belt prior to hopefully getting selected for England’s series against Pakistan,” Finn said. “Therefore when the opportunity to play in New Zealand came up, I jumped at the chance to join the Volts. I look forward to arriving in Dunedin and linking up with [coach] Vaughn Johnson and his squad.”Finn has played 12 Tests and is the youngest Englishmen to fifty Test wickets overtaking the record set by Ian Botham. He has a best of 6 for 125 against Australia, in Brisbane, during last year’s Ashes series but was left out two matches later and has since been overtaken in the pecking order by Tim Bresnan and Chris Tremlett.

Canterbury have signed Yasir Arafat, the Pakistan fast-bowling allrounder, for their domestic Twenty20 cricket campaign this summer

ESPNcricinfo staff25-Nov-2011Canterbury have signed Yasir Arafat, the Pakistan fast-bowling allrounder, for their domestic Twenty20 cricket campaign this summer. Arafat played both the Twenty20s and one-day games for Otago two seasons ago, and took 16 wickets in 14 games and scored a century. This year he will represent Canterbury only in the HRV Cup.Arafat has played 11 ODIs and three Tests for Pakistan but has not been in the national side since February 2010. He will join Canterbury after a summer with Surrey in which he took 49 wickets at an average of 34.53 across formats in the English domestic season.”We’re delighted to get Yasir and I think he’ll be great for us,” Canterbury coach Bob Carter said. “He will bring a real balance to the side with his all-round game I think, something that will be very useful in Twenty20 cricket.”‘We were after a bowling allrounder to complement our batting strength and his all-round skills will be very valuable for us. He’s an explosive player capable of doing some special things with the ball and bat, and we’re hoping that he can add to the environment we’ve already created.”

Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim frustrated Pakistan in a truncated morning session, but the visitors levelled the game over the next two sessions

The Report by Siddarth Ravindran18-Dec-2011
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsTaufeeq Umar confidently handled the bowling on his way to 44 not out•AFP

Shakib Al Hasan and Mushfiqur Rahim frustrated Pakistan in a truncated morning session, but the visitors levelled the game over the next two sessions. Bangladesh’s fragility was once again on display after lunch, as the final five wickets went down for 33 runs after which Pakistan’s top order responded strongly.Until the Bangladesh lower-order collapse in the afternoon, the only impediment to the home side’s progress had been the fog in Mirpur, which wiped out an hour’s play. Shakib and Mushfiqur crafted a slow-and-steady stand once it cleared, to give the small but vocal crowd something to cheer about on a chilly morning.Shakib made his highest first-class score and was headed for Bangladesh’s record individual Test effort when he was run-out. Mushfiqur took a few quick steps before stopping and sending Shakib back, but a direct hit from Taufeeq Umar, running in from mid-on, was enough to snap the partnership at 82. Shakib walked off, after several glares at his captain over the poor calling.Whether that had an effect on Mushfiqur is hard to tell, but the very next delivery, he gloved a catch down the leg side to the wicketkeeper which left two new lower-order batsmen at the crease, and Pakistan sniffing a quick end to the innings. Elias Sunny and Shahadat Hossain rode their luck in a brief, entertaining stand – Sunny survived as an Umar Gul delivery kissed off stump without disturbing the bails, and Shahadat was put down by Abdur Rehman at deep midwicket.The innings ended in a hurry, though, as Saeed Ajmal’s doosra proved too much for the tailenders, and a run-out curtailed Nazmul Hossain’s first Test knock in seven years to a single delivery.In contrast, Pakistan had little to celebrate in the morning. There was little movement on offer for the quick bowlers and even with the second new ball Gul and Aizaz Cheema couldn’t get any major deviation. With the old ball, Pakistan’s dangerous spin pair of Ajmal and Rehman got some turn, but were blunted by Shakib and Mushfiqur.Shakib hit only one boundary in the first session, and survived several lbw calls and an outside edge that landed short of slip. While he was circumspect, Mushfiqur was more enterprising. There was a powerful swipe over midwicket for six off Ajmal, and he picked up several boundaries with his favoured cut shot. They took Bangladesh past 300 in Tests for only the second time since May 2010, but their back-to-back dismissals restricted the innings to a far lower score than expected.There was something to buoy the home side as they went in for tea. They removed Mohammad Hafeez, who has had a great run in 2011, including a big century in the previous Test. He had begun ominously, swatting consecutive boundaries in the third over, but nicked Nazmul’s first ball in Tests in seven years, to be dismissed for 14.Bangladesh’s bowlers gifted easy runs till late in the final session, when the spinners Shakib and Mahmudullah kept the batsmen in check. There was an early close call for Azhar Ali, who unwisely shouldered arms to a delivery that nipped in from Robiul, narrowly avoiding a supremely confident shout for lbw. He wasn’t at his most assured against the spinners either, beaten several times by the big turn Shakib was extracting, and once edging just wide of the slips.Taufeeq Umar was more confident, initially capitalising on the loose deliveries on offer. There were plenty of cuts and drives as he picked up eight boundaries on his way to 44, before bad light expectedly ended play an hour early. There’s still plenty of work to do for the Pakistan batting but with their increasingly reliable middle order, they will fancy their chances of overhauling Bangladesh’s total.

A round-up of the action from the fourth day of the fourth round of matches from the Ranji Trophy Elite League 2011-12

ESPNcricinfo staff02-Dec-2011

Group B

Sanjay Bangar hit an unbeaten 77•ESPNcricinfo Ltd

Ashok Dinda’s aggressive fast bowling fetched him his maiden ten-wicket haul in a first-class match and set up a thrilling final day on which fourteen wickets fell at the Bansi Lal Cricket Stadium in Rohtak. Haryana succumbed to the accuracy and pace of Dinda to be bowled out for 169 in their second innings, setting Bengal a target of 189 from 37 overs. The visitors made a good first of the chase, but bad light stopped play 30 minutes before the scheduled end of play, at which point Bengal were 128 for 5, needing 61 runs from 54 balls. Haryana had begun the day on 42 for 1, 61 ahead of Bengal, with a draw looming. But Dinda ran through the line-up to finish with career-best figures of 7 for 44, giving him 12 for 142 for the match, also a career best. Though Bengal lost opener Arindam Das early on, the second-wicket pair of Rohan Banerjee and Abhishk Jhunjunwalla injected the required urgency into the chase with a 55-run stand before Sourav Ganguly cracked a brisk 22-ball 21 that included the only six of the innings to set up what looked like exciting finish until the light decided to play spoilsport.Bengal have five points from three games, while Haryana are slightly better off, in fifth place with eight points from four. Bengal had missed a golden opportunity to overtake Haryana’s first-innings score on Thursday by the small margin of 19 runs when their lower order folded in feeble fashion. Dinda summed up the hurt in the dressing room: “I am happy with my effort but I can’t forget that we fell short,”In Delhi, the fast bowling pair of Parvinder Awana and Ashish Nehra rattled Baroda with speed and movement at the Feroz Shah Kotla, sharing the final six wickets, to help the hosts to a ten-wicket victory. Baroda resumed on 81 for 4, still trailing Delhi’s first-innings score by 16. On the final day, Nehra picked up three quick wickets: the engine room of Baroda’s batting in Rakesh Solanki, Pinal Shah and Ambati Rayudu, who played with a swollen thumb. Awana, who had taken two wickets on Thursday , then polished off the lower order and the tail to pick his fourth five-for of his career. Baroda had been shot out inside 20 overs on the final morning and a target of 48 runs was knocked by the Delhi openers easily. The six points (including the bonus) helped Delhi register their first outright win of the season and jump atop Group B.Awana later told the that during the IPL, Shaun Pollock, the Mumbai Indians’ consultant, had told him not to give up on bowling fast and to “develop” his fast bowling muscles. He also thanked Nehra, who finished with nine wickets, for inspiring hims. “Ashish bowling with so much of effort spurred me a lot. He told me to keep bowling my heart out and the wickets will flow.”Udit Birla’s maiden first-class fifty, in his third match, helped Madhya Pradesh register a five-wicket win over Gujarat on a final day devoid of drama at the Emerald High School Ground in Indore. MP began the day needing 91 to win, with six wickets in hand on a pitch that had offered the seamers good purchase on the previous three days. The overnight pair of Abbas Ali and Harpreet Singh started confidently before Ishwar Chaudhary induced an edge from Ali. The 22-year-old Birla then took charge of the chase – MP were 70 runs away from victory when he came in, and he scored 52 of them.”It was my third match and it’s a special feeling to score [my] maiden Ranji fifty in a winning cause,” Birla told .Niraj Patel, Gujarat’s captain, did not hide his disappointment, though he praised his fast bowlers. “Our top-order did not stand up and be counted on both the occasions. However, I am really pleased with our bowling and fielding efforts.”Madhya Pradesh are tied on eight points with Baroda, Tamil Nadu and Haryana, but they have played three games to Baroda and Haryana’s four.

Group A

It took Mumbai an hour to bundle out Orissa at the DRIEMS Ground in Cuttack and secure an easy innings-and-210 runs win. Orissa began the final day on 163 for 7, and lost Basant Mohanty off the second ball of the day for 41. The dismissal gave Ramesh Powar his 23rd first-class five-for. The last two wickets put up brief resistance, with partnerships of 41 and 22, but Mumbai eventually bowled out Orissa for 226 with plenty of time to spare. Zaheer Khan, who bowled 22 overs in the entire match, picking four wickets, did not bowl at all on the final morning. The six points Mumbai take from the match put them at the top of Group A, while Orissa are still at rock bottom.Coach Sulakshan Kulkarni praised his team for not getting distracted following Ajit Agarkar’s decision to head back to Mumbai on the first day of the match because he was not included in the playing eleven. “We did not expect it to be so easy, for Orissa have been in the Elite division for some years now, and have scored well in excess of 400 in their last two matches,” Kulkarni said. “So their collapse came as a bit of a surprise. But then, a victory is a victory. Our bowlers bowled beautifully. Our batsmen, particularly Kaustubh Pawar and Suryakumar Yadav, set the tone of the match by posting a big total. It was total team effort.”Aakash Chopra celebrated going past 10,000 first-class runs on the third day by converting his start into a century on the fourth, to help Rajasthan earn a draw against Uttar Pradesh at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. Rajasthan were made to follow on and started the fourth day still 127 runs behind. Chopra and Vineet Saxena took their opening stand from 91 to 166, with Chopra registering his 28th first-class century of his career. Uttar Pradesh bowlers were finding it hard to create any sort of impact on a lifeless pitch. Robin Bist, who had got a century in Mumbai, took advantage of the bowlers’ predicament, scoring exactly 100 not out as Rajasthan reached 349 for 2, enough to earn a point. Rajasthan have managed just one point from each of their four games now, while UP have taken three from each of their games.Karnataka secured three points for the first-innings lead against Saurashtra at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore. Saurashtra started the day on 179 for 5, facing Karnataka’s 503. It was a question of how long they could bat; they lasted 49 overs – not enough to deny Karnataka three points but just about enough to avoid an outright loss. S Aravind dismissed Pratik Mehta in the second over, but veteran Shitanshu Kotak and Sandip Maniar batted time to prevent a collapse. Kotak, one of the more determined dead-bat batsman in domestic cricket, was let off in the very first over of the day by Stuart Binny in the slips and then again by KB Pavan in the eighth over. He stuck on for the next two hours, virtually snatching Karnataka’s hopes of an outright victory. Aravind eventually dismissed Maniar and offspinner Sunil Raju took a wicket to finish with four in the innings.Though the hosts picked three quick wickets in Saurashtra second innings, Cheteshwar Pujara made a patient, unbeaten 52 to ensure there was no collapse.Punjab‘s lower order made handy contributions to prevent Railways from making a comeback at the Punjab Cricket Association Stadium in Mohali. The hosts had started the day 144 runs ahead but were four wickets down in their second innings. They slipped to 83 for 6 on the fourth day and needed the lower order to step up to avoid giving Railways a gettable target. Amitoze Singh scored 68, Mayank Sidhana got 49, and Manpreet Gony smashed 45 off 39 balls including two sixes. That took Punjab to 242 for 9. They declared and left Railways with 35.3 overs to bat, which they negotiated thanks to Sanjay Bangar’s unbeaten 77. Punjab took three points from the game to go to fourth in the table.

A round-up of matches from the Caribbean T20 on January 19

ESPNcricinfo staff20-Jan-2012Windward Islands sealed their fourth straight win in the Caribbean T20, edging past Guyana in a closely-fought, rain-affected game at the Kensington Oval in Barbados. Choosing to field, Guyana, relying on important contributions from opener Sewnarine Chattergoon (27) and captain Christopher Barnwell (32) and a late surge from Veerasammy Permaul, reached 140 for 8 in 20 overs. Darren Sammy picked up 3 for 11, excellent figures in a four-over spell. All of his wickets came in one over.Rain intervened after Windwards had reached 5 without loss in the chase, and the target was revised to 119 in 16 overs and Windwards just about managed that. Opener Johnson Charles led the way with 65, off 43 balls, striking three fours and three sixes. Charles was the third wicket to fall with the score on 88, and Windwards needed 31 off 21 balls at the time.Though Devendra Bishoo bowled economically, picking three for 15 in four overs, Devon Smith saw Windwards through, making an unbeaten 25 off 19 balls with two fours and a six. In the final over, at the fall of Shane Shillingford’s wicket, Windwards needed 3 off 3 balls and the win was sealed off the last ball of the match. Windwards are among the two decided semi-finalists.In another rain-affected match at the same venue, Trinidad and Tobago brushed aside Canada, winning by eight wickets and sealing their place in the semi-finals. Canada, after opting to bat, began in encouraging fashion, their openers Hiral Patel and Ruvindu Gunasekera adding 43 for the first wicket. But the innings fell apart after that, nine wickets falling for 56 runs. No one else, apart from the extras column, reached double-figures and Canada were kept to 99 for 9. Ravi Rampaul was the wrecker-in-chief, taking 4 for 26, and Dwayne Bravo helped him out with 3 for 20 in four overs.T&T lost Lendl Simmons early and Adrian Barath was given out obstructing the field upon deviating the wicketkeeper’s throw. Darren Bravo and Denesh Ramdin, however, ensured there were no further hiccups. Rain halted play in the 12th over and the target was revised to 91 in 18 overs. Darren Bravo top-scored with an unbeaten 42 off 41 balls and Ramdin chipped in with 30 off 27 in a 59-run stand. The win was achieved in the 16th over.

The secret tiebreaker rule was devised by Lalit Modi and benefited Mumbai Indians during the 2010 auction, an official from one of the original eight IPL franchises has said

Nagraj Gollapudi08-Feb-2012The secret tiebreaker rule in the IPL player auction was devised by Lalit Modi, the former IPL chairman, and benefited Mumbai Indians during the 2010 auction, an official from one of the original eight IPL franchises has said.The official’s comments were made to ESPNcricinfo after Modi, during an interview to Indian television channel CNN IBN, said the tiebreaker was meant to level the field in the IPL. When asked why the tie-breaker had to be kept secret, Modi chose not to answer the question.”The tiebreaker only came in because, how do you determine when you have a fixed purse for the tournament. And this is well researched, that you reach the cap and still two teams are bidding, secret tie-breaker came as a penalty clause where the team actually pays back a higher fee but it goes back to the BCCI, which is then used to offset other player costs,” Modi said. “But the objective, again, was to make it equal. All bidders get an equal opportunity to buy a player.”The secret tie breaker became a high-earning option for the BCCI as compared to the others – a draw of lots or the toss of a coin – in the case of two teams hitting the League’s player’s salary cap during an auction. The competing franchises are invited to submit secret bids in a sealed envelope, and the highest bidder gets the player. The value of the secret bids are not disclosed and the amount in excess of the maximum open-auction bid goes to the BCCI and not the player.The franchise official said the field had not been level even during Modi’s time as IPL chief as the secret tie-breaker could usually benefit teams with deeper pockets. “The truth is, has there been favouritism in the IPL? Of course there has been,” the official told ESPNcricinfo. “There has been favouritism in the sense, if you create a rule like the tiebreaker, you know it favours only certain franchises. That rule was made by Modi himself and Mumbai Indians were able to get Kieron Pollard in the auction.”So far only three players have been bought via this rule. In the 2010 auction, more than one franchise made the maximum open-auction bid – $750,000 – for Pollard and Shane Bond. During the tiebreakers, Mumbai made the winning bid for Pollard while Kolkata Knight Riders bought Bond. In the 2012 auction on February 4, Chennai Super Kings and Deccan Chargers bid their entire purse – $2 million – for Ravindra Jadeja, forcing the sale to be decided via a tiebreaker, which was won by Chennai.The franchise official also pointed out another example of Modi altering regulations, in the case of the selection of Indian Cricket League players, who were given amnesty after their bans. “The original idea was that there would be draft pick,” the official said, explaining that the franchise with the poorest record would get the first pick. “But instead, Modi said anyone can pick anyone. Mumbai Indians immediately picked R Sathish, Ambati Rayudu and Ali Murtuza, who played a significant part for Mumbai in the first three years. Two of the most significant rule changes, which favoured big teams, happened during Modi’s time.During the interview Modi targeted the BCCI president N Srinivasan, who is also the managing director of India Cements, the company that owns the Super Kings. Modi alleged Srinivasan was bending rules to suit Super Kings’ needs. While the official ESPNcricinfo spoke to said the rules did favour the bigger franchises, he said it was not cheating.”If you ask me, if the system favours Mumbai or Chennai, yes wherever it can. For example if there is a rule that Rs 30 lakhs is the limit (for uncapped domestic players) to come and sign whoever you want, you knew that players would be signed by the big guys and they would pay obscene amounts under the table for the players they wanted. But to say that is cheating, is not correct.”

Tasmania’s Sheffield Shield title defence against Queensland at the Gabba will now be shown on television after the pay television provider agreed to provide full coverage

Daniel Brettig13-Mar-2012Tasmania’s Sheffield Shield title defence against Queensland at the Gabba will now be shown on television after the pay television provider agreed to provide full coverage of the competition decider.As reported by ESPNcricinfo, the final was set to be played without full television coverage for the first time since 2007, as Fox Sports had decided the schedule was too packed to show the game.The greater number of outside broadcasts required by this summer’s Twenty20 Big Bash League and their attendant cost was also a factor.Instead, Fox had planned to provide a two-camera webcast from the Gabba, with Brendon Julian and Mark Waugh to comment on the match from the studio.However upon returning to work following a Monday public holiday in Melbourne, Cricket Australia and Fox Sports have thrashed out a deal to show the final in full from Friday on its main channels, relegating parts of the concurrent Test match between New Zealand and South Africa in Hamilton to the “red button” multi-channel option.It is understood the extra use of multi-channel technology required an increase in the bandwidth provided to Fox Sports by its parent pay television service Foxtel. The webcast will also go ahead, meaning viewers without a Fox subscription will be able to watch the final.”We are delighted to confirm the Sheffield Shield Final will be broadcast live and in full on Fox Sports and will be streamed simultaneously on the Fox Sports website,” the Fox Sports chief executive Patrick Delany said. “We are committed to over 183 hours of live sport from Friday through to Tuesday so it’s been a challenge with scheduling.”But we’ve worked with Foxtel to enable the match to be broadcast live with coverage of the final two days of the second Test between New Zealand and South Africa moving to Viewer’s Choice and available via the red button on Fox Sports 1.”Fox Sports has broadcast the Sheffield Shield Final live each year since the 2007-08 season and we are once again looking forward to providing live coverage, both on television and online, of one of Australia’s iconic sporting events.”Players on both sides were happy to hear that the match would now be televised, and the Bulls fast bowler Ryan Harris said it provided a greater incentive for the younger players in particular to display their talents.”It’s always good when you’re on TV, it’s always great when you know people are watching,” Harris told ESPNcricinfo. “When I read that it wasn’t being televised I was disappointed, because I myself in the years I’ve been in the country and not played in the final, I’ve sat and watched it. Young guys get recognised if they play well and a lot of people get to know the younger guys and the new guys if they do play well.”Personally it wouldn’t make too much difference because I have had time where I’ve been on TV and got used to that. But for younger guys definitely it will make a big difference, because they know a lot more people are watching, it may add a bit more nerves before they walk out and play. When I heard it was definitely on TV I was happy with that and I’m glad the right decision’s been made.”The ABC will provide a national digital radio broadcast of the final, with local radio stations to offer coverage into Queensland and Tasmania.

West Indies fought hard on the fourth day in Dominica but the loss of Shivnarine Chanderpaul in the last over left Australia five wickets from victory

The Report by Brydon Coverdale26-Apr-2012
Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsShivnarine Chanderpaul made 69 but was out from the last ball of the day•AFP

For 16 years Australian bowlers have been trying to chisel Shivnarine Chanderpaul from the crease. It was fitting, therefore, that on the day when he squirreled away his 10,000th Test run, Chanderpaul spent the afternoon doing what comes naturally: obstructing, counter-attacking and above all frustrating Australia’s Test cricketers as they sought a way into the West Indies lower order in their push for victory.But as has so often been the case, Chanderpaul’s fight appeared insufficient to save West Indies. His departure to a successful Australian review in the final over of the fourth day in Dominica gave Australia an enormous chance of finishing the match early on the fifth day, with West Indies still requiring 197 runs for a highly unlikely victory with five wickets in hand and only one specialist batsman – Narsingh Deonarine on 11 not out – still in play.It was a depressing conclusion for West Indies, who started the day by celebrating Shane Shillingford’s ten-wicket match haul and spent much of the afternoon dreaming of an upset as Chanderpaul and Darren Bravo compiled a century stand in their chase of 370. Michael Clarke tried all sorts of things to break that partnership and the success eventually came through Shane Watson, though it was Clarke’s part-time spin that proved Australia’s best weapon.Clarke was the man who got rid of Chanderpaul for 69 from the first ball of the day’s last over. Clarke had extracted some significant turn from the Windsor Park pitch earlier in the innings and again his spin troubled the batsman, who played and missed a ball ripping in from outside off stump. The umpire’s decision of not out was reviewed by Clarke and replays showed Chanderpaul had been struck in line and the ball would have hit the stumps.It was the perfect end for Australia, who had started with three early wickets before the Chanderpaul-Bravo partnership took hold. Ben Hilfenhaus struck before a run had been scored when Adrian Barath clipped a ball off his pads and was snapped up brilliantly by a diving Ed Cowan at square leg. There was some resistance to come from Kraigg Brathwaite and Kieran Powell, but Clarke’s decision to bowl himself proved an inspired move.Brathwaite was on 14 when he tried to work Clarke from off stump through leg side and it was an ill-advised choice of stroke. The umpire Tony Hill gave him out lbw and Brathwaite’s review did not save him, replays showing umpire’s call for both impact on off stump and whether the ball would have clipped the bails. A few overs later Powell, on 24, drove loosely and simply missed a ball that turned in between bat and pad and was bowled by Clarke.But that brought Chanderpaul to the crease and he was keen to keep the scoreboard ticking at a healthy rate, ensuring the ones and twos piled up without taking unnecessary risks. One such single, tucked through the leg-side off Clarke, brought Chanderpaul to the milestone of 10,000 Test runs, a feat he acknowledged by removing his helmet and raising his bat modestly, aware that his job had only just begun.Chanderpaul waited on the bad balls – a David Warner long hop was pulled over the infield for four and there were occasional cuts and drives that reached the boundary – and otherwise acquired his runs through familiar methods. His half-century came from his 90th ball and he was congratulated by Bravo, who unusually for any stand involving Chanderpaul was the quieter partner.Bravo was happy when Nathan Lyon dropped short and he was able to cut with ferocity, and he showed his deftness by running Shane Watson behind point neatly for another boundary. But it was Watson who eventually had the better of the battle when he enticed an edge behind and Bravo, on 47, was disconsolate as he walked from the field. The 110-run stand was over, and with it went a large chunk of West Indies’ hopes.Not that they had ever been favourites, despite finishing the Australians off in the morning for the addition of 59 runs. Shillingford finished with 4 for 100 to give him match figures of 10 for 219 in his first Test at his home ground of Windsor Park, and he was the first West Indian spinner to take ten wickets in a Test since Lance Gibbs in 1966, and only the second to do it in the Caribbean, after Wilf Ferguson achieved the feat in Trinidad in 1948.Shillingford gave West Indies a good start to the day by removing Michael Hussey, the last of Australia’s recognised batsmen, for 32 when he found a thin edge that was snapped up by Darren Sammy at slip. Ryan Harris soon followed when he top-edged a slog sweep off Deonarine and was caught by the wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh for 9.Hilfenhaus gave Shillingford his tenth when he pushed forward and was brilliantly caught at silly point by Brathwaite, who thrust his right hand out as the ball seemed destined to pass him. Mitchell Starc and Lyon added a few late runs in a 22-run partnership for the final wicket before Kemar Roach finished the job by bowling Starc for 21.That left West Indies needing 370, and only once before had they chased down such a high target to win a Test, in their world-record pursuit of 418 in Antigua in 2003. They had reached 370 in the fourth innings of a Test three times in the past five years, but the challenge was always going to be significant on a tricky Windsor Park pitch.