Sarwan Drop From 3rd Test, Powell Replace Him

                                                                          Pakistanscore

West Indies have dropped experienced but out-of-form batsman Ramnaresh Sarwan from their 13-member squad for the third cricket Test against India starting on Wednesday.
Kieran Powell has been named to take Sarwan's place in the squad.
The 21-year-old left-hander is the Leeward Islands opener and a regular member of the West Indies A team.
There are no other changes to the squad from the second Test in Barbados which ended in a draw. India hold a 1-0 series lead in the three-match rubber.
Powell has played two one-dayers for the West Indies, both in the Champions Trophy in South Africa two years ago.
In all, he has 5 runs to his name from these two international matches after he made a duck against Bangladesh, and 5 against India.
Sarwan has had a wretched summer with the bat and made only 29 runs from four innings of the first two Tests against India. He was no better against Pakistan in the ODI series, making 54 runs from four innings of two Tests.
Powell has been working for the past several weeks at the Sagicor High Performance Center in Barbados under Head Coach Andre Coley and Batting Coach Carl Hooper.
The Third Test will be played at Windsor Park here from July 6. This is the first time a Test is being hosted in Dominica though it has staged four one-dayers.
Squad: Darren Sammy (capt), Adrian Barath, Carlton Baugh (wk), Devendra Bishoo, Darren Bravo, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Fidel Edwards, Kirk Edwards, Kieran Powell, Ravi Rampaul, Kemar Roach, Marlon Samuels and Lendl Simmons.

Ishant Gets Six as India Take Lead on Rain-hit Day

A superb three-wicket burst by speedster Ishant Sharma, who grabbed career-best six for 55, helped India dismiss the West Indies for 190 in their first innings and put themselves into a comfortable position on the rain-affected third day of second Test.
Ishant took the last three West Indies wickets off five balls for just one run to end the West Indian resistance in the post-lunch session to give India a slender 11-run first innings lead at Kensington Oval.
India, who had scored 201 all out in their first innings, were 23 for no loss from 5.4 overs in their second innings when the stumps were drawn as only four deliveries were bowled in the final session due to rain and bad light. Tea was also taken 10 minutes earlier than scheduled due to rain.
The visitors have now taken an overall 34-run lead with all their second innings wickets intact. Openers Murali Vijay and Abhinav Mukund will resume on Friday on three and eight respectively.
Altogether, 42 overs were played on Thursday, an improvement from the 25.3 on Wednesday.
Ishant picked up the last two wickets off successive balls -- Ravi Rampaul (0) and Fidel Edwards (0) -- after dismissing West Indies captain Darren Sammy (15) in the earlier over towards the close of post-lunch session to keep India ahead in the Test.
He added three more wickets on the third day to the three he scalped on the second day to grab his second career five-wicket haul in an innings.
Playing in his 33rd match, the 22-year-old Delhi pacer completed his 100 wickets in Tests during his inspirational spell when he dismissed Sammy for his fourth wicket of the innings in the post-lunch session.
West Indies were marvelously served by returning batsman Marlon Samuels who remained unbeaten on 78 from 178 balls with eight fours.
The home side was 189 for eight when the rains came in the post-lunch session and immediately on resumption, they lost their final two wickets for a mere one run.
India though had to labour for wickets as the West Indies, led a resolute Samuels, denied them much success in the morning session.
The visitors got just one wicket in the opening session in the form of Chanderpaul, who fell to rookie pacer Abhimanyu Mithun in the penultimate over before lunch.
India struck at the fag end of the opening session to reduce the West Indies to 138 for six.
Overnight batsmen Chanderpaul and Samuels batted resolutely for most part of third day morning whose start was delayed due to rain by adding 36 runs in 17.4 overs before India got the breakthrough by removing the former in the penultimate over before lunch.
Rookie pacer Mithun claimed the scalp of steadfast Chanderpaul (37). Chanderpaul was unlucky to edge a pull off a delivery which did not rise and crashed into his stumps.
West Indies, who resumed at 98 for five in reply to India's 201 all out, added 40 runs from 19.3 overs possible in the morning session.
Chanderpaul and Samuels added 77 runs for the sixth wicket which was the most resolute batting put up by the hosts in the series so far.
Till Chanderpaul's dismissal, West Indies had showed a rare batting resolve.
Early showers once again delayed the start of the third day's play by an hour but the West Indian pair lost little time in falling into their groove.
Ishant Sharma steamed in and his new-ball partner Praveen Kumar showed his characteristic energy but the unruffled pair was determined to hang around at the crease.

Brief scores
India 201 and 23 for 0
West Indies 190 (Samuels 78*, Ishant 6-55)
Status India lead by 34 runs

Bowlers Give India Advantage on Crumbling Wicket

India moved into the ascendancy after the second day of the opening Test against West Indies on Tuesday, routing the hosts for 173 and then reaching 91/3 for an overall lead of 164 runs.
Led by Rahul Dravid's resolute 45 not out in 2 hours, 40 minutes at Sabina Park that contained five boundaries, India are well placed to strike the first blow in the three-Test series.
Earlier, new ball partners Ishant Sharma (3-29) and Praveen Kumar (3-38) ripped through the hosts after they resumed on 34-1.
Spinners Amit Mishra and Harbhajan Singh had identical figures of 2-51 to run through the lower order.
West Indies opener Adrian Barath hit a sparkling 64 but no other batsman passed 30 as the hosts wasted a good opportunity in replying to India's modest 246.
The 6-foot-7 Sharma, who had claimed Lendl Simmons late on the first day, added a second wicket with his first ball of the day, trapping Ramnaresh Sarwan lbw for 3 after playing no stroke to an inswinger.
Barath and fellow Trinidadian Darren Bravo fought back gamely in a third-wicket stand of 56 before the 24-year-old Kumar, on debut, shifted the momentum.
Barath reached his 50 off 116 balls with his eighth four, a lofted on-drive off the leg-spin of Mishra. The pint-sized opener lashed the next ball into the stands in the same area.
But Kumar soon ended the blossoming partnership.
Running in with the George Headley Stand at his back, Kumar claimed Barath when he nibbled at an outswinger and was nicely caught by a diving Mahendra Singh Dhoni behind the stumps. Barath hit eight fours and a six off 122 balls in 169 minutes.
In his next over, Kumar removed the left-handed Bravo in similar fashion, Dhoni again claiming a nick to a tentative defensive stroke. Bravo struck two fours in 18 off 56 balls.
Kumar further reduced the West Indies to 102/5 when Brendan Nash (1) tried to whip through the leg side but sliced an edge to Suresh Raina at third slip.
The experienced Shivnarine Chanderpaul and wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh revived the hosts after the lunch break, as Kumar suffered the ignominy of being removed from the attack for running on the pitch in his follow-through for the third time.
The pair carried their sixth-wicket stand to 45 before Harbhajan made the crucial breakthrough when Baugh was caught off pad and bat by silly point. The right-hander hit two fours and a six in 27 off 35 balls.
Captain Darren Sammy fell one run later when he tried to whip Sharma through the leg side and was bowled off his pads.
Harbhajan also claimed Chanderpaul, who spent 105 minutes compiling 23 off 75 balls. The left-hander was caught off a deflection to short leg from bat and pad to make it 152/8.
Ravi Rampaul (14 not out) tried to rally the tail but Mishra wrapped up the innings on the stroke of tea with the wickets of Fidel Edwards (7) and Devendra Bishoo (4) within three balls.
Edwards tried to cut a googly and edged to Dhoni, while Bishoo picked out midwicket with a pull shot.
West Indies hit back in the final session as Rampaul trapped Murali Vijay for a duck with a ball that kept a bit low.
Rampaul should have added the scalp of Dravid but the 151-Test veteran survived a chance on 6 when he was dropped at second slip by Sammy.
Dravid added 56 for the second wicket with opener Abhinav Mukund (25), who was also making his debut.
West Indies rebounded with two quick wickets as Bishoo claimed Mukund and Sammy held a fine return catch to remove VVS Laxman without scoring to make it 57/3.
But Dravid continued to show broad-batted certainty, steering the team to the close with Virat Kohli (14 not out), who survived a late bouncer barrage from Fidel Edwards.

Brief scores
India 246 and 91 for 3 (Dravid 45*)
West Indies 173 (Barath 64, Sharma 3-29, P Kumar 3-38)
Status India lead by 164 runs

Sloppy India Lose Final ODI, Win Series 3-2

Darren Bravo hit a career-best 86 as West Indies comfortably defeated India by seven wickets in the fifth and final ODI on Thursday.
Chasing a target of 252, Bravo's clean hitting helped West Indies reach the target in 48.4 overs to reduce the series score to 3-2.
Interestingly West Indies had lost the first three ODIs against Pakistan in the earlier series before winning the last two.
Cheered by local hero Chris Gayle from the stands, Bravo (86, 99 balls, 3x4, 6x6) who many believe is a 'Brian Lara clone' launched into Indian spinners Ravichandran Ashwin and Amit Mishra hitting as many as five out of his six sixes off the two.
The Batting Powerplay proved to be the turning point for Windies as Indian bowlers gave away 57 runs between overs 43 and 47. When Bravo was finally out in the 46th over with 39 still to get, Kieron Pollard (24, 13 balls, 3x4, 1x6) and Marlon Samuels (28, 25 balls, 3x4) plundered 42 runs in only 3.3 overs to seal the issue.
Credit should also be given Ramnaresh Sarwan (75 retd hurt, 94 balls, 5x4, 1x6) who anchored the innings to perfection before he couldn't carry on due to cramps. Sarwan and Bravo added 103 runs for the third wicket before the right-hander retired hurt.
Bravo took his time to settle down but with wickets in hand, he waited for the batting Powerplay to explode. The other turning point was India losing seven wickets for 62 runs despite Virat Kohli's solid 94.
Leaden-footed Darren Bravo sprang to life with two successive sixes off Ashwin as he scored 15 runs in the 43rd over.
Mishra, the most consistent Indian bowler in the series met with similar fate as he too went for couple of sixes with 15 runs coming off it.
Vinay Kumar who had a good first spell went for 11 runs, the target was reduced to 23 from the final three overs.
West Indies openers Lendl Simmons (6) and Adrian Barath (17) fell cheaply before Sarwan and Bravo began their rescue mission.
Earlier, when India batted it was a case of poor shot selection by the middle and lower order batsmen after Kohli (94, 104 balls, 10x4) along with Rohit Sharma (57, 72 balls, 2x4, 1x6) laid the foundation with a 110-run partnership for the fourth wicket.
Coming in to bat in the fourth over, Kohli stayed put till the 36th over to help India overcome early jitters although a fantastic piece of fielding by Sarwan from the deep robbed the batsman a chance to score his sixth international hundred.
Andre Russell was the pick of the West Indian bowlers, grabbing four for 35 and his spell at the death earned him the man-of-the-match award.
Indian openers Parthiv Patel (6) and Shikhar Dhawan (11) were gone by the seventh over as West Indian quicks took full advantage of the bouncy strip that was on offer.
Patel was hurried onto a pull shot by a Russell bouncer and was holed out at mid-wicket. Dhawan was done in by the extra bounce as he was caught in the slips off Kemar Roach.
Kohli started by clipping Russell delightfully to mid-wicket fence off the eighth ball he faced.
The next boundary was rather a streaky edge past slip off Darren Sammy but he made it up with a delightful cover drive in the West Indian skipper's fourth over.
Manoj Tiwary (22, 22 balls, 1x6, 1x4) looked in good nick during his short stay and a six off Sammy which hit the wooden roof of the club's bar was a breathtaking sight.
Tiwary though was unable to build on his start and edged one from Pollard behind the stumps just before the first drinks interval took place. His partnership with Kohli yielded 58 runs.
India now had the best batting passage of the innings as their two best young batsmen put their wares out on display.
Both looked to hit down the ground and picked up runs with ease as the 100 runs of the innings came in the 22nd over.
Kohli was careful in his shot selection and hit fours off leg-spinner Anthony Martin and Andre Russell in successive overs.
Kohli first bisected Martin through the backward point fence and then punched Russell through the covers.
The Delhi lad reached his half century in the 23rd over with a single off Martin having faced only 63 deliveries. He celebrated it with a cheeky steer for four off Lendl Simmons.
Man of the series Rohit having settled into a nice groove at the other end, slammed returning Roach over midwicket for an effortless six in the 36th over.
Kohli departed in this very over when he flicked one to fine leg and hurried back for a non-existent second. Sarwan's throw was hard and accurate to wicketkeeper Carlton Baugh who found the batsman short of his crease.
Once Kohli was dismissed, there was virtually no resistance from the other batsmen.
Skipper Suresh Raina played an ill-advised lofted shot to be out in the deep off Pollard. He has often tried this shot in the series with disastrous results. The stand-in captain could manage only 74 runs in the series.
Rohit completed his third fifty of the series but was cleaned by Martin trying an ugly heave. He hit two fours and a six during his 72 ball knock.
Yusuf Pathan (30, 29 balls, 2x4, 1x6) looked confident for the first time in the series but again his undoing was a short ball that lifted from short of good length to kiss his edge.
Russell blew away the lower order as Amit Mishra (0) was bowled trying a big hit and Ishant Sharma was castled by a yorker as India missed a chance to play 15 more deliveries.

Brief scores
India 251 (Kohli 94, Rohit 57, Russell 4-35)
West Indies 255 for 3 (Bravo 86, Sarwan 75* retd)
Results West Indies won by seven wickets
MOM Andre Russell (West Indies)
Man of the series Rohit Sharma (India)

Zaheer, Sreesanth to Miss West Indies Test

Zaheer Khan and Sreesanth have been ruled out of the Test series against West Indies, further weakening a squad that is already missing several first-choice players.
Zaheer has a right ankle problem, and Sreesanth has a right elbow problem and both are undergoing rehabilitation. Abhimanyu Mithun and Praveen Kumar have been named as their replacements in the Test squad.
Shoulder injuries to Virender Sehwag and Gautam Gambhir had earlier forced the selectors to opt for a pair of inexperienced openers in M Vijay and the uncapped Abhinav Mukund. Sachin Tendulkar wanted to spend some time with his family and opted out of the tour as well.
While the batting was hit hard by these withdrawals, the bowling initially wore a stronger look with Zaheer - who skipped the limited-overs leg of the tour - expected to lead a full-strength attack to the Caribbean. His and Sreesanth's absence will now add further fuel to the debate on the impact of a cramped IPL schedule on the Indian team...