Just when the long-suffering, cricket-loving citizens of the Caribbean dared to dream of inflicting a 5-0 series whitewash over perennial powerhouse Australia, they were jolted back to reality by a fighting performance from the visiting team that showed exactly why one should never rest on one’s laurels when playing against them. Having had their wallabies well and properly walloped over the course of the previous 3 games, that legendary Aussie pride was no doubt hurting fiercely. Since the WI batsmen had clearly developed an affinity for laying the wood to Hazlewood, in came Jason Behrendorff for his first game of the series. The home team, meanwhile, found themselves having to replace Hetmyer, McCoy and Bravo due to a combination of niggles and quite possibly aching bones – a spring chicken, the DJ is certainly not. As such, Akeal Hosein, Oshane Thomas, and Andre Fletcher were given the chance to impress the selectors with the T20 World Cup rapidly looming larger on the horizon. All three would find themselves lamenting the fact that their chances went a begging on a night when the WI found themselves decidedly second best.
The Aussie skipper won his fourth toss in a row and chose to take first strike once more. The gnashing of his teeth was surely heard across the Caribbean when, with just 12 runs on the board, Thomas and his extra bounce found the edge of Wade’s blade for an early breakthrough 11 deliveries into the innings. For the next 10 overs, however, two of Australia’s senior batsmen stole the spotlight. Finch finally showed up in a pinch and Marsh was mercilessly harsh as both reminded all and sundry that they – “come from a land down under…where the women glow and the men plunder”- and gee whizz did they ever plunder. Between them, Finch and Marsh blasted 9 fours and 9 sixes as they amassed a partnership of 114, the largest for ANY wicket by their team for the entire series thus far. The WI bowlers were unable to separate them until Walsh Jr. got Finch and Alex Carey off successive deliveries in over #12 and from that point the tide noticeably turned. Henriques and Turner both fell cheaply and when Marsh was gleefully snapped up by Pooran off Allen in the 18th over, it took some lusty blows from Dan Christian to get the total up to 189-6, by far their best effort with the bat. This was a WI line-up that had already bettered that, however, so the onus was now on the Aussie bowlers to pull off a successful defence.
Openers Simmons and Lewis wasted no time racking up a partnership of 62 runs by the 5th over with 8 fours and 3 sixes before the Aussies struck with the wickets of Lewis and Gayle. Simmons was unrelenting at the other end, however, and in the 15 deliveries between the wickets of Lewis and Gayle, he belted 5 boundaries. It seemed that once he could find another steady partner, a WI victory would arrive quickly. Sadly, no one told Fletcher that as he got himself bowled, trying to hit Zampa all the way to Tampa. Finch used his leggie together with Marsh and Behrendorff to restrict the WI to just 15 runs between overs 8 thru 12. The pressure was building, and skipper Pooran tried his hand at hitting the release valve by striking a quick 16, but the ever-reliable Marsh would repeat Walsh Jr’s earlier trick of successive wickets, getting both Pooran and Simmons out in over #16. The loss of Simmons, in particular, looked like swinging the match firmly in favour of the Aussies, his 72 having been studded with 10 boundaries and 2 sixes, and the men from Down Under were understandably jubilant. They forgot, however, that oftentimes there comes a sting in the tail, and on this occasion, it arrived in the form of some serious Scotch Bonnet hotshots by the Jamaican duo of Russell and Allen. The 17th and 18th overs went for 10 and 11 runs respectively and then Finch found himself with a choice between Meredith and Behrendorff to bowl over #19. Luck, they say, is a fickle lady indeed, and she chose this moment to abandon the Aussie skipper. He opted for Meredith, Russell and Allen opted to go hell for leather, and the first 5 balls of the over went for 25 runs as the pair smashed 4 sixes. Allen’s dismissal off the last ball gave the Aussies breathing room, for it meant the WI would need to score 11 off the final over to steal the win. Cometh the hour, cometh the man, and Mitchell Starc was that man. Not even Russell’s muscles could hit Starc out of the park as the leftie surrendered only a 6 off his last ball to leave the WI agonizingly short of a 4-0 series scoreline.
By far the most exciting finish to date, match four gave some glimpses of what the Aussies are capable of if they are on song. Now we await the series finale to see if the WI can temper their opponent’s re-surging confidence with a magnificent melody of their own.
