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India have made no changes to their 15-man squad for the second Test against West Indies which starts on November 14 in Kolkata. That means offspinner Harbhajan Singh remains on the sidelines while legspinner Rahul Sharma, who was a controversial selection for the first Test squad, retains his place.In the first Test in Delhi, India won by the ultimately comfortable margin of five wickets but were sternly tested by West Indies, who took a 95-run first-innings lead. Despite the early scare, India had several things to be satisfied about. In their first match after injury lay-off key batsmen Virender Sehwag and Sachin Tendulkar made crucial contributions to the victory. Three other players returning from injury – Gautam Gambhir, Ishant Sharma and Yuvraj Singh – also showed they had no fitness trouble during the Test.The inexperienced bowling attack also fared well, with left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha taking six wickets in the first innings and Man of the Match R Ashwin grabbing six in the second on his debut. Their impressive performance ensured that Harbhajan, a certain pick in Indian squads for much of the past decade, will have to wait for a chance to make his comeback.Medium-pacer Praveen Kumar, who was one of India’s few bright spots during the abysmal tour of England, also continued to be ignored by the selectors. It was not a fitness problem that kept Praveen out – he played for Uttar Pradesh in their Ranji Trophy match against Saurashtra, which began on Thursday – but India probably wanted to experiment with the quicker options of Umesh Yadav and Varun Aaron before the big tour of Australia later this year.Squad: MS Dhoni (capt & wk), Virender Sehwag, Gautam Gambhir, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, VVS Laxman, Yuvraj Singh, Ishant Sharma, R Ashwin, Pragyan Ojha, Umesh Yadav, Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, Rahul Sharma, Varun Aaron

The resumption of international cricket in Pakistan, which stopped after the attack on the Sri Lankan team in Lahore in March 2009, could be the by-product of a deal between the PCB and its Bangladesh counterpart over choosing the next ICC vice-president. The nomination rests with the two countries and Pakistan are reportedly ready to concede its right for an expected tour by Bangladesh in 2012.The deal, however, is being explained in official circles as the conclusion of a gentleman’s agreement that resulted in Pakistan’s Ehsan Mani becoming the ICC president in 2003.The ICC executive board, at its meeting in October, had asked the PCB and BCB to nominate a candidate for the vice-presidency for the 2012-14 term, in keeping with the rotational system. The nomination has to be firmed up by December 31, the ICC will discuss it in January and the appointment will be effective in June. The two board chiefs, Zaka Ashraf of the PCB and the BCB’s Mustafa Kamal, have already held one – reportedly inconclusive – meeting in Dubai. They are due to meet again in Dhaka on the sidelines of Pakistan’s tour in December.For Pakistan, the benefits are clear: they are keen for international cricket to return to the country and Ashraf, barely a month into his job, has set that as his primary target – even at the cost of what will lead to the top job in international cricket. To that end, he has repaired relations with Bangladesh to an extent, from the frosty ties under his predecessor Ijaz Butt. The ties were strained after cancelled junior cricket tours to Pakistan and by Bangladesh not supporting Pakistan over the staging of matches during the 2011 World Cup.On the face of it the deal is a formality. When, in 2003, the two boards agreed on Mani’s candidature for the president’s post, it was on the understanding that the next cycle would go Bangladesh’s way. Even the mooted tour is not expected to be a problem; Bangladesh don’t have any problems with travel to Pakistan – the national football team went there earlier this year for a World Cup qualifier – and the series is part of the ICC future tours programme, scheduled for April 2012.Pakistan, however, has reportedly sought written assurance from Bangladesh that it will not backtrack from the understanding.The bigger issue, however, seems to be a lack of clarity in Bangladesh. The BCB hasn’t discussed it, nor has Kamal spoken to his directors about his meeting with Ashraf. BCB officials say they are wary of commenting since the decision will be taken at the highest political levels. Nor is there any unanimity on candidates for ICC vice-president, with several hats in the ring.Kamal leads the way and seems to have his sights firmly on the job. A political appointment, like all his predecessors, he’s also a Minister of Parliament (MP) and reasonably in favour with the top bosses of the ruling Awami League. Kamal’s closest contender seems to be Saber Hossain Chowdhury, the former BCB president. Chowdhury, also an MP, has immense credibility as a cricket administrator – he ushered Bangladesh into Test cricket after overseeing their ICC Trophy win and securing their ODI status, and also brought in Gordon Greenidge as coach. However, his political clout has waned in recent times; he was once a close aide of the Prime Minister’s but has been kept away from a ministerial role.Also doing the rounds are the names of two Pakistanis – Mani, and former captain Majid Khan. Mani told ESPNcricinfo he had been contacted by officials from Bangladesh but it is believed the PCB has made no serious attempt to make contact with either; despite their strong CVs they remain long shots.”I have no interest in seeking the post for a second time,” Mani told ESPNcricinfo. “There are other very good people in Bangladesh and Pakistan and I am sure that if the right person is selected he would be a credit to both the countries.”The important thing is that the two boards should ensure that their nominee has the right qualification and standing in the game and will act in the best interests of the game.”

Geraint Jones, the former England wicketkeeper, will return to the country of his birth and play for Papua New Guinea in the World Twenty20 qualifying tournament.Jones will join up with the Papua New Guinea squad for a training camp in February before trying to help them earn a place at the World T20 in the qualifiers in March. Both finalists of the tournament in Dubai will qualify for the main event in Sri Lanka in September.Born in Kundiawa in the Chimbu Province of Papua New Guinea, Jones was raised in Australia before moving to Britain and gaining a contract with Kent in 2001. He made his England debut against West Indies in April 2004 and was part of the team in 2005 that regained the Ashes.Jones, who played two T20 internationals, has been out of international cricket since 2006. He lost his Test place in December 2005 and played the last of his 49 ODIs against Sri Lanka at Headingley in July 2006.His decision provides a major boost for Papua New Guinea and their general manager, Greg Campbell, was delighted at the news. “I couldn’t believe it when Geraint contacted us,” Campbell said. “He is genuinely excited about coming to play and helping us achieve the dream of a World Cup spot. He has played so many games at the highest level. His talent and experience will be incredibly valuable for us.”Papua New Guinea begin their World T20 qualifying campaign against Afghanistan on March 13.

The Pune Warriors will remain in the IPL and its parent company Sahara will continue its sponsorship of the Indian team, it was announced on Thursday, ending a public and bitter dispute between the Indian board and its long-time corporate partner. The two sides released a joint statement, almost a fortnight after Sahara’s dramatic exit from top-flight Indian cricket, which spelled out the terms of the agreement.The major concession Pune seem to have won is the restoration of its auction purse of $1.6 million and the licence to buy players who were not sold at the auction and also foreign players who were not part of the auction.The other concessions include: an extension of the trading window till the end of February, the possibility of being allowed more than the norm of four overseas players (subject to the agreement of the other franchises), and an arbitration process to decide on their demand for a concession in the franchise fee.Sahara has also been given the right to stage one of the IPL play-off games subject to the consent of Royal Challengers Bangalore, the original hosts. The BCCI also said it would consider Sahara’s request to furnish a bank guarantee for its franchise fee in two instalments.Sahara’s decision to continue its sponsorship of the Indian national team had this proviso: “Sahara may want to exercise its right to assign the sponsorship as per the agreement,” implying the possibility of Sahara sub-letting the rights.Sahara chairman Subrata Roy, while welcoming the agreement, said one of his requests had not been included. “We had strongly requested for an open auction in 2013,” Roy said. Though he remained in his offices in one of the Sahara hotels in Mumbai, the camp appeared upbeat and his two sons – who were closely involved in the negotiations – were seen walking purposefully and wishing officials and members of the media.IPL chairman Rajiv Shukla was happy the dispute was resolved. “Whatever issues were there, have been addressed,” he said. “Whatever was possible within the framework, has been achieved. We have not bent rules.”One of Pune’s cricketers, the left-arm spinner Murali Kartik tweeted: “Great news..Pune Playing..guessing right that all the players are relieved..phew.”It was not immediately clear, though, whether Sahara’s decision to rejoin the fold was contingent on all conditions being ultimately met, and whether other franchises had been consulted during the negotiations. Franchise officials contacted by ESPNcricinfo said they had come to know of the news through the joint statement and had not been formally contacted by the BCCI. They had not, they said, decided their stand on the issues that relate to them.Today’s announcement followed hectic negotiations over the past few days and a fair bit of posturing and selective leaks. Officials said negotiations were fraught with complications given the high stakes involved and the BCCI team’s need to clear every major decision with their seniormost officials. Even as late as Thursday afternoon, they said, chances of a deal were hanging by a thread.Sahara had threatened to walk away from both the league and Indian cricket an hour before the IPL auction earlier this month. The dispute arose around a request by Sahara to be allowed to add their star signing Yuvraj Singh’s to their auction purse for the February 4 auction after it was learnt that Yuvraj could not take part in the IPL.The truce comes three days after a meeting of the BCCI’s working committee at which almost all of Sahara’s requests were turned down.

The MCC and Glamorgan are set to swap international fixtures in 2013, with Lord’s likely to host a Test originally set to be in Cardiff and Glamorgan hosting Champions Trophy games. Lord’s was originally allocated five ICC Champions Trophy ODIs in 2013 while Glamorgan was allocated a Test against New Zealand in the same year.The move will revive questions about the viability of Cardiff as an international venue. The club, not helped by inclement weather, has struggled to attract spectators in sufficient numbers and has suffered significant losses on some of the international games they have hosted.Painfully few people attended the Test between England and Sri Lanka last May which led to Glamorgan losing around £1.2 million on the game and failing to meet deadlines for staging payments due to the ECB. As a consequence, they forfeited the right to host this year’s Test against West Indies which was transferred to Lord’s instead. Last month Glamorgan were obliged to secure another loan of around £1.3 million from a group of private investors to avoid the prospect of going into administration.Lord’s, by contrast, continues to enjoy excellent sales – both corporate and general – for all international matches. Just as importantly, the move would underline the MCC’s preference for Test cricket over the limited-overs formats. When the MCC applied to host the ICC event in 2013 they were under the impression that it would be a game in the inaugural Test Championship.Only when pre-existing ICC deals with broadcasters scuppered those plans was the decision made to revert to the Champions Trophy format of ODI games. As the ICC also retain the power to run – and provide tickets for – their own events the MCC would have been required to give up a large number of the seats usually reserved for their members had they hosted the Champions Trophy games. As a resolutely independent minded organised, that is not something the MCC relishes.”We have been informed that there may be an opportunity to swap our 2013 New Zealand Test match in return for hosting five ICC Champions Trophy matches, including a semi-final, in the same year,” a statement released by Glamorgan said. “Without doubt, the opportunity to stage a number of high profile Champions Trophy matches in Cardiff is an exciting one and would provide a fascinating range of matches and do much to continue to raise the international standing of Wales as destination for top class cricket.”Discussions are at an early stage and understandably, there are a number of complex matters that need to be considered and resolved prior to any final decision being made. Glamorgan will not agree to a swap unless it is clearly in the interests of the club to do so.”During the forthcoming season Glamorgan will host an ODI between England and South Africa on August 24 followed immediately by the Friends Life t20 Finals Day on August 25. The club said it has sold 70% of tickets for the ODI and 75% of the first release of tickets for Finals Day.Glamorgan are also currently scheduled to host an Ashes Test in 2015. While the club’s management insist that the vision to bring international cricket to Cardiff was always going to be a long term project, the jury remains out on whether it is an achievable aim. Several other venues, many of them vying with something approaching desperation for the raft of international fixtures Cardiff have been granted, could be forgiven for asking what Glamorgan has done to earn such a high profile and easily marketed fixture.

Australia’s coach Mickey Arthur has warned the tourists that a West Indies trip following a demanding and successful summer should not be regarded as an end-of-season holiday.As the ODI squad adjusted to the vast time difference between Australia and the Caribbean, Arthur said that any complacency after a home Test series victory over India and a subsequent triangular ODI series final success against Sri Lanka had to be weeded out of the team ahead of Friday’s first match.Among other challenges, Arthur also pointed to the unfamiliarity of West Indian conditions and also the prevalence of new faces in the hosts’ squad as reasons for the visitors to be wary over the next seven weeks.”There’s three things we really need to guard against,” Arthur told . “One is attitude and complacency because we’ve come off a really good summer so we need to guard against that.”We’re in conditions that are very different to Australia so that’s something we’re going to need to get used to very, very quickly. Then the third one is an unknown opposition. Our preparation time is going to be so important to us. We can’t compromise on our preparation time.””An unknown opposition does present a lot more challenges,” Arthur said. “They can certainly hit you hard up front and we could be chasing our tails for the rest of the series. We’ve got the week now to make sure in all disciplines we’re right and ready to go come Friday.”Australia’s training schedule will begin with a sharp fielding session on Monday, before the team settles into its plans and tactics for five limited overs matches. Arthur is working closely with the acting captain Shane Watson, and said the allrounder had so far surpassed his expectations.”Shane’s been really good. He has been outstanding,” Arthur said. “I think he’s led very well, he’s led with authority which has been really good. I think he’s almost performed above expectation in that area which is great.””If things happen to Clarkey we want to have a really good and able vice-captain who can take over. He’s also a vice-captain playing all forms of the game. Shane’s doing that and can give a huge amount of support to Michael through the Tests and ODIs and to George Bailey through the Twenty20s.”One man not participating in the early matches of the series will be James Pattinson, as he recovers from a muscle strain. Though Pattinson has been afflicted by a foot ailment and now a buttocks problem in quick succession, Arthur said his preference was for young bowlers to train hard and learn to deal with the fact that injuries were a necessary evil of fast bowling.”I would bowl him every day of the week if I could and let him loose … the more for him the better,” Arthur said. “I feel the same for all the younger bowlers. I think we’ve got to live with the fact that bowling is a real tough gig and guys are going to break down. We’ve just got to get them ready to go again after that.”

ScorecardJames Anyon took 5 for 36, his second five-wicket haul of the new season, in Lancashire’s first innings•PA Photos

Lancashire’s form at their Merseyside base last summer was one of the main contributory factors in them achieving a first outright Championship victory in 77 years, but they had a far from happy return after a disappointing opening day to the defence of their title.Four victories and only one defeat from their six matches at Aigburth while Old Trafford was being refurbished gave them crucial momentum towards their historic success, including a convincing innings victory in their opening match of 2011 against Sussex.Despite a healthy crowd, who suffered cold, breezy conditions despite the sunshine all day, Lancashire were unable to repeat a similar level of performance and finished struggling to remain competitive after Sussex seamer James Anyon claimed 5 for 36 and Steve Magoffin, their Australian overseas player, impressed to finish with 2 for 21.Dismissed for only 124 in 52.2 overs in early April conditions that particularly favoured the taller bowlers after losing a crucial toss, Lancashire rallied to leave Sussex struggling on 15 for 3 before an unbroken 122-run fourth-wicket stand between patient opener Ed Joyce and the aggressive Michael Yardy ensured Sussex finished the day ahead.”It was a tough day, really,” admitted Stephen Croft, the only Lancashire player to reach 50. “Conditions were tough and we’d have liked to have got over 200 but we fell a bit short of that. It was seaming quite a bit, but it’s typical early season English conditions and they put the ball in the right place most of the time.”After 13 wickets fell in just over two sessions, events naturally attracted the suspicion of Peter Walker, the ECB’s pitch liaison officer. After inspecting carefully, he reached the correct conclusion that the surface was not to blame, explaining “both sides bowled extremely well”.That verdict particularly applied to Sussex’s attack, who exploited the early conditions expertly. Anyon received the plaudits for his five-wicket haul, but they will have been equally delighted by the contribution of Magoffin, who began his county career with an exhausting 10-over new-ball spell without any complaint.Both Anyon and Magoffin were rewarded for extracting pace and bounce from the wicket, while Monty Panesar marked his first match since returning from England’s tour of Sri Lanka by turning the ball from an early stage. It was not until Croft teamed up with Glen Chapple, playing his first innings as a Wisden Cricketer of the Year, in an aggressive 41-run seventh-wicket stand that Lancashire began to break the spell.Lancashire enjoyed such powers of recovery on several occasions last summer that it was no surprise that Sussex also struggled in reply until the mixture of styles provided by Joyce and Yardy rescued their cause. Recognising it was no pitch for flashy strokeplay, Joyce knuckled down to score 48 in 41 overs at the crease while, in contrast, Sussex captain Yardy provided a more aggressive innings and hit seven fours to reach an unbeaten 70 off 88 balls.While it would be foolish to rule out Lancashire’s chances – they won their last two matches last season after being dismissed for only 80 in Worcester – regaining control of this match would perhaps be their greatest turnaround yet.”We’ve been in this position quite a few times last year with our backs against the wall a little bit, but we generally come out and play well and hopefully we can do that,” Croft said. “It looks very tough going into tomorrow but we’ve been in this position before and hopefully we can use our experience.”

Kolkata Knight Riders captain Gautam Gambhir has said there will be no room for complacency after his side beat Delhi Daredevils by six wickets on Monday to claim the top spot in the points table.”As long as I lead KKR there will never be any complacency, as every game is as important as the first game or the final,” Gambhir, who has has led Knight Riders to eight wins from 11 matches, said. “We play Mumbai Indians twice, then Chennai and Pune, so the important thing is to keep winning games. It’s important to play as a unit. If we play like we have been playing then the results will go in our favour. “Knight Riders’ bowlers put on an impressive show on Monday, with Jacques Kallis dismissing Virender Sehwag and David Warner early. Rajat Bhatia and Sunil Narine then choked the run-rate in the middle of the innings. “It’s not only about Sunil Narine,” Gambhir said. “He can only bowl four overs in a T20 game but the other 16 overs matter. Brett Lee, Rajat are the unsung heroes. Sunil can only bowl four overs, those are important but we need to have other people who can complement Sunil, so credit goes to the whole bowling department.”Gambhir and Brendon McCullum led Knight Riders’ chase with their fourth fifty-plus partnership in six innings’. “I was hitting the ball well and had no intention of being aggressive. Whenever I looked to hit, it was going off the middle. When you’re playing well you don’t need to be aggressive, you just need to keep your shape and watch the ball.””(McCullum) has been hitting the ball well. Even in the last game he got 42 and we had a hundred-runs partnership. That is more important rather than individual scores. He was always a key player and hopefully he keeps batting this way.”Gambhir, who has scored 457 runs from 11 innings, said the onus was on him and Kallis to adapt their game to the match situation. “If someone has to change their game, it should be Kallis or me. We don’t want McCullum or Yusuf Pathan to change their game. It’s our responsibility because we are the experienced players,” Gambhir said. “You don’t want them to stop playing their natural game.”

ScorecardEarly wickets gave Lancashire the advantage after a strong first innings total•Getty Images

Yorkshire’s hierarchy have made their views on Ajmal Shahzad abundantly clear, but even the most suspicious of Lancastrians is beginning to be won around by his commitment to lift their fortunes following his controversial loan move across the Pennines.Criticised for his general attitude by Colin Graves, Yorkshire’s outspoken chief executive, following their decision to release the first British Asian player to represent the county, he has attempted to distance himself from those remarks by reminding the cricket community that he is equally able to grab the headlines for his performances on the field.Two wickets in his maiden over for Lancashire against Sussex, which included a wicket with his first delivery, have now been followed up an influential spell to enable the Champions – still looking for their first win of the season – to gain control in the Aigburth sunshine against a strong Middlesex line-up.”Ajmal has fitted in really well, he tries his heart out and is always willing to bowl,” said his new team-mate, Kyle Hogg. “He’s a great bowler and a more than useful batsman as well. Having him here is good competition and it lifts everyone else’s game because you know if you don’t perform to certain levels there are people waiting in the wings.”We have Sajid Mahmood and Oliver Newby not playing in this game – it’s how it should be, if you are not performing people should take your place, it brings the best out of players.”Shahzad’s fiery six-over burst after tea built on fine new ball spells from Glen Chapple, Lancashire’s captain, and Hogg that accounted for both openers. Shahzad opened his account by tempting Joe Denly into chasing a wide delivery, which flew to point, but then claimed the crucial wicket of Eoin Morgan, playing his first Championship innings since last July.His county cricket opportunities limited by England and IPL commitments, Morgan looked in good touch when he lofted Simon Kerrigan’s left-arm spin over midwicket for six to get off the mark.However, perhaps indicating a rustiness in his game having not played a first-class match since the final Test against Pakistan in Abu Dhabi last February, Morgan failed to spot an inswinging delivery from Shahzad, bowling from the River End, in the next over and when he tried to drive, the ball crashed into his stumps off an inside edge. The Aigburth crowd, basking in the late afternoon sunshine, were almost as excited as Shahzad at the breakthrough.Kerrigan was able to dismiss Dawid Malan with a catch to bat-pad five overs later to leave Middlesex struggling on 95 for 5 and it took an unbroken 60-run stand between Neil Dexter and John Simpson to prevent them from collapsing in the final session.Middlesex’s fortunes were similar to Lancashire’s with the bat. They resumed with sights set on reaching 400 for only the second time this summer on 276 for 4, but lost six for 71 and were dismissed for 392.Ashwell Prince, Lancashire’s South African overseas batsman, began the collapse when he was superbly caught by Ollie Rayner at slip driving at Gareth Berg for 144 after resuming on 121. Confidence lifted by that reflex catch, Rayner went on to claim 3 for 88 with his offspin as Lancashire went in search of quick runs to advance the game.Facing a tricky 15 overs before tea, Middlesex suffered a bad start when Chris Rogers edged a lifting delivery from Hogg behind and Sam Robson fell lbw to a full length ball from Chapple that may have kept a little low. The afternoon sunshine, though, belonged to Shahzad.Advised by his management company to avoid media interviews while the controversy over his switch continues, it was left to Hogg to reflect on Shahzad’s impact since arriving at Old Trafford.””He got a few good luck messages on Twitter when he signed for us!”joked Hogg. “Him and Saj are pretty much identical in character and it is good to have them around, especially on days like today when it can be tough going. They keep everyone going.”

Scorecard and ball-by-ball detailsChris Gayle thumped an unbeaten 63 off 57•WICB

New Zealand got a sampler of how tough this ODI series could get for them when their inexperienced line-up crumbled against disciplined bowling led by Andre Russell and their bowlers were swatted away by Chris Gayle and Dwayne Smith.The sharp Russell struck with his first delivery, in the second over, and New Zealand were always under pressure after that. BJ Watling, the wicketkeeper-batsman, hung around to ensure New Zealand batted out 50 overs, something they hadn’t looked like achieving at 71 for 5 in the 24th over.In contrast, Gayle and Smith bulldozed their way to 93 for 1 in 18 overs before returning after an almost two-hour rain break to motor to the revised target of 136 in 33 overs with 52 deliveries to spare. The game, though, had almost been decided during New Zealand’s disappointing innings.The visitors made the Sabina Park surface look much worse than it actually was. There was bounce, but little seam movement, and the swing wasn’t unmanageable. West Indies, though, made superb use of whatever was on offer, Russell finding just enough away shape to have Guptill edging his sixth ball low to second slip. That was one of the few wickets New Zealand did not give away.Daniel Flynn seemed to have recovered from a scratchy start only to chop a drive onto his stumps; Rob Nicol looked alright before charging and holing out to deep square leg to give Russell his third wicket in his fifth over.New Zealand were 36 for 3 in ten overs when Sunil Narine came on to bowl, and predictably, they had no clue what was coming their way. Thumb or no thumb on the ball, they could not make out the big offspinner from the carrom ball. Dean Brownlie scratched around for 13 balls to make one run before being caught plumb in front by a straighter one from Narine.

Smart stats

• West Indies’ win is their eighth by a margin of nine or more wickets in a home ODI (target greater than 100 runs). The last time they achieved it was against Pakistan at Providence last year.

• It is also West Indies’ 25th win against New Zealand in ODIs. The last time the teams played in the West Indies (2007 World Cup), New Zealand won by seven wickets.

• Andre Russell’s 4 for 45 is the ninth haul of four or more wickets for West Indies in an ODI against New Zealand. It is, however, the third-best bowling performance by a West Indian bowler in a home ODI against New Zealand.

• The number of sixes hit by West Indies (8) equals their record for the most sixes hit in an innings lasting less than 25 overs.

• The 130-run stand between Chris Gayle and Dwayne Smith is the second-highest second-wicket stand for West Indies against New Zealand. The record is 184 between Larry Gomes and Desmond Haynes in Barbados in 1985.

• Lendl Simmons’ duck is his seventh in 39 matches. It is also his longest duck (in terms of balls faced) and the third-longest by a West Indies batsman against New Zealand.

Kane Williamson, the stand-in New Zealand captain, and Watling somehow managed to survive Narine’s opening spell of 5-1-4-1. Just when New Zealand seemed to have begun some sort of recovery, Williamson, on 24, guided Darren Sammy’s fourth ball into the hands of the keeper to leave the visitors struggling to survive the full 50 overs.Watling, though he never looked completely in control, settled down to nudge and whip on the leg side, 50 of his 60 runs coming on that half of the ground. He added 46 with Jacob Oram and 44 with Andrew Ellis and survived two leg-before referrals, against Narine when on 26 and against Russell on 40.But the boost that could have taken New Zealand towards a fighting total never arrived. Jacob Oram, the only New Zealand batsman who looked threatening, got out in the second over of the batting Powerplay, looking for more runs after swinging a couple of sixes. Just 26 runs came off the Powerplay ultimately, and it ended with Ellis playing out a maiden to Narine, who later bowled Ellis to finish with 2 for 26.Watling continued to accumulate as New Zealand scraped 57 off the last ten overs, but as if succumbing to Russell and co. was not enough, New Zealand had Gayle and Smith to contend with. To round off their woes, Ellis could not bowl after picking up a leg injury while batting.In his first international match at his home ground since June 2009, Gayle began like he often has recently, with a maiden to Tim Southee. He soon started to swing boundaries down the ground freely. Southee and Oram were lifted nonchalantly for straight sixes; the spinners Tarun Nethula and Nicol met a similar fate. Smith, who largely struggled for timing, clobbered a few sixes over his favoured leg side, and also benefited from loose deliveries on the pads.With West Indies having knocked off nearly half of the original target in 18 overs, the expected rain arrived. Had there been a washout, the game would have ended without a result as West Indies’ innings had been halted two overs short of the 20 needed for the Duckworth-Lewis method to be applied.However, play eventually resumed with an hour to go for the cut-off time of 6 pm, leaving West Indies another 43 to get in 90 deliveries. Gayle and Smith eased to victory in fading light; New Zealand’s chances had faded long back.