Lee stars in Aussie win
2005-01-26 14:02
Adelaide - Brett Lee was twice denied hat-tricks in a brilliant all-around performance on Wednesday which gave Australia a 73-run win over the West Indies in a limited-overs cricket match.
Lee scored 38 and joined Jason Gillespie in an unbroken ninth-wicket partnership at Adelaide Oval to help Australia recover from 85 for five in the 19th over to a total of 269 for eight.
Lee then took four wickets in two devastating spells to knock the heart out of the West Indies and speed them toward dismissal for 196 in 44.5 overs.
Lee twice claimed wickets with consecutive balls, dismissing openers Wavell Hinds for 0 with the last ball of his first over and Chris Gayle for 2 with the first ball of his second.
His explosive opening spell left the West Indies two wickets down for three runs and made Australia's moderate total more daunting.
Lee was then astutely recalled by Ricky Ponting to take the vital wicket of West Indian captain Brian Lara with the second ball of the 37th over and to dismiss wicketkeeper Courtney Browne with his next delivery.
Lara attempted a flat-bat slog and Lee made ground and showed steady nerves to take a difficult return catch. He had Browne lbw with his next ball to finish with 4-38 from 10 overs.
Lee appealed for lbw decisions on both hat trick balls - against Shivnarine Chanderpaul and Ian Bradshaw - but was twice denied by Australian umpire Steve Davis.
Chanderpaul, who batted with a runner, survived to record the West Indies' highest score of 55 from 87 balls.
He shared a third-wicket partnership of 92 with Ramnaresh Sarwan (39) but was dismissed when his runner, Wavell Hinds, failed to make his ground in a mix-up with Dwayne Bravo.
Lee bowled with blistering pace and felt he was coming back to his best form after a long period on the fringe of the Australian team.
"I always try to make sure that I'm fully fit so that if I get the opportunity to go out there I can give my best and hopefully I've done that," Lee said.
"I've done a lot of bowling in the nets with my training partner Andrew Symonds. I've been working on a few different balls and I've felt that with every game I've got a bit better."
Australia's win, which also earned them a bonus point, maintains their stranglehold on the series. They now have 26 points, with Pakistan on six and the West Indies on four.
Pakistan and the West Indies will meet each other twice before Australia's finals opponent is decided.
- AP