Date-stamped : 25 Feb94 - 06:28 England v West Indies, Test 1 Sabina Park, Kingston, Jamaica 19-24 Feb 94 (Rest 22 Feb) ====> Day 1, 19 Feb 94 England lost three quick wickets in the hour before tea as they slipped to 139 3 at the interval. Alec Stewart (70) and Mike Atherton (55) had shared an opening stand of 121 and though each survived a chance they had few other problems. Kenneth Benjamin eventually had both caught behind by Junior Murray before Robin Smith was bowled by Courtney Walsh for a duck. Richie Richardson regularly changed his bowlers and gave spinner Jimmy Adams a few overs. Contributed by goo-chie (jdw5@*.ukc.ac.uk) ====> Day 1, MORE West Indies paceman Kenny Benjamin captured a career-best four for 50 as England collapsed after a century opening stand in the first test at Sabina Park on Saturday. Benjamin, in only his third test and first against England, dispatched openers Mike Atherton (55) and Alec Stewart (70) and followed up with the wickets of Graham Thorpe and Jack Russell on an incident-filled first day of the series. England plunged from 121 without loss to 209 for seven at the close, losing six wickets for 51 at one stage in a stunning transformation to the innings. Benjamin was effectively backed up by fellow pacemen Courtney Walsh, who produced a superb break-back to bowl Robin Smith for nought, and Curtly Ambrose, who removed Chris Lewis with the second new ball. All-rounder Jimmy Adams, winning his place because of injury to Carl Hooper, also made a significant contribution by bowling Graeme Hick for 23 and holding the catch that accounted for Lewis. There was scarcely a hint of the problems ahead for England when Atherton, winning the toss on a slowish pitch, and Stewart gave their side a deceptively good start with a fine partner- ship of 121. Both survived chances before lunch, Ambrose missing a sharp return catch from Stewart on 14 and Atherton escaping on 22 when he edged the same bowler to Brian Lara at first slip where he failed to accept a waist-high chance. England, 79 without loss at lunch, continued to prosper into the early afternoon until Benjamin broke the partnership when Stewart hooked a shortish delivery, got an under-edge, and was caught behind by Junior Murray. Benjamin dealt his second blow when Atherton, in a rare lapse of concentration, drove at a widish delivery outside off stump and was caught low down by Murray. With only one run added, Walsh claimed the key wicket of Smith, the Jamaican bringing the ball back between bat and pad to hit the batsman's off stump as he pushed forward. England went to tea shortly afterwards at 139 for three, and were shackled in the early part of the last session when Thorpe and Hick managed only 10 runs in the first 10 overs after the inter- val. West Indies tightened their grip by snatching three wickets with the total on 172. Hick tried to cut the left-arm spin of Adams, found the ball was too close to his body, and chopped it onto his stumps after mak- ing 23. Benjamin then produced another double strike, bowling Thorpe between bat and pad for 16 as the left-hander tried to work the ball on the leg side, and trapping wicket- keeper Jack Russell lbw for nought. Captain Richie Richardson took the second new ball shortly before the close and was rewarded with another wicket when Lewis flicked Ambrose on the leg side and Adams held a catch at the second attempt at square leg. England decided not to risk fast-medium bowler Angus Fraser, who is nursing a fractured finger on his left hand, and opted for a four-pronged pace attack of Devon Malcolm, Alan Igglesden, Andy Caddick and Lewis. (Reuter) Contributed by chico (ckhan@bbn.com) ====> Day 2, 20 Feb 94 Keith Arthurton struck a stylish century to put West Indies into the lead at the end of the second day. Arthurton hit two huge sixes in his unbeaten 113 after a stand of 144 with Brian Lara had turned the game. Devon Malcolm and Andrew Caddick had re- duced them to 23-3 after England had been dismissed for 234 but Lara and Arthurton struck back. The two left handers peppered the boundary and though Lara fell to Graeme Hick`s first ball for 83 the West Indies are ahead on 238-4. Keith Fletcher admitted England are facing defeat at Sabina Park even though only two days have gone. Fletcher praised Brian Lara and Keith Arthurton before launching an attack on Englans`s bowlers. You have to give those two credit but I`m not happy with the way we bowled he said. We gave them too many half volleys and it`s going to be very difficult for us. He added: It`s easy to say now but I don`t know whether a spinner would have made any difference. Keith Arthurton gave himself an early birthday present with his unbeaten century on the second day. Arthurton was 113 not out and said: I didn`t expect 100 today but it would be nice if I could score another on my birthday on Monday. He and Brian Lara dug the West Indies out of trouble at 23 3 but he added: I don`t like batting if we`ve lost three quick wickets. I like to have a foundation there to work on but I do score a lot in difficult si- tuations. Contributed by goo-chie (jdw5@*.ukc.ac.uk) ====> Day 2, more Keith Arthurton and Brian Lara denied England any chance of re- peating one of their most famous victories over West Indies when they led a superb recovery on the second day of the first test on Sunday. Lara finally fell for 83, but Arthurton was unbeaten on 113 at the close when West Indies were 238 for four in response to England`s first innings 234. The two left-handers came together with West Indies in dire trouble at 23 for three, two of those wickets falling in a hostile spell to Devon Malcolm, one of the prime factors in England`s win here four years ago. There was an atmosphere of deja vu. Arthurton and Lara dispelled it with ca- valier batting in a stand of 144 runs in 159 minutes. After a morning session in which six wickets fell -- England`s last three and West Indies` first three -- the pair put the match firmly in West Indies` control. Lara and Arthurton frequently lived dangerously. Extravagant drives several times missed the ball by the thinnest of margins, miscued hooks fell tantalisingly in gaps between England fielders. It was a typical West Indian response to a situation where most inter- national cricket teams would have been content to hide behind the barricades. Lara was, in fact, fortunate to get off the mark. Twice in his first few balls he gloved balls from Malcolm dangerously close to fielders. He rode his luck with panache, and within an hour was punishing the ball through the offside. He reached his half- cen- tury with Arthurton still on 18, but then his fellow left- hander also opened up, at one stage cracking four boundaries from six deliveries. It was a day when fortune favoured the brave -- and Arthurton and Lara prospered in the bright sun which followed a short burst of rain which briefly halted play in mid-afternoon. England may well have thought the fates were cruel. Despite los- ing their last three wickets in adding just 25 to their overnight 209 for seven, Malcolm had rapidly put them right back in the match. In a fiery opening spell he had Desmond Haynes caught at slip by Graham Thorpe. Fellow opener Phil Simmons fell to a su- perb late away swinger from Andrew Caddick. West Indies were 12 for two and England had already recouped much of the ground lost in the previous afternoon`s batting collapse. They looked even better when Malcolm struck again, lulling cap- tain Richie Richardson into an injudicious hook which went straight into the hands of Matthew Maynard at deep square. But that was when Arthurton and Lara turned the match on its head. Lara reached his 50 off 81 balls, in the process hitting six fours. Despite his more cautious start, Arthurton reached the mark more quickly, in only 70 deliveries which included eight boundaries. In a match expected to be dominated by quick bowlers, Lara`s downfall was England`s occasional off-spinner Graeme Hick who bowled him round his legs. Arthurton was undaunted and continued to attack, reaching his century off 162 balls and hitting 10 fours and two sixes -- both off Hick. Together with Jimmy Adams, who hit an unbeaten 21, he added a further 71 for the fifth wicket by the close. Fast bowler Kenny Benjamin, playing in only his third test and archi- tect of England`s collapse on the opening day, had earlier com- pleted a career best six for 66 by taking two of the last three of the visitors` wickets to fall. Thanks Reuter Contributed by Chico (ckhan@bbn.com) ====> Day 3, 21 Feb 94 England were left with virtually no escape route in the first test on Monday as West Indies demolished their top order batting to end the third day within sight of a crushing victory. Forced to endure a torrid final session after conceding a first innings lead of 173, England had limped to 80 for four by the close, still needing 93 runs to avoid an innings defeat. Michael Atherton, Robin Smith and Matthew Maynard all fell victim to short-pitched deliveries, but the collapse started when Alec Stewart was run out for 19 attempting a third run to long-off. Courtney Walsh then removed Atherton (28) and Smith (2) with nas- ty deliveries, and Winston Benjamin claimed Maynard for a duck with another lifter which the batsman edged to wicketkeeper Junior Murray. With left-hander Graham Thorpe forced to visit hospital for precautionary X-rays on his right hand, England were grateful that Graeme Hick and Jack Russell were able to hang on at the crease until stumps. But after Tuesday's rest day, there are still two more days to survive if they are to prevent West Indies taking a 1-0 lead in the five-test series. Any fond hopes England may have nursed that the West Indian pace attack might turn out less destructive than some of their prede- cessors were swept away in the post-tea session. Walsh, in par- ticular, bowled a devastating 14-over spell which ranked in pace with anything seen in the match so far, but it was Stewart's dismissal which proved most damaging for England. The opener had looked in no trouble until he drove Walsh towards the long off boundary. He ran two but then failed to beat Kenneth Benjamin's athletic 70-metre throw which scored a direct hit at the bowler's end. England manager Keith Fletcher admitted the incident had been crucial to the day's events. "It was a flat pitch and until Alec got out it didn't look as though the West Indies were that keen," said Fletcher. "But after that they steamed in. It was one of those things, but it was silly....especially in the posi- tion we're in." Smith added to his first innings failure by ducking into a ball from Walsh which failed to rise as much as he expected. It thun- dered into his gloves and looped gently up to Jimmy Adams at short leg. No-one stood up to the pace barrage better than Ath- erton, but after being hit on the helmet and body, his resistance cracked after Walsh switched to bowling around the wicket. He was unable to dodge another wicked bouncer and Adams again held an easy catch to end the England captain's lengthy stay. Maynard's quick departure left England reeling on 63 for four, with only the slight consolation that Thorpe's X-rays had re- vealed only bad bruising and should not prevent him batting when the match resumes on Wednesday. Hick again revealed an improved technique against fast bowling to be 24 not out at the close, but is certain to come under renewed attack on the fourth morning. "If he can play that he can play anything," said Fletcher. "There's still hope but obviously the West Indies are in a superb position. We are going to need a big 100 from Graeme after the rest day." The action in the last session completely overshadowed the ear- lier efforts of Adams who fell agonisingly short of his first test century as West Indies reached 407 all out from their over- night 238 for four. Adams hit an undefeated 95, including 10 fours, from 225 balls, but his fellow Jamaican Walsh was unable to hold out long enough to enable his versatile team-mate to reach three figures. England in fact took the last four West Indian wickets for just 18 runs in a belated attempt to fight their way back into the match. They also managed to remove century-maker Keith Arthurton who added only 13 to his overnight 113 before he was brilliantly caught by Chris Lewis off Devon Malcolm. But Adams received good support from Junior Murray and Winston Benjamin and England's fortunes dipped further the longer the day went on. Malcolm and Andrew Caddick were their most successful bowlers, capturing three wickets apiece. Contributed by chico (ckhan@bbn.com) ====> Day 4, 23 Feb 94 West Indies were within eight runs of winning the first test on Wednesday despite Graeme Hick leading a valiant but forlorn rear- guard fight by England. Needing 95 to win, West Indies were 87 for 2 at the close and only rain throughout Thursday's final day can prevent England going 1-0 down in the five-match series. Desmond Haynes, with an unbeaten 40, led West Indies attempt to finish the match before the close but Alan Igglesdon and Andrew Caddick each took a wicket to peg them back, frustratingly just short of the victory target. Igglesdon trapped Phil Simmons lbw for 12 and Caddick bowled Brian Lara for 28 with the final ball of the day. The earlier part of the day was dominated by Hick, playing easily his best innings against the West Indies pace attack. Hick bat- ted for 310 minutes, hitting 12 boundaries, before falling for 96, caught at second slip after attempting to a ball from Kenny Benjamin. Resuming with England on 80 for four and his own score 24, Hick looked untroubled by the West Indies pace attack as he and wicketkeeper Jack Russell scored at almost a run-a-minute for the first 50 minute of play. But then Russell seemed caught in two minds against a short pitched delivery from Winston Benjamin and succeeded only in spooning the ball to Jimmy Adams at back- ward square leg. Adams later took a catch to dismiss Igglesdon to equal the record of Gary Sobers of six catches in a test against England. New batsman Graham Thorpe played more confidently than in the first innings but then again fell into his bad habit of playing across the line and was bowled by Benjamin to give the paceman his third wicket of the innings. Chris Lewis, fighting for his place in the test side, was England's last realistic chance of holding up West Indies' victory charge and he and Hick put on 58 for the seventh wicket. But then Curtly Ambrose trapped Lewis leg before for 21 and with Igglesdon and Hick falling soon after- wards the result looked inveitable. Caddick and Devon Malcolm shared a brave last wicket partnership of 39 to frustrate the West Indies bowlers and Malcolm equalled his previous test best of 18 despite being hit several times by short deliveries from Courtney Walsh who was booed by sections of the crowd. Walsh finally ended England's defiance by bowling Malcolm with a yorker on his leg stump and Caddick was left un- beaten on 29 after once again displaying a superb test tempera- ment. Walsh, who began England's downfall the previous night with the wickets of Robin Smith and captain Mike Atherton, ended with three for 67 while Winston Benjamin had three for 56. Contributed by Chico (ckhan@*.com) ====> Day 5, 24 Feb 94 West Indies completed the formality of knocking off the remaining eight runs without loss of a wicket to secure an eight wicket victory. Contributed by The Management (help@cricinfo.com) ====> Day 5, more 24 Feb 94 West Indies quietly nudged their way in singles and two's to score the required eight runs needed to beat England by eight wickets on Thursday in the opening test of the five-match series. Only rain clouds rolling down from the hills and settling over Sabina Park for the day could have saved England. The sun shone but Desmond Haynes and captain Richie Richardson eschewed any flamboyant strokes to finish off the match even though England's bowlers were off-spinner Graeme Hick and vice- captain Alec Stewart -- bowling in a test match for the first time. They took no risks and almost six overs were bowled before they reached the required 95 needed to win, with Haynes finishing unbeaten on 43. It was a comprehensive win for West Indies, sweet revenge for England's shock nine-wicket victory in the opening test four years ago. Richardson said afterwards he was only partly satis- fied with West Indies' performance. "We bowled and fielded well but didn't bat as well as we could." He said he was not worried when England appeared to be taking control on the opening day. "We know we can come from behind in any situation. We have depth and strength." And he had a word of warning for England about Curtly Ambrose, normally the speahead of West Indies attack who took just two wickets in the match. "Curtly is a bit cold yet. There is a lot more to come," he said. England captain Mike Atherton admitted his team could not match West Indies in pace and aggression in their bowling but added: "We have other facets in our attack. If we play to our potential we are good enough to beat them. But in this match we lacked the killer instinct." West Indies face an intriguing selection problem for the second test beginning in Georgetown on March 17 with all-rounder Jimmy Adams being voted man-of-the-match. Adams played only because Carl Hooper was ruled out through back injury but then proceeded to hit an unbeaten 95, take the wicket of Graeme Hick in the first innings with his left-arm spin and take six catches in the match to equal the West Indies record of Gary Sobers. For England, the double batting failure of Robin Smith, counted their best player of fast bowling but dismissed for 0 and 2, will have hurt. But they have some consolation in the continued emer- gence of Graeme Hick. Much had been expected of the Zimbabwe- born player after his prolific scoring in county cricket while waiting to qualify for England but success was a long time com- ing. However his second innings 96 against the most feared at- tack in the world at least gives England some confidence for the remainder of the series. It capped a year of growing maturity for Hick and came almost exactly a year to the day after he hit his first test century, 178 against India in Bombay. Since then he has not failed to reach 20 in an innings and is averaging more than 60 in his 12 innings in the past year of test cricket. England face West Indies again on Saturday in the second of the five one-day internationals. They won the first encounter in Bridgetown. Contributed by Chico (ckhan@*.com)