Greenidge dominates

Press, 28 December 1987, Page 13

Greenidge dominates

NZPA-Reuter Calcutta Gordon Greenidge scored an unbeaten 133 to lead a West Indies assault against India’s bowlers on the first day of the third cricket test on Saturday. Greenidge’s performance drew praise from the Indian skipper, Dilip Vengsarkar, but Vengsarkar said the wicket was to the advantage of the West Indies batsmen. “It is too slow for our spinners to do anything,” he told reporters. The tourists overcame the early loss of the opener, Desmond Haynes, for only five runs, and went on to reach 263 for

two at the close of play in a superb start to their bid to clinch the four-match series, which they lead 1-0. Haynes went with the score on 13, caught by Krishnamachari Srikkanth off Kapil Dev, whose sustained outswingers provided the only element of hostility in the Indian attack. But after Haynes went, Greenidge, aged 36, drew, on his vast experience and executed some superb strokes off his front foot He and Richie Richardson, who made 51 before being caught by Moham-

mad Azharuddin off Ravi Shastri, added 147 runs for the second wicket, the first time in Calcutta test history that a second wicket pair had scored 100 or more runs. WEST INDIES First innings G. Greenidge not out. . . . 133 D. Haynes c Skrikkanth b Kapil Dev 5 R. Richardson c Azharuddin b Shastri 51 V. Richards not out 55 Extras (b2 Ibll nb6).... 19 Total (for 2 wkts) 263 (Fall: 13, 160. ( Bowling.—Kapil Dev 16, 4, .35, 1; C. Sharma 7.1, 0, 38, 0; Maninder Singh 20, 4, 61, 0; Shastri 15, 4, 32, 1; Ayub 22, 3, 81, 0; M. Amarnath 1.5, 0,3, 0.