"It was a beating, they (South Africa) really got a beating
tonight," was the frank description offered by legendary former
West Indies captain Clive Lloyd of the West Indies six wicket
victory over South Africa in the semi-final of the ICC Champions
Trophy.
Defending champions West Indies steamrolled their way into the
final on Sunday against Australia with a hammering of South Africa
in the second semi final. South Africa posted a competitive 258 but
had no answer to Chris Gayle's onslaught as he finished with an
unbeaten 133 to lead the frenetic West Indies run chase.
West Indies skipper Brian Lara wants his side to keep the
positive momentum going finals of the ICC Champions Trophy against
Australia.
In a chat with the media after the six-wicket win over South
Africa in Jaipur, Lara praised the batting of Chris Gayle and said
the pre-tournament tri-nation series in Malaysia helped the West
Indies get adequate preparation. Excerpts from Lara's comments
follow:
West Indies opener Shivnarine Chanderpaul, who scored a half
century against South Africa, fielded questions after the team's
victory in the semi final of the ICC Champions Trophy. Following
are excerpts from his responses:
On what the game plan was in chasing 258:
Our plan was to have a look and see what was happening out in
the middle. We noticed the ball was just standing up nicely on the
wicket and not much was happening for the bowler so we decided that
we were going to play some shots and try to set up a good
foundation for the rest of the guys if we didn't carry through.
There are no West Indians in the International Cricket Council's
World Test Team of the Year announced today.
The side, picked by a selection panel chaired by Indian batting
legend Sunil Gavaskar, includes players for six Test teams but the
Caribbean side is noticeably blank this year. Brian Lara was a
member of last year's team.
In-form West Indies opener Chris Gayle says the regional side
has "unfinished business" to take care of in the final of ICC
Champions Trophy against Australia.
The left-hander, who has scored back-to-back centuries in the
tournament, spoke with the media after his sizzling unbeaten
hundred against South Africa in Jaipur. Following are excerpts of
his responses:
