Rain-aided West Indies slide into Super Eights

The match was abandoned with just one innings completed.

Yahoo! Cricket – Mon 24 Sep, 2012 10:54 PM IST

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My Gangnam dance that did the trick, heh.COLOMBO: Goodbye Ireland. Hopefully we shall bid adieu to Bangladesh tomorrow and let the real tournament begin. 

On a gloomy Monday, the West Indies advanced to the Super Eights when their final Group 'B' league match against Ireland was abandoned due to rain after just one completed innings.

The Caribbeans elected to  bowl and, on the back of an improved performance in the field, restricted Ireland to 129-6 in the 19 overs that the innings had been reduced to. Soon after Ireland walked off the field, the rain came down again and prevented the West Indies from undertaking their pursuit.

The split points allowed everybody's favourite team to progress on account of a superior net run rate, while Ireland, all of whose batsmen got starts but were unable to build, would have been disappointed to not have had one last tilt - however unlikely - of scuppering the West Indian chase and making the last eight cut.

The West Indies thus became the second team after England in 2010 to make the Super Eights despite not winning a single game in the league stage. In the Super Eights, the West Indies will  battle for two semifinal berths with the other teams that were placed second in their respective league groups: England, Sri Lanka and - if Pakistan does not lose to Bangladesh by a margin of more than 75 runs on Tuesday - New Zealand.

The composition of the other Super Eights group will be (provided Pak beat Bangladesh) India, Pakistan, Australia and South Africa - a tantalising tussle for two semifinal slots.

On Monday, it can be logically concluded that all the West Indians were deprived of was a decent hit before the business end of the tournament after Ireland struggled to 129-6. Except for skipper William Porterfield, who perished for his second consecutive golden duck, most of the Irishmen got starts.

Both teams had lost to Australia in the league phase, and with a place in the last eight on the line, the battle lines were firmly drawn in this first 'knock-out' fixture of the World Cup. Fidel Edwards removed Porterfield with a yorker on the first ball of the match. Ed Joyce and Paul Stirling found some confidence and Ireland had made 33 for one after five when the rain came down.

After an hour's delay, which caused a reduction in the number of overs to 19 per side, Sunil Narine came on and bowled Joyce. Stirling top-edged while attempting a pull and Chris Gayle claimed Wilson, following up the wicket promptly with a Gangnam style dance.

The O'Brien brothers added 26 as Niall pulled Andre Russell for six and Kevin punched another off Edwards. Gayle grabbed Niall with a faster one, while his brother Kevin was castled by a yorker. Ireland staggered to a total that might not have tested the West Indies anyway, especially since fast bowler Boyd Rankin was not in the eleven.

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