CRICKET: ON AND on went Ramnaresh Sarwan at Kensington Oval yesterday. On, under the Caribbean sun, and then for good measure, on some more, until 10 minutes before tea when he finally succumbed. He had been irresistible throughout Saturday. Now his innings was more industrious in its single-mindeness than scintillating.
Until the third new ball offered something with more solidity to hit there were few rapacious strokes. But he grafted away in the cause of holding the bridgehead acquired by his team so spectacularly in Jamaica and in his personal crusade to eclipse his highest achievement of 261.
It brought to mind Pickwick Papers and Mr Jingle’s description of batting in the West Indies – bat in blisters, ball scorched brown.
As the afternoon wore on, Sarwan’s sights began to focus on a triple century, on a decent lead and a chance, however unlikely, of embarrassing England.
It was not to be, not the triple at least. Out of the blue his airy drive at Ryan Sidebottom caught the faintest inside edge and out tumbled the off-stump. The relief as he made his way to the pavilion, drowning in the applause that washed down, was palpable.
Over the course of more than 11 hours there had appeared to be no way that he could get out.
Viv Richards had been in that mood at The Oval in 1976 when, for no apparent reason and with Garry Sobers’ 365 world record seemingly a formality, he got out for 291.
Sarwan’s 291 contained 30 fours and two sixes, all but five of these through the offside, a reflection on his predilection for that direction and of the line of attack adopted by England throughout.
This has been a game for statisticians rather than spectators. By the time Sarwan was dismissed, his sixth-wicket partnership with Denesh Ramdin was worth 261, only 20 short of the national record, the game was averaging 100 runs per wicket and the bowlers barely a single success per session.
As the runs piled up, there came the realisation not just that there would be no lead for England, no time to hammer out a second innings and set West Indies a challenging final few sessions of survival, but that the draw was no longer nailed on.
l Guardian Service
