HARARE
Sachin Tendulkar ended his century drought on Zimbabwe soil as India madeperfect preparation for the final registering a comprehensive six-wicket victoryover West Indies in the last league match of the triangular one-day series heretoday.
Tendulkar led the team to its fourth successive win in the tournament with amasterly unbeaten 122 as India reached the target with 11 balls to spare afterWest Indies scored 229 for five in their alloted 50 overs.
India have hardly been challenged in this series and it was another fineperformance as they successfully chased the target for the fourth time in a rowafter captain Saurav Ganguly's continued success with the coin.
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Ganguly's march back to form continued and he looked solid, more like hisusual self, in his 62-run knock that raised his 13th century partnership withTendulkar.
There was hardly any resistance from the West Indies and India were relaxedin their chase, always confident of victory. Even the four wickets to fall weremore by the batsmen's mistakes - in one case, the umpire's - rather than by somegood bowling by the West Indians.
India were off to a flying start, characteristic of the Tendulkar-Gangulypair, with both openers looking in terrific touch. Tendulkar started the flurryof boundaries hitting four to the ropes off successive balls from Reon King.
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Ganguly took charge after that and he unleashed a series of fluent strokes onhis favourite off-side picking up five fours in the process. Ganguly who issteadily regaining his elegant touch after the 85 he scored in the second matchagainst Zimbabwe, batted with a lot of confidence and almost outscored Tendulkarat this stage.
Tendulkar, who was tested with a few short deliveries by Mervyn Dillon,pulled the bowler over the mid-wicket for a six in the eighth over.
India's fifty was up in just 46 balls and they were 64 without loss in thefirst nine overs. Thereafter, a sudden lull saw the addition of just two runs inthe next five overs, four of which were maiden.
Ganguly, who was in a brilliant touch, withdrew into a shell as Dillon, themost economical of West Indian bowlers, tested him outside the off-stump. TheIndian captain failed to score in three successive overs by Dillon and Tendulkartoo got into a jam on the other end where he faced spinner Neil McGarrel.
Ganguly finally broke the shackles in the 15th over when he pulled McGarrelfor a four over the mid-on. The Indian duo kept the scoreboard ticking withsingles and twos and suspended their heroics for some time.
PTI
