WI Survive Klusener's Onslaught

A Brian Lara-inspired West Indies survived a scare fromLance Klusener to score a 3-run victory over highly fancied South Africa in agripping Pool B opening match as the World Cup got off to a sensational start atCape Town today.

Vasbert Drakes got rid of a rampaging Klusener in thelast over of the innings after the South African all-rounder had brought histeam to within seven runs of the West Indian score of 278 for five with anamazing display of power-hitting.

Klusener hammered five sixes and a four in his 48-ball57 but South Africa, docked one over for slow bowling rate, were stopped at 275for nine.

Earlier, Lara had played an equally crucial knock to guide his side to a bigtotal. Lara, returning to competitive cricket after a four-month injury lay-off,produced a masterly century to rescue his side from a precarious 7 for two afterhis captain Carl Hooper had elected to bat first on the Newlands wicket.

Lara, who made 116 from 134 balls with 12 fours and twosixes, paced his innings to perfection in a spectacular knock that marked his16th one-day hundred, second in the World Cup.

He added 102 runs for the third wicket with ShivnarineChanderpaul and 96 for the fourth wicket with Hooper as West Indies made aremarkable recovery.

Ricardo Powell and Ramnaresh Sarwan gave the finishingtouches with awesome hitting in the slog overs as West Indies, who had scoredjust 30 runs from their first 15 overs, amassed 110 in the final ten.

West Indies got off to a painfully slow start with the first three oversproducing no runs. Then Shaun Pollock sent back both openers -- Chris Gayle (2)and Wavell Hinds (0) -- to worsen their situation.

However, Lara and Chanderpaul, who scored 34 runs, cameup with exactly what was required. They weathered the storm before launching thecounter-attack around the 30-over mark.

South African old warhorse Allan Donald proved to bethe weak link in the home bowling line-up as both Chanderpaul and Lara unsettledhim with attacking strokes. Chanderpaul hit the bowler for a boundary each inhis first three overs before Lara lofted him for a straight six.

The lone spinner Nicky Boje also came in for punishmentwith Lara hitting him for two boundaries in his first over. Lara reached hishalf-century off 78 balls with five fours and a six and then broke loose. Hetook 12 runs from Boje's third over as West Indies crossed the 100-run mark inthe 30th over.

Chanderpaul was dismissed by Klusener in the 31st overbut Lara got another good partner in Hooper who got into the groove right fromthe start and rotated strike well.

Lara, in the meanwhile, confidently marched towards hiscentury. He hit Klusener for 15 runs in an over to get into the nineties beforecompleting his hundred with a single against Jacques Kallis in the 42nd over.

After both Hooper and Lara were out in quick succession- the captain making run-a-ball 40 -- Powell and Sarwan took the bowlers bycomplete surprise with their belligerent knocks. Powell hammered unbeaten 40runs from just 18 balls with five fours and a six while Sarwan remained not outon 32 from only 15 balls with two fours and two sixes.South Africa made a spirited reply but regular loss of wickets proved to betheir undoing. Gary Kirsten, top-scorer with 69, Mark Boucher and HerschelleGibbs got going but were dismissed at critical junctures which derailed theSouth African run-chase.

Though West Indies chose to go into the match with onlythree specialist bowlers, the part-time spin of Hooper and Gayle, both of whomreturned with two wickets, proved too good for the home batsmen.

At 160 for six in the 33rd over, the game looked overfor the hosts as all their recognised batsmen were back in the pavilion. But adetermined Klusener battled an increasing required run rate, which went over tenat one stage, with remarkable ease as he launched a massive assault on the WestIndian bowlers, specially the spinners.

Three of his five sixes came in an over from Gaylewhich considerably eased the pressure on the batsmen, bringing the run-ballequation within striking distance. He lost his partner Boucher with the total on204 but never lost sight of the target as he kept pushing his side towards thevictory line.

With just 14 runs needed from the last two overs, a winfor the hosts looked almost a formality for an expectant 25,000 people in apacked stadium but that was not to be.

While going for another six on the third ball of thelast over, Klusener was caught by Hooper at the long-on boundary which swung thegame decisively in favour of theWest Indies.

PTI