Panesar Python bites Windies

Manchester, June 11:

England beat West Indies by 60 runs to win the third Test on Monday and clinch the series after Steve Harmison and Monty Panesar cleaned up the tail to prevent a successful record run chase.

West Indies, chasing a total of 455 runs, were all out for 394. England’s win means it leads the series 2-0 with one Test to go.

Resuming at 301-5, West Indies needed 154 more runs on the final day to beat its own Test record for a fourth-innings chase of 418, set in its three-wicket win over Australia in St John’s, Antigua, in May 2003.

But even the determined Shivnarine Chanderpaul — who scored an undefeated 116 — could not take the West Indies to its first away Test victory since 2000, when it defeated England at Birmingham.

West Indies reached lunch needing only 76 runs to win. But Harmison took two wickets in four balls to remove tailenders Jerome Taylor and Fidel Edwards in the second over after the break.

Corey Collymore only faced eight balls before he clipped Panesar off bat and pad to Bell, a decision which needed the third umpire to confirm before England was awarded the wicket to win the match.

Panesar, who is also known as Python, finished with match figures of 10-187 — his first 10 wicket haul in his 16th Test — and was named man of the match. Harmison finished with 4-95. The win meant Michael Vaughan became the most successful England captain ever. The match was his 21st win as captain — beating Peter May’s mark of 20 Test wins set 46 years ago.

Chanderpaul was unbeaten on 104 at lunch. It was his first century since scoring an unbeaten 153 against Pakistan in Barbados in May 2005. West Indies fell to its worst-ever Test defeat in the second Test at Headingley, losing by an innings and 283 runs, but Chanderpaul was injured.

Chanderpaul started on Monday on 81. West Indies added 10 runs to its overnight score before England made an early breakthrough when Denesh Ramdin (34) edged Panesar to Collingwood on the 15th ball of the morning.

Rookie Darren Sammy, whose 7-66 on Saturday dragged West Indies back into the game, reached 25 before he drove straight at Panesar, who took a return catch.

Chanderpaul had come to the crease with West Indies 88 for three just before lunch on Sunday and added 73 runs with Runako Morton for the fourth wicket, 88 with Dwayne Bravo and finished the day with Ramdin.