Cricket: Astle masterclass catches out Windies

If anybody needed reminding that Nathan Astle is still a force, then he spelled it out, bowled tight and put an exclamation mark at the end last night.

His disciplined century was the glue that enabled an otherwise disappointing New Zealand batting effort to piece together 276-6. But the piece of action that will hog the highlights reel for the next few months will be the stunning one-handed catch at deep midwicket that cut short the dangerous Dwayne Smith's innings.

Waiting for what seemed an eternity, Astle had no further to retreat on Jade Stadium's narrow confines.

With impeccable timing he leapt to his fullest height, plucked the ball from the air just as the scorers were pencilling 6 in Smith's column, and capped it off with a tightrope-like balancing act to prevent falling over the rope.

It sounded the death-knell for the West Indies who are 0-3 and out of the series. An intoxicating 77-run ninth wicket partnership between Ramnaresh Sarwan and Ian Bradshaw added intrigue but it was ultimately futile as the West Indies fell 21 runs short.

In truth, 276 should have been chaseable on a Jade Stadium that has haemorrhaged runs of late. But, every time the West Indies looked likely, one of their players would take out a Smith & Wesson and aim it squarely at their feet - or Astle would intervene.

Chris Gayle, Runako Morton and Denesh Ramdin all had New Zealand on the hop but gave their wickets away to terrible shots. What the Windies needed was somebody like Astle to bat through.

Faced with a tenuous hold on his position in the team and, apparently, ambivalence about continuing his career, the Canterbury right-hander found the motivation to enter one of the most prolific periods of his career.

He has accumulated 349 runs at 87.25 since being told he wasn't wanted. Yesterday's century, his 16th, also meant that he had passed three figures four more times than the rest of his team-mates combined.

One-day centuries against the West Indies have not been New Zealand's specialty. Before this, the 43rd meeting between the two sides, only Stephen Fleming with 106 not out at Port-of-Spain in 1996 had passed three figures.

Astle celebrated bringing up his ton by hitting Chris Gayle over the onside for three consecutive sixes. It was heady stuff and a reminder of the days when crowds used to expect this sort of thing from Astle on a regular basis.

But it would be wrong to think this was Astle all-guns-blazing. He had to bide his time as New Zealand recovered from a skittish start.

Lou Vincent rode his luck early, pushing with hard hands at Ian Bradshaw and offering a simple catch to Gayle at first slip. Rudi Koertzen had his arm outstretched, however - the no-ball taking New Zealand from a potential 9-1 to 10-0.

Fleming, too, was streaky, slashing aerially just past Dwayne Smith at backward point.

Vincent took his stroke of luck to mean he had free rein, hitting three sixes before slapping a length ball straight to mid-off. It was ephemeral brilliance but lacking in substance.

Fleming, on the other hand, struggled throughout his 39-ball stay at the crease. In his 251st and record-breaking ODI for his country, the New Zealand skipper looked as if he had taken it upon himself to right the wrongs of Queenstown where the top order collapsed to 13-4.

With the hard work done, however, Fleming swiped across the line at Bradshaw and had time to discuss with batting partner Nathan Astle the powder-keg situation in Iraq while Runako Morton and Shivnarine Chanderpaul debated who should catch the ball. Morton edged the debate in a close decision.

Fleming barely had time to unstrap his pads before Scott Styris, who played away from his body much like he did in Queenstown and handed Bradshaw his third wicket, joined him.

When Peter Fulton guided the ball into Gayle's hand with the total at 87, New Zealand were in serious trouble. They were also confronted with the fact that their first four wickets had fallen at Queenstown and Christchurch for a combined 100 runs - that's less than 13 runs per wicket.

The West Indies, though, just like Queenstown, were unable to pin down the advantage.

Hamish Marshall joined Astle in a 99-run partnership in which the most memorable aspect was the Windies' lamentable fielding, particularly inside the circle, that allowed Marshall to cruise serenely to 43.

That set the table for Astle, Brendon McCullum, briefly, and James Franklin to attack at the end.

Shane Bond bowled Daren Ganga in the first over with a lethal yorker but Gayle and Morton, then Morton and Ramdin, appeared set to guide the Windies to victory with some outrageous strokeplay.

None of them knew when to put the cork in the bottle, however, continually trying for the champagne shots when they were in a position to work singles.

Franklin and Michael Mason were being put to the sword but the ever-reliable Vettori came on to quell matters from one end.

Supersub Jeetan Patel benefited from Vettori's skill as the Windies tried too hard to take advantage of his off-spinners.

Good sense was what the West Indies needed.

Non sense is what they achieved.

-HERALD ON SUNDAY