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Crowd gives Aussies tie

It was a volcano waiting to explode. It did-as ole mas and anarchy.

When at 5.57 p.m., the Bourda Cricket ground finally blew up, it was ugly, ugly, ugly.

Well past dusk, a distressed-looking match referee Raman Subba Row was still trying to put the pieces together along with West Indies captain Jimmy Adams, manager Clive Lloyd and their Australian counterparts.

Many moments earlier, on the last ball of the 30th and final over of the rain-affected Fifth Cable and Wireless One-day International, Australian captain Steve Waugh, with his side on 170 for seven, still requiring four runs for victory, dragged a Keith Arthurton delivery into the midwicket region and set off desperately in search of the winning runs.

But Stuart Williams's throw from wide long-on found them at least one run short when Arthurton broke the stumps with a mad mob already flooding the ground.

The batsmen were still attempting the third run when the horde reached the pitch and the invaders yanked out the stumps before Warne could make his ground at the striker's end. Those bizarre scenes ended the contest.

But the debate was just beginning.

And at the end of it all, the two sides found themselves still square with two matches to go in the series. The result, a tie.

``It's a great shame when we get situations like that,'' declared Subba Row when the decision was announced.

``I think when you get chaos like that, you've got to make sure that common sense prevails. And I personally think that a tie was the right answer. They (the captains) knew what a circus it was. And I don't think anybody wants to win a game like that,'' he added.

It was a decision, said the match referee, that both captains agreed with and shook hands over. But there was bound to be hard feelings on both sides last night.

For the chaotic events, chillingly reminiscent of the ODI clash in 1993 when the West Indies/Pakistan game also ended in turmoil, sullied a thrilling game.

The black eye that West Indies cricket is again carrying this morning, because of rank indiscipline and administrative ineptitude, is in no way due to its players.

It was a poor reflection on an energetic contest, made more action-packed by the extra-limited nature of the contest.

Jimmy Adams, in an unforgettable first match as captain, must have been a bemused and depressed man last night. So too must have been Keith Arthurton, bowling a heroic final over and successfully defending a mere seven runs.

The valiant Waugh, who played another magnificent captain's knock of 65 not out off71 balls, would also have been drained.

With his deputy Shane Warne, he had seemed to engineer a come-from-behind win, using their experience to scramble 51 precious runs by the time of the last over.

Almost forgotten in the mayhem of that final over was the excellent effort of Mervyn Dillon whose two wickets in two balls (Mark Waugh and Ricky Ponting) put the early skids under the Aussies and Phil Simmons, whose vital, quickfire late-order 12 and two wickets in three balls-Michael Bevan and Shane Lee-both cleverly bowled, tipped the scales the Windies' way.

But the men on the field yesterday had not catered for the real players-Bourda's overzealous audience. The danger signs were there for discerning eyes all day, long before the first invasion came with one over to go.

The natives were on the loose at overpacked Bourda from very early. Scores of them were ensconced on the roof of the GIBT stand, the police officers present not having the courage to move them.

Then there were those spilling over the fence, lurking near the northeastern boundary. And not even three police horses could keep them quiet.

The dark end, however, still could not have been conceived after the bright beginning when Waugh again won the toss and this time sent the home team in.

Warne and Lee, stocky, fair-haired twins to the eye, proved to be double trouble for the West Indies batsmen. With Sherwin Campbell (41 off 41 balls) and new partner Ridley Jacobs (33) getting their side off to a rollicking start, racing to 83 by the 15th over, Lee took the noise out of Bourda with the wickets of both batsmen in the same over.

Quite special was his dismissal of Campbell, the bowler diving full-stretch across the pitch, to clutch a low drive one-handed to his right.

That effort ended another impressive effort by the opener, whose ability to find the gaps in the field was again a feature of his innings.

Left-hander Jacobs too, in his second innings as an opener was again a success. Even though he and Campbell again tempted fate with their running between the wickets, he played his part with some confident strokeplay which included a sweet lofted extra-cover drive off Tom Moody.

But two balls after Campbell left, he was deceived by a clever slower ball that he popped to captain Steve Waugh at short mid-wicket.

At 83 for two, the home side suddenly found themselves having to put consolidation ahead of acceleration.

But before skipper Adams and Carl Hooper could repair the damage, Warne produced another double whammy.

With the total on 100 in the 18th over, Hooper, trying to get down to Warne was stumped, missing a sharp, well-pitched leg-spinner. One run later, Adams was even more confused when his forward defensive prod was beaten by one that hit leg-stump.

The chances of the home team getting up to 200 were considerably reduced. But Williams (30 off 30 balls) and Shivnarine Chanderpaul (27) steadied things with their stand of 52.

The effort would have particularly pleased Williams.

Struggling for form and confidence with 29 runs in his previous four innings, Williams showed some neat footwork and placed the ball in hitting two fours and one glorious six to midwicket.

That effort delighted the crowd. And when Chanderpaul departed, lofting Lee to long-off in the 29th over, big Phil Simmons answered calls of ``we want a six'' with two big ones, driven over extra-cover and another pulled over midwicket, in five balls.

``Simmo'' would do even greater deeds later before he was forced to limp off after four overs. His untimely disappearance left Adams in a quandary as to how to finish off the innings. He turned to his left-arm colleague Arthurton. And ``Keithos'' did not let his skipper down.

First ball: Waugh gets two to long-on.

Second ball: Arthurton stops a straight drive.

Third ball: Ditto.

Fourth ball: Another wild swing gets Waugh nowhere.

Fifth ball: Arthurton, Walsh and Adams are in earnest debate. So too are Warne and Waugh, the police are streaming round the boundary.

Then Waugh fires the fatal shot and runs the fateful runs.

Then it was ole mas time again.