Tri-Series 2016: Memorable moments of the series

Matthew Wade’s fighting half-century, Mitchell Marsh’s stupendous all-round performance, and Josh Hazlewood’s five-for mopped West Indies and helped Australia secure the final of the Tri-nation series at the Kensington Oval, Barbados.

Australia, like the other two teams in the tri-series, battled to find consistency with a win often followed by a loss. But, they showed some big match temperament. Be it their final league game or last night’s fixture.

After electing to bat first Australia suddenly found themselves at 156/5 before Wade came to the rescue with a well-compiled half-century. The wicketkeeper batsman is currently fighting to seal his spot in the team. He hardly got any chance to bat on the tour. Before his match-defining knock, the left-hander had come out to bat only three times and only once before the 40th over. But, when the big opportunity arrived, he grabbed it gleefully and helped his team post a challenging 270/9 after 50 overs.

West Indies, later on, were rocked by Marsh’s wonderful first spell where he picked up 3 wickets for just 6 runs. His scalps were Darren Bravo, Marlon Samuels and Johnson Charles. Hazlewood then sent the rest of the team packing with his five-wicket haul as Australia won the game by a handsome margin of 58 runs and lifted the trophy.

Also check out – Tri-Series 2016: Best XI of the series

The series was defined by many memorable moments. There were spectacular individual performances and various twist and turns. Here are some memorable moments of the series.

The tri-series kickstarted with the hosts West Indies taking on the South Africa. The game was a low scoring affair where the host dominated riding on the back of Sunil Narine’s bowling exploits. The mystery man picked a 6-wicket haul to help his team start the series on a high with a 4-wicket win.

The sweetness of a winning start did not last for the West Indies as Australia treated them in the same way like treated South Africa.

The spinning duo of Nathan Lyon and Adam Zampa were the stars for the Australians as they began their Carribean tour with a comprehensive win. The leg spin – off spin pair proved the decision to bowl first completely right as both snarled 3 wickets each to dismantle the opposition and bundle them out for just 116.

Stats and records – Tri-series 2016, Final: West Indies v Australia – Statistical Highlights

South Africa, after losing their first game badly, came back comprehensively to snatch a low-scoring thriller against Australia and open their account in the series. Farhaan Behardien starred in the win with his fighting half-century.

The series moved to St. Kitts from Guyana. Australia became the first team in the series to register two wins and moved up to the top of the table with a clinical win over the same opposition. It was a sort of revenge for the Kangaroos. Powered by David Warner’s wonderful century the Aussies posted a stiff target of 289 for the South Africans to chase. In reply, the South Africans failed to keep up with the early momentum. Josh Hazlewood and Adam Zampa produced brilliant spells as Australia clawed back into the game and went one to win it by 36 runs.

The Australian preparation suffered a huge blow after David Warner was forced to fly back home due to a broken finger. He picked up the injury while fielding in the 4th ODI.

Australia’s failed to continue their rhythm as West Indies managed to register an impressive six-wicket win in the 5th ODI. Marlon Samuel once stood up when his team required him the most and became the villain for the Australians. The ‘casual’ batsman struck a wonderful 92 off 87 balls to star in the win.

The 6th ODI was completely dominated by South Africa. It was a day of celebratory runs as leg-spinner Imran Tahir shattered several bowling records with his masterful bowling spell of 7/45.

After a loss at the hands of West Indies, Australia were in a sort of must-win situation going into the 7th ODI. The South Africans looked in tremendous form. The game was anticipated to be a mouthwatering one. But, unfortunately, it was the rain gods who prevailed as the game was washed out with only an over’s game possible.

The washed out game left Australi in a do-or-die situation. A win was a must for them to secure a place in the final. Whereas, a loss would have thrown them out of the tournament. Their task was made tough yet again after Marlon Samuels who hammered the Aussies to strike a wonderful century. Denesh Ramdin also slammed a run a ball 92 runs knock. But, Australians were guided in the chase with the help of collective performances from skipper Steven Smith, Glenn Maxwell and Mitchell Marsh.

The ‘Chokers’ tag was once again thrown around after South Africa once again failed to overcome the knockout challenge. West Indies, powered by a Darren Bravo’s century, registered an overwhelming 100-run win to dump the Proteas out of the tournament and ensure a date with Australia in the final.

The final was a sort of one-sided affair. Australia inflicted an easy 58-run defeat on the hosts to clinch yet another multi-nation ODI tournament. Matthew Wade’s fighting 57 off 52 deliveries lifted Australia to a competitive 270/9 after been reduced to 163/6 at one stage. Mitchell Marsh (3 for 32) then ran through the Windies top-order and there was no magical recovery after that as Josh Hazlewood picked up 5 for 50 to help the World Champions to a comprehensive win.

Steven Smith was once again in a rich vein of form and ended the series as the highest run-getter of the series. The skipper was the spine of the Australian middle order and played match-saving knocks on multiple occasions. The start of the series was poor for him as he could muster scores of only 6 & 8 in the first couple of games. But, he followed it up with three back to back half-centuries and a vital 46 in the final to finish with 264 runs in 7 matches at an average of 52.80.

Imran Tahir ended the series as the highest wicket-taker with 13 scalps in just 6 games at 16.15 while maintaining a miserly economy of 4.56. His most memorable performance of the series was the 7/45 against West Indies at Basseterre.