Adelaide: Jimmy Adams has complained all season about the inconsistency of his West Indies team. Never were the captain's concerns more obvious than in the contrasting results in the last two matches against Zimbabwe in the triangular Carlton Series.
In the space of three days, the West Indies turned their dreadful performance in defeat in Sydney on Tuesday into an efficient victory by 77 runs here last night.
Batting that was reduced to 31 for eight at one stage in Sydney and eventually managed a mere 91, now compiled 235 for six from 47 overs when rain prevented them making use of their final three overs.
They then bowled effectively and caught flawlessly to dismiss Zimbabwe for 175 in 40.2 overs to complete their second win from six matches with two to play in the preliminary round. They were scheduled to play unbeaten Australia here last night.
Zimbabwe were well short of their peculiar target that set them 18 more than the West indies had got but off the same 47 overs. It was calculated under the complicated Duckworth/Lewis system that is the International Cricket Council-approved method for determining rain-shortened matches.
Zimbabwe were kept on one win but have four more matches leading up to the best-of-three finals early next month that bring together the two top teams from the prelims.
The West Indies recovered from their familiar unsteady start through a third-wicket partnership of 133 in 29 overs between Marlon Samuels (68) and Brian Lara (70).
They were helped by critical missed catches by the usually impeccable Zimbabweans who dropped Lara twice and Samuels once.
Big hitting by Ricardo Powell (33 off 26 balls with two sixes and two fours) and the left-handed Mahendra Nagamootoo (22 off 13 balls with a six and two fours) gave a final flourish before the weather intervened.
When the Zimbabweans started their chase after the rain break, Nixon McLean and Cameron Cuffy snuffed out a promising start with the first three wickets for nine runs in 3.1 overs.
A fourth-wicket stand of 90 in 20.4 overs between the Flower brothers, the left-handed Andy and the right-handed Grant, put their team back into contention. But Nagamootoo's brilliant, left-handed return that got rid of Flower for 50 proved decisive.
Grant was caught in the deep off Samuels' off-spin 16 balls later for 41 and the innings was polished off by Nagamootoo, aided by a sensational catch by Adams from a high, swirling shot from Dirk Viljoen, and a couple of slick run-outs involving Sherwin Campbell at mid-wicket.
Nagamootoo's four for 32 from 7.2 overs were his best figures in One-Day Internationals.
He would have been in contention for the Man Of The Match award but that went to 19-year-old Samuels for his all-round performance.
Batting one down for the first time, he and Lara had to rebuild the innings after Campbell edged to his namesake at slip off Zimbabwean captain Heath Streak in the fifth over and Daren Ganga was run out in his first match in the series.
Lara started scratchily and offered unaccepted chances at ten to Gavin Rennie at midwicket and at 22 to Alister Campbell at slip. He was never at his best but gathered his runs without bother until he swatted a full toss from Streak to long-on.
Samuels, the find of the tour, again confirmed his class and temperament.
Dropped in the deep with the stroke that raised his 50, he was eventually caught at the wicket, cutting at Dirk Viljoen's left-arm spin.