Sachin Tendulkar scored his 41st one-day hundred to power India to a crushing 160-run victory over West Indies in the final match on Wednesday and clinch the four-game series 3-1.
The 33-year-old batsman reached a chancy 100 with a single off the last ball of the innings, helping the home team to pile up 341-3 after being asked to bat first. The visitors were bowled out for 181 in 41.4 overs in reply, never really recovering after being reduced to five for 83. Marlon Samuels struck his second consecutive fifty (55) and added 65 for the sixth wicket with wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin (40), but the target was beyond reach for West Indies.
India's first one-day series victory since their 5-1 home triumph over England last April should boost their morale in the build-up to the World Cup starting in March. Tendulkar, who holds the records for most one-day runs and hundreds, was man-of-the-match and series after his 76-ball knock featuring 10 fours and a six.
He added 118 for the third wicket with skipper Rahul Dravid (78) after the latter raised 101 runs for the second wicket with opener Saurav Ganguly (68).
Tendulkar, reprieved twice late in his innings, added 75 for the unbroken fourth wicket with Mahendra Dhoni (40). Tendulkar, who hit a fifty in the previous match, displayed pristine form and was particularly severe on left-arm paceman Ian Bradshaw, hitting him for three boundaries in a row. The bowling lacked firepower in the absence of fast bowler Jerome Taylor, who was rested.
Tendulkar was let off on 85 and 91, skipper Brian Lara first letting a catch slip through his hands at cover before he was again dropped at mid-wicket against off-spinner Samuels.
Ganguly, recalled to the one-day side for the series after a 16-month absence, showed good touch to hit eight fours and a six from 82 balls until he was stumped against off-spinner Chris Gayle.
SCOREBOARD:
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India
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R.Uthappa c Gayle b Powell 28
S.Ganguly st Ramdin b Gayle 68
R.Dravid c Simmons b Samuels 78
S.Tendulkar not out 100
M.Dhoni not out 40
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Extras: (lb-14, w-9, nb-4) 27
Total: (for three wickets, 50 overs) 341
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Fall of wickets: 1-47 2-148 3-266
Did not bat: Yuvraj Singh, Ajit Agarkar, Anil Kumble, Irfan Pathan, Harbhajan Singh, Zaheer Khan
Bowling: Powell 8-0-68-1 (w-5, nb-1), Dwayne Smith 8-0-49-0, Emrit 9-0-65-0 (w-1, nb-2), Samuels 9-0-51-1, Gayle 8-0-34-1 (w-1), Bradshaw 8-0-60-0 (w-2, nb-1).
WEST INDIES:
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S.Chanderpaul c Harbhajan b Zaheer 14
C.Gayle b Agarkar 6
Devon Smith c Yuvraj b Pathan 24
M.Samuels c Pathan b Kumble 55
B.Lara run out 3
L.Simmons run out 4
D.Ramdin c Kumble b Harbhajan 40
Dwayne Smith lbw b Kumble 0
R.Emrit c Uthappa b Agarkar 13
I.Bradshaw not out 14
D.Powell c Raina b Yuvraj 1
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Extras: (lb-3, w-4) 7
Total: (all out, 41.4 overs) 181
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Fall of wickets: 1-10 2-32 3-65 4-72 5-83 6-148 7-153 8-155 9-180
Bowling: Agarkar 9-0-40-2 (w-2), Zaheer 6-1-21-1, Pathan 7-0-43-1 (w-2), Harbhajan 8-1-30-1, Kumble 7-1-27-2, Yuvraj 4.4-0-17-1
Result: India won by 160 runs.
Series: India win four-match series 3-1.
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