Roseau, Dominica – Close to 10,000 fans packed into Windsor Park to cheer on the West Indies on Sunday as they earned a draw in the Third and final Digicel Test match. It brought a rousing end to the three-match Digicel Test Series.
The colourful and vocal crowd celebrated every good performance by the Windies as the batsmen fought hard to keep India at bay and then the bowlers ensured that the visitors did not chase down the victory target. The match ended in a draw and India won the Digicel Test Series 1-0 following their 63-run win in the opening match in Jamaica.
The hero for the West Indies was veteran Shiv Chanderpaul, who played a typically characteristic back-to-wall innings.
The 36-year-old, playing in his record 133rd Test match, made a brilliant 116 not out as the Windies batted for most of the day.
Chanderpaul batted for over eight hours and faced a whopping 343 balls in making his 23rd Test century. He added a crucial 65 for the ninth wicket with Fidel Edwards, who made a career-best 30 off 106 balls.
After the match West Indies captain Darren Sammy was full of praise for Chanderpaul and also thanked the people of Dominica for their overwhelming support of the team.
“What we saw today was a tremendous innings from Shiv which earned us a draw. We all know what he is capable of and even though he did not get a lot of runs earlier in the season the belief was always there. Today he played in the way we know he can, the way he has played for the West Indies for 17 years and we got a draw which we deserve.
“The good batting comeback started yesterday [Saturday] with Kirk Edwards getting a brilliant maiden century on debut and today Fidel faced over 100 balls and batted really well with Shiv. The guys really stuck at it and showed some character to get a draw here and deny India a victory,” Sammy said.
“This is the kind of effort the coach has been calling for throughout, the kind of fight that is coming through. It was a good series overall. We fought throughout each match and showed signs of improvement. We did not lie down. The way we bowled in all the matches was very good and in this match we saw the batsmen really standing up.”
Sammy was full of praise for the fans who gave the Windies a standing ovation after the match.
“The crowd was amazing. The amount of support we got was tremendous. The fans backed us throughout the match. They were cheering every run and that really gave us a massive lift. It just goes to show that once we show that fight that the fans will supp
oh boy words are not enough to express my feelings toward WI CRICKET and the MEMBERS of the TEAM. CONGRATS TO ALL THE GUYS.I DO HOPE AND PRAY THAT THE HEAVENLY FATHER WILL ALLOW US TO SEE MANY MORE GAMES IN THE STADIUM.
the same people who claimed that the STADIUM was a WHITE ELEPHANT and Test cricket would never come to Dominica are the same ones claiming that We are in a creeping Dictatoship, No Justice, Rigged elections,now that they have been proven wrong will they accept their errors oh no that Cabal of naysayers can find nothing good to say ,except to wish doom and gloom for the people and country.They were wrong and continue to be wrong on all counts
Claudius ,
have you ever seen the IVA ( international venue agreement) that the local boards signed with the WICB. The standard agreement calls for 3% of gross revenue going to the local board for hosting a test match . In antigua case history has shown that this is insufficient to cover the cost of hosting the game depending on which team we playing against. Therefore, the antigua cricket board have tried to renogotiate with westindies cricket board for the 3% or a fixed sum (eg $10000 for a one day match ) which ever is greater.
Check your local cricket board for more info.
Now mr. Cladius ,
If you devide the cost of the stadium by its useful life, then add to that the annual mentainance cost.
you then compare your answer with the revnue( from various events held at the grounds) net of administration cost .
If the cost is higher than the net Revenue then would agree/ disagree that the stadium and including those in the other islands are white elephants ATLEAST FOR THE TIME BEING .
Note- if you find out the # of visitors came in to dominica because of the game then u can estimate total visitor expenditure and add to the revenue side.
I waiting on your response.
i know i going to get licks for this one but i am just hoping to raise a discuss/debate.
I am wondering if the price had not change would the crowd been the same. Also if we love cricket so much why the turn out was so poor the first three days and to some extent the fourth day.
Take it easy on me eh. i just wondering because some bloggers is looking at the size of the crowd on sunday to say we are deserving ( note i am not saying that we don’t deserve )of a next test match , as i would want to think the net revenue is more important to the WICB who we know are financially challenge. Just thinking.
Also , why haven’t we seen sizeable support for thr regional and domestic tournaments if we love cricket so much. Food for thought.
Good test Match Dominica and i do hope there are many more to follow.
if the price didn’t change… we wouldn’t have seen such a crowd
its a fact… and a commendable effort…
I just hope we don’t rely on this happening everytime
Good job Dominica job well done in hosting and supporting Regional cricket!!
Next test we want a Dominican on the WI team …that will be the icing on the cake.
Hope this continues once in a while is just not good enough
What drives a a non-cricket fan to stay up throughout the night all the way in China to watch the live streaming of the historic first test match. Two reasons:
1) I wanted to see how many of my patnahs I could make out in the stands and in de sewo of the Lapo Kabwit. Everytime I saw someone that I knew, I was reduced to acting like a 5 year old paging through a catalougue or coloured magazine shouting with excitement and claiming every item “that one is mines”. Instead I was like “I know Mr. and Mr. too, and I know that lady”. “That is Andy Carter with his saterlite hat and standing next to him is Washborne Cuffy”
2) Viewing the different sites featured in the broadcast was like live link to home one that is difficult to get otherwise being so far away. The video shots of the Roseau and the Roseau River awakened sleeping childhood memories growing up in Hillborough Street, a stones throw away from the new Stadium and from the River where we spent countless hours bathing, fishing or just chilling.
So although the West Indies performed admirably under pressure, for me the cricket match was not the primary motivator. It was merely a side-dish in the five-day extravaganza that featured Dominica more than the game itself. I felt as though I was right at home in the stands. Some may argue and rightly so, that without the game itself, there would be no “atmosphere” however I was quite capable of seperating the two. I know Beno will disagree with me, but Beno is the embodiment of criket, I am not. You prick him and “runs will flow” from his veins. Thats why one of these days if he is not carefull, the West Indies team is going to give him high blood pressure and possibly a heart attack from all that pressure he puts himself under
Congratulations to India, good game West Indies. Congrats to Dominica, you played your first game well, you made a great impression and like Chanderpaul we are all proud to be your “citizens” even if we may be far from yard. Thanks for the memories
Hey Panny.. Ni hao… Greetings from the West to the East… Soon China will be playing test cricket too… Lol.. Be kool panman
I trying to set up a team but as you know, I never played “white-dressed” cricket in my life:-)) Maybe I should just stick to playing my football. The Chinese just have to reach out to their neighbours, India and Pakistan to help with their criket. Or maybe in exchange for all their assistance, we can send them some coaches. I can see my boy Yaga doing some coaching in de Forbidden City.
As my Ghanian patnah, Sylvanus used to ask “Panman what kind of game is dat? The players get snack break every hour, they get lunch, they get a tea break, they play for 5 days and after all dat, nobody wins????”.. “Dat is not a game”. Doe matter how hard I tried I could not convince him otherwise.
Then I have this white American friend, Sean who used to be a Peace Corps Volunteer, stationed in Riviere Cyrique, who became so crazy about cricket, that he used to come down to Roseau every time to see the game and now even though he is back in the US he continues to watch cricket via luve streaming. Talk about a strange world
Boy Panman where are you my boy?
I an China, Sishuan Province, Chengdu City, home of the Panda Research Base………You welcome to visit us
That is so true…i’m in another island and i dont watch cricket otherwise… maybe a 20/20… but just the fact is home …
It was a proud moment to see my country like that
For the past few days … nobody had the guts to say dominican republic… no offense
Though not at home, I was pleased with what I saw on TV of the test match, the captured sceens of the Park, the other scenes from Roseau and around the island. Initially, I was a bit nervous about what the roving cameras would show up and the attitude of the commentators. Now that it is all over, all I hear is positive which can do no harm to our country.
Surely the WICB has taken notes and will seek to reward us with future games as international cricket tours come to the West Indies. The passion, the numbers, the colour and the support surely has not gone unnoticed. I hope that now that we have been introduced to the world, the tourist and their dollars will start arriving. Surely, the test match should be seen as an inexpensive investment in our tourism.
It was also politically astute for the PM to make Chanderpaul an honourary citizen of Dominica. It can do no harm to our country.
Thanks my fellow Dominicans for passing this test, our standards have been set, so let us move forward, as a former rime minister, Patrick John use to say, “Forward ever, backwards never”.
yay,,,, when i saw sold out,,, i was expecting to hear is 20000 in attendance,,, but thanks to our leaders with limited forsight for putting a stadium of 10000 seat occupancy in the new millenium lol,,,,, more games for d.a i say
I think the stadium can go up to 12000 no need for negatives
The Stadium capacity is actually 12,500 seating and 1000’s more standing there is no need for the negativity. We make do with what we have at the moment.
B proud of what U have MOS,and just enjoy the games.
y do u always have to be such an ass??
Let us thank for small mercies. If we cannot be thankful for the little things, we won’t get more and bigger things. Lord thanks for the Stadium since we had none when I was growing up. Congrats India and good fight West Indies. WICB we need to get more matches. Last year re Bangladesh was not too bad and this first test was fantastic. I know the Officials ennjoyed Dominica. Let focus on positives and away with the negatives vibes. We thank you Lord also for Three (3) beautiful cricket days. All those things we should be thankful for. Thank you and all the praise belongs to you – Creator of the Universe.
I guess they were lacking some support. Chanderpaul Hot wii….woyyyy!
Now that we’ve heard it from the horse’s mouth, that the d/can crowd was the largest for the series, how about WICBC giving us priority for the up coming caribbean matches?
Yes of course I agree with you but we also must cheer our players even when they are not up to mark. Since the cheering will boost their moral and help them to play well. I am tired of some of our folks saying those hurtful things about our WI team. We must stand behind them through thick and thin.
Well done Windies for the great fightback throughout this test.
Also congratulations to the Dominican public for coming out in such huge numbers and being very vocal in support of the West Indies team.
Australia and New Zealand will be coming to the Caribbean in 2012 God willing to play the West Indies so i trust that Dominica will be further rewarded with matches in both series in 2012. The West Indies Cricket Board should start scheduling games only in Caribbean countries where the people are serious about showing up to support West Indies cricket (as was seen in Dominica over the 5 days of test cricket).
This will hush up the few ppl who keep saying the stadium will never get filled up today. Dominicans are proud of their stadium and their team. Let’s show them how to run this thing here
An awesome day for the people of Dominica and the Windies team. I watched the end of it in North America
Great next time come for the match. I saw a lot of Dominican here who came for the five day match.
Sorry I was not able to view it live. Nevertheless my heart and spirit were present, spurring them on.
If I were in Dominica, I would surely be at the Windsor Park Stadium. I love Cricket and to view the game.
I am happy that the Windies came out with a draw. It was a tough fight with much effort on their part. Congratulations!
Congratulations also to the Dominican fans who viewed it live and those who were present who supported the Windies. I knew you would. We have to support our own. Way to go!
God bless!
Over the past five days I have had the wonderful privelege and pleasure of watching a very competitive test match played in my beloved native land and witnessed by thousands of enthustiatically and knowledgeable cricket fans. Although I could only watch via my labtop a few thousand miles away, at times I felt as if I was right there among my peeps enjoying an ice cold drink and enjoying the action in the middle of the pitch. It was very uplifting to see my homeland and my people portrayed in such a wonderful, bright and positive light. Well done Dominica and kudos to the West Indies.
it shows the love we dminicans have
Yes well said but we must always keep the love flowing all the time!
Great Job Windies… You guys showed a fighting spirit. I think the Windies came out victorious in this one… We got a Maiden test Century, another West Indian Test century, a five wicket haul and a draw.
The fans got a great show for the support they gave…
I hope the West Indies Cricket board can see and opportunity reviving the passion of West Indies cricket by drawing on the passion of Dominican supporters…
But it does take that kind of fight from the team to inspire us on…
well dominicans can support there own eh. i hope we get more games like that. we r proud WI plp. 1 blood, 1 love, 1 plp surrounded by 1 carribbean sea. we love u WI
Great support from my fellow Dominicans; the ultimate cricket fans. Good job windies.
congrats Fellow Dominican Shiv
Good Job Shiv