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West Indies crush Zimbabwe

Roseau - Spinner Shane Shillingford claimed his second 10-wicket haul at Windsor Park in less than a year as the West Indies cruised to a crushing innings and 65-run victory over Zimbabwe in the second Test Friday.

Facing a huge deficit of 206 runs after skipper Darren Sammy declared his team's first innings at the overnight position of 381 for eight, the visitors were brushed aside for 141 in their second turn at the crease in less than 43 overs.

Shillingford claimed five for 34 to finish with match figures of 10 for 93 as the home side wrapped up the game on the afternoon of the third day.

He was the unanimous choice as both man of the match and man of the series following on his figures of nine for 107 in the first Test in Barbados.

By taking 19 wickets in the brief series, the off-spinner shattered the West Indies record for the most wickets in a two-test series, 16, which was set by former fast bowler Courtney Walsh in New Zealand in 1995.

He also became only the eighth Caribbean cricketer to capture 10 wickets in a Test match on two or more occasions.

All of those landmarks were celebrated with gusto by his home fans, even as the hapless Zimbabweans capitulated.

"Shane's performance here has been tremendous but throughout the games different people have been called upon and they executed properly," said Sammy.

West Indies also won the three one-day internationals as well as the two Twenty20 matches against a hapless and outclassed Zimbabwe.

"It's been massively disappointing and we've been taught a lesson. It hurts," said Zimbabwe captain Brendan Taylor.

"A lot of us need to go home and have a good think, we need to improve."

Although most of the glory went to Shillingford, it was Marlon Samuels who put the seal on the West Indies' sixth consecutive Test match victory with the wickets of Kyle Jarvis and Tendai Chatara off consecutive deliveries.

The part-time slow bowler also enjoyed his best match and series figures, his analysis of three for 35 in the final innings giving him six wickets in the match and 10 over the two Tests.

Only the opening stand of 35 between Hamilton Masakadza and Vusi Sibanda suggested any resistance, while the breaking of that partnership brought the one bit of controversy of the day when two reversals of umpiring decisions in the same over from Tino Best eventually resulted in the dismissal of Masakadza.

Initially given out caught at the wicket by umpire Tony Hill, the verdict was reviewed and overturned on the evidence of television replays and consultation with TV umpire Bruce Oxenford.

An aggrieved Best was a much happier man two deliveries later when another appeal for a catch by wicketkeeper Denesh Ramdin off the same batsman was ruled "not out" by Hill before Sammy's request for a review was upheld by Oxenford.

From that point, the floodgates opened swiftly with the introduction of Shillingford, who started his latest rout by dismissing Taylor via a bat-pad catch by Kieran Powell at short-leg.

He then removed debutant Sean Williams who miscued an attempted cut to Shivnarine Chanderpaul at point.

In between, Sammy accounted for Sibanda by the lbw route, the opener falling for what proved to be the top score of 35 to an injudicious shot that typified the lack of application displayed by the visitors throughout this tour.

It took just another hour after the lunch interval for Shillingford and Samuels to complete the job, Sammy taking three catches at leg-gully as the bowlers capitalised on the exaggerated bounce and turn and also the Zimbabweans' technical deficiencies in coping with such a challenge.

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