South Africa whitewash hapless West Indies

South Africa completed a 5-0 whitewash of their limited overs series against West Indies with a thrilling one-wicket victory in the final over in the fifth game at Queen's Park Oval on Thursday.

The South Africans, who also won both Twenty20 internationals, needed seven runs off the final over chasing the home team's 252 for six.

After Roelof van der Merwe smashed Kieron Pollard for a boundary and then ran a single, fast bowler Lonswabo Tsotsobe stroked a cover drive to the rope to guide his side to 255 for nine with two balls to spare.

South Africa had been coasting at 163 for three in the 31st over when Jacques Kallis was dismissed for 57, his 78th One-day International half century, but then struggled to build any substantial partnerships.

However a measured 51 from JP Duminy helped them inch closer to the target, and after he was dismissed in the 44th over, the allrounders and bowlers completed the win.

West Indies skipper Chris Gayle was the pick of the bowlers on a slow wicket, taking two for 38 off 10 overs.

Shivnarine Chanderpaul anchored the West Indies innings with 67, while Narsingh Deonarine, who initially struggled, ensured the innings ended with some impetus as his run-a-ball 53 not out pushed the hosts past 250.

"It's terrific to have achieved this result, and bounce back from the failure at the Twenty20 World Cup," said South African captain Graeme Smith.

"It was an important time for us as a group of people, and it was important for us to regain the faith of a lot of the public back home.

"I think a lot of the fans back home in South Africa support us through thick and thin, so it is nice to give them all something about which to feel good," he added.

"The last few games have been too close for comfort," said Smith.

"We have chased on some pretty flat pitches, and West Indies have controlled the games at different times, and we have lost wickets at crucial times.

"But we have held our nerve. Winning is a habit, and when you get into tight games, and you are used to winning, you are able to limp over the line."

Meanwhile, West Indies skipper Chris Gayle admitted that his side was thoroughly outclassed.   

"We seen to be in a bad habit of losing, and when it comes down to these tight situations in matches, we do not know how to handle ourselves," said Gayle.

"All in all, credit must go to South Africa. They played well. We were beaten fair and square. We had our chances, but we did not make use of them.

"It's been tough losing this much. The good thing is we have a few days off to put this behind us, and hopefully, we can get a fresh start in the (forthcoming) Test series."

The teams now meet in a three-test series, starting on June 10.

Scorecard:
West Indies:
D Richards c Kallis b Tsotsobe 19
C Gayle c Smith b McLaren 12
S Chanderpaul lbw b Botha 67
D Bravo c Boucher b van der Merwe 17
D Bravo b Tsotsobe 26
N Deonarine not out 53
K Pollard c Smith b Kallis 25
D Sammy not out 19
Extras: (lb-4, w-8, nb-2) 14
Total: (for 6 wickets, 50 overs) 252
Fall of wickets: 1-22, 2-45, 3-96, 4-137, 5-161, 6-219
Bowling: Charl Langeveldt 8-0-48-0, Lonwabo Tsotsobe 7-1-31-2, Ryan McLaren 7-0-46-1, Jacques Kallis 6-0-38-1, Johan Botha 10-0-48-1, Roelof van der Merwe 10-1-27-1, JP Duminy 2-0-10-0.

South Africa:
H Amla run out 45
G Smith c Ramdin b Bravo 12
J Kallis c Ramdin b Gayle 57
AB de Villiers c Chanderpaul b Gayle 13
JP Duminy b Taylor 51
M Boucher c Chanderpaul b Pollard 6
J Botha c Bernard b Pollard 24
R McLaren run out 12
R Merwe not out 10
C Langeveldt c Ramdin b Bravo 6
L Tsotsobe not out 4
Extras: (lb-1, w-14) 15
Total: (for 9 wickets, 49.4 overs) 255
Fall of wickets: 1-40, 2-76, 3-105, 4-163, 5-175, 6-211, 7-234, 8-235, 9-246
Bowling: Jerome Taylor 8-0-36-1, David Bernard 5-0-30-0, Dwayne Bravo 10-0-73-2, Darren Sammy 4-0-24-0, Chris Gayle 10-1-38-2, Narsingh Deonarine 3-0-11-0, Kieron Pollard 9.4-0-42-2.