The West Indies tasted success for the first time on their New Zealand tour on Thursday when they scraped home by two wickets in the first One-Day International in Auckland.
After dismissing New Zealand for a modest 156 in 42.1 overs, the West Indies made hard work the target for the loss of eight wickets in 27.3 overs.
A rollicking unbeaten 43 from Darren Sammy off 27 balls took them over the line as wickets fell regularly at the other end.
With the last two wickets left, Sammy knocked off the final 10 runs with a six and a four off Mitchell McClenaghan to seal victory.
The victory, no matter how narrow, was a change of fortunes for a side comprehensively outplayed during their 0-2 Test series loss to New Zealand.
Although their batting remained fragile, the introduction of one-day specialists unleashed a West Indies bowling line-up that New Zealand failed to handle on a seam-friendly wicket.
Any confidence New Zealand took from the Tests quickly evaporated when they were sent into bat and faced new arrivals Ravi Rampaul, Dwayne Bravo and Jason Holder.
It was not the return to international cricket that big-hitting opener Jesse Ryder wanted. He only faced five balls before slashing at a wide
Rampaul delivery to be caught by Darren Bravo at cover point without scoring.
His failure signalled the start of a disappointing batting performance which was only rescued by the McCullum brothers Brendon (51) and Nathan (47).
They contributed 98 of the New Zealand total with the remaining nine batsmen scoring a total of just 49 runs with nine extras.
Martin Guptill was trapped leg-before by Ravi Rampaul for two. Ross Taylor, the Test series hero, went for three, Kane Williamson (eight), Corey Anderson (13) and Luke Ronchi (seven) as New Zealand slumped to 66 for six.
Nathan McCullum and McClenaghan (three not out) held off the demise as long as they could, featuring in a nine-over stand worth 44 runs for the last wicket.
Bravo returned figures of four for 44 while Rampaul and Holder took two wickets apiece.
What should have been a simple run chase started badly when McClenaghan bowled Kieran Powell (four) in the second over.
Like New Zealand, the West Indies top order could not establish a partnership as Johnson Charles (nine), Darren Bravo (14) and Dwayne Bravo (12) all fell to McClenaghan, who finished with figures of five for 58.
Lendl Simmons arrested the slide with a positive innings, reaching 34 before he was given out caught by Ross Taylor off Kyle Mills.
Taylor was unsure if he took the ball cleanly and it took several highly-magnified replays before the umpires ruled his fingertips were just under the ball.
Narsingh Deonarine (six), Denesh Ramdin (two) and Jason Holder (10) offered little fight, leaving it to Sammy to bring up the winning runs.
Scorecard
New Zealand
M. Guptill lbw Rampaul 2
J. Ryder c DM Bravo b Rampaul 0
K. Williamson c Ramdin b Holder 8
R. Taylor run out (Holder) 3
B. McCullum lbw DJ Bravo 51
C. Anderson c Simmons b DJ Bravo 13
L Ronchi c Charles b Narine 7
J. Neesham c DM Bravo b DJ Bravo 10
N. McCullum c DM Bravo b Holder 47
K. Mills c Sammy b DJ Bravo 3
M. McClenaghan not out 3
Extras: (lb6 w3) 9
Total: (all out; 42.1overs) 156
Fall of wickets: 1-2, 2-3, 3-10, 4-32, 5-57, 6-66, 7-93, 8-104, 9-112.
Bowling: Holder 7.1-1-21-2, Rampaul 9-0-27-2, Sammy 6-0-30-0, Narine 10-2-28-1, DJ Bravo 10-0-44-4.
West Indies
J. Charles b McClenaghan 9
K. Powell b McClenaghan 4
DM Bravo c Williamson b McClenaghan 14
L. Simmons c Taylor b Mills 34
DJ Bravo lbw McClenaghan 12
N. Deonarine b Mills 6
D. Ramdin c B. McCullum b McClenaghan 2
D. Sammy not out 43
J. Holder c Ronchi b Neesham 10
S. Narine not out 0
Extras: (lb 8, w14, nb 1) 23
Total: (8 wickets; 27.3 overs) 157
Fall of wickets: 1-5, 2-19, 3-32, 4-60, 5-94, 6-96, 7-121, 8-147.
Bowling: Mills 8-1-37-2, McClenaghan 9.3-0-58-5, Neesham 6-0-35-1, Anderson 4-0-19-0.
Image: Darren Sammy of the West Indies pulls the ball away for six runs during the first One Day International against New Zealand at Eden Park, in Auckland
Photograph: Hannah Johnston/Getty Images
