November 13, 2002	Wednesday	Ramazan 7, 1423

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RAJKOT (India), Nov 12: India were declared winners of the third One-day International against West Indies after the match was disrupted by crowd trouble Tuesday.

Poor crowd behaviour, which has marred the entire series so far, resulted in the game being called off and India being declared winners by 81 runs using the Duckworth/Lewis method.

The home side, chasing a mammoth 301 for victory, were coasting at 200 for one in just 27.1 overs when West Indies all-rounder Vasbert Drakes was struck on his leg by an object thrown from the crowd while fielding on the boundary.

Match referee Mike Procter immediately rushed to the field and asked the players to return to the dressing room.

Attempts were made to restart the game after clearing the section of the stand from where the object was hurled but play was finally called off 90 minutes after the incident.

“It was very disappointing,” said West Indies stand-in captain Ridley Jacobs.

Procter has been asked by the ICC to submit a report on the incidents.

West Indies now lead the seven-match series 2-1.

Explosive opener Virender Sehwag was on 114 off 82 balls after a 196-run opening stand, an Indian record against West Indies, with captain Saurav Ganguly (72) when the game ended.

Ramnaresh Sarwan had earlier struck a career-best 84 as West Indies amassed 300 for five from their 50 overs.

It was an unfortunate end to a match that saw a brilliant batting display by both teams, particularly by Sehwag and Ganguly in a partnership marked by stunning strokeplay.

Undaunted by the required run rate of six an over, left-hander Ganguly started the India innings by driving Drakes through the covers for four and then hitting his slower ball down the ground for another boundary.

Sehwag punched paceman Mervyn Dillon for a straight four and then made room for himself outside the leg-stump and slashed him over the slips for a one-bounce four to third man.

Runs came in a hurry as India reached 68 for no loss after 10 overs before Sehwag opened the floodgates in the 13th over of the match, hitting occasional spinner Chris Gayle for three fours and a six to race to his 50 in just 38 balls.

Earlier, left-hander Chris Gayle led the West Indies batting charge with a 68-ball knock including 12 fours and two sixes.

He shared a 57-run stand with Marlon Samuels (18) but the main thrust was provided by Sarwan and Chanderpaul in a 149-run partnership for the fourth wicket.