ST JOHN’S, May 11: Australia captain Steve Waugh and his West Indies counterpart Brian Lara were let off by the match referee following a heated exchange between the two players on the second day of the fourth Test on Saturday.

Lara, who was batting, and Waugh were involved in a war of words during the first session of play before they were separated by English umpire David Shepherd.

“There was some sort of gamesmanship, which is great,” match referee Mike Procter told reporters after the close of play.

“It’s what Test cricket is all about, and Dave Shepherd stepped in before it got carried away.”

Australia fast bowler Brett Lee said the incident was part of the game.

“It was nothing personal,” he said. “It’s Test cricket, we’re playing really hard cricket, playing for our country.

“We really want to win this Test match and be part of history by winning 4-0,” he added.

Australia lead the best-of-four series 3-0 and will become the first team to hand the West Indies a whitewash at home if they can win the final Test.

Former South Africa all-rounder Procter was critical of the Kensington Oval pitch used for the third Test in Bridgetown, where Australia won by nine wickets.

“The pitches in general have been a bit disappointing, though this one here has played pretty well,” he said.

“Barbados was probably sub-standard. I know conditions in the Caribbean have been generally very dry, but it’s a bit of a problem for the West Indies if they want to get fast bowlers for the future.”—Reuters