Brian Lara’s international career came down to watching England’s last pair chase three runs. His own innings had ended in a run-out, but West Indies could still give their captain a winning farewell. Stuart Broad instead completed England’s pursuit with one delivery remaining.
England reached 301/9 to win by one wicket, ending a match that repeatedly threatened to escape both teams. Kevin Pietersen’s century supplied the foundation; Paul Nixon’s late attack made the finish possible.
Neither side could reach the semifinals. Yet Lara’s departure gave this contest a significance the standings could not capture, earning it a place in A Celebration of 5000 ODIs.
TL;DR
- England chased 301 with one wicket and one ball remaining.
- Pietersen earned Player of the Match with 100 from 91 balls.
- Michael Vaughan contributed 79 and took 3/39.
- West Indies reduced England to 189/6 before losing control.
- Nixon scored 38; Broad finished unbeaten on five.
- Lara’s final international innings ended at 18.
Match Information
| Detail | Information |
|---|---|
| Match | West Indies vs England, 48th match |
| Competition | 2007 Cricket World Cup, Super Eight |
| Venue | Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados |
| Date | April 21, 2007 |
| West Indies | 300 all out, 49.5 overs |
| England | 301/9, 49.5 overs |
| Result | England won by one wicket |
| Player of the Match | Kevin Pietersen, 100 from 91 balls |
| Leading bowlers | Michael Vaughan 3/39; Dwayne Bravo 2/47 |
| Turning point | Pietersen and Nixon’s 80-run seventh-wicket partnership |
| Tournament impact | England finished fifth; West Indies sixth |
Chris Gayle Sets a Pace West Indies Cannot Sustain
Chris Gayle struck 79 from 58 balls, including ten fours and three sixes. Devon Smith’s 61 from 106 deliveries offered stability, but the contrast exposed West Indies’ dependence on Gayle for acceleration.
Their opening partnership reached 131. Later, Marlon Samuels added 51 from 39 balls and shared 77 with Shivnarine Chanderpaul.
At 258/4, West Indies had the resources to finish strongly. Instead, their final six wickets produced only 42 runs. Reaching 300 looked imposing, but England’s eventual escape made every unused opportunity relevant.
Brian Lara’s Farewell Ends Between the Wickets
Lara made 18 from 17 deliveries before a misunderstanding with Samuels left him run out by Pietersen.
His departure carried an uncomfortable connection to the wider performance: West Indies possessed the talent to seize control, yet mistakes repeatedly interrupted their progress.
“Things didn’t work out as planned,” Lara said afterward, in comments preserved by New Zealand Cricket’s contemporary report.
Readers can revisit a different expression of his World Cup influence in Lara’s match-winning century against South Africa in 2003.
Michael Vaughan Contributes in Both Innings
Vaughan’s offspin supplied an unexpected advantage. His 3/39 from ten overs included Samuels, Dwayne Bravo and Jerome Taylor, helping England contain an innings that had punished Liam Plunkett particularly heavily.
The captain then scored 79 from 68 balls. His positive approach kept England within reach before Bravo ran him out at 154/3.
Vaughan’s contribution deserves weight alongside Pietersen’s century: he reduced the target and helped establish the pace required to chase it.
Kevin Pietersen Holds Together a Fractured Chase
England slipped to 189/6 as dismissals accumulated around Pietersen. Three run-outs across the innings revealed how poorly they sometimes managed the pressure.
Pietersen responded with controlled aggression, reaching exactly 100 from 91 balls. Ten fours and a six ensured survival never became stagnation.
His 80-run partnership with Nixon changed the contest. Taylor then bowled Pietersen and dismissed Plunkett in the same over, leaving England 271/8.
The ICC’s retrospective on Pietersen’s innings recognizes the century that disrupted Lara’s farewell.
Paul Nixon and Stuart Broad Complete the Escape
Nixon’s 38 from 39 deliveries kept the chase alive after Pietersen departed. His partnership with Broad added 27 before Bravo bowled him at 298/9.
England needed three more. Broad and James Anderson negotiated the remaining pressure, with Broad completing the chase on the penultimate delivery.
For Nixon, this reversed the frustration of England’s two-run defeat against Sri Lanka, when another lower-order recovery had fallen short.
Complete Match Scorecard
West Indies Batting
| Batter | Dismissal | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Chris Gayle | c Broad b Flintoff | 79 | 58 | 10 | 3 | 136.21 |
| Devon Smith | c Collingwood b Flintoff | 61 | 106 | 6 | 0 | 57.55 |
| Brian Lara (c) | run out (Pietersen) | 18 | 17 | 3 | 0 | 105.88 |
| Marlon Samuels | c Collingwood b Vaughan | 51 | 39 | 6 | 1 | 130.77 |
| Ramnaresh Sarwan | c Nixon b Plunkett | 3 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 37.50 |
| Shivnarine Chanderpaul | c Plunkett b Collingwood | 34 | 39 | 5 | 0 | 87.18 |
| Dwayne Bravo | c Dalrymple b Vaughan | 13 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 118.18 |
| Denesh Ramdin (wk) | not out | 10 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 90.91 |
| Jerome Taylor | c Dalrymple b Vaughan | 12 | 10 | 1 | 0 | 120.00 |
| Daren Powell | run out (Flintoff) | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Corey Collymore | run out (Flintoff) | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 50.00 |
| Extras | lb 1, w 14, nb 3 | 18 | ||||
| Total | All out, 49.5 overs | 300 |
Fall of wickets: 131/1 (Gayle), 168/2 (Smith), 173/3 (Lara), 181/4 (Sarwan), 258/5 (Samuels), 276/6 (Chanderpaul), 277/7 (Bravo), 296/8 (Taylor), 298/9 (Powell), 300/10 (Collymore).
England Bowling
| Bowler | O | M | R | W | Economy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| James Anderson | 6 | 0 | 39 | 0 | 6.50 |
| Liam Plunkett | 7 | 0 | 71 | 1 | 10.14 |
| Stuart Broad | 6 | 1 | 32 | 0 | 5.33 |
| Andrew Flintoff | 9.5 | 0 | 59 | 2 | 6.00 |
| Jamie Dalrymple | 3 | 0 | 19 | 0 | 6.33 |
| Paul Collingwood | 8 | 0 | 40 | 1 | 5.00 |
| Michael Vaughan | 10 | 0 | 39 | 3 | 3.90 |
England Batting
| Batter | Dismissal | R | B | 4s | 6s | SR |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Andrew Strauss | c Smith b Collymore | 7 | 12 | 1 | 0 | 58.33 |
| Michael Vaughan (c) | run out (Bravo) | 79 | 68 | 6 | 2 | 116.18 |
| Ravi Bopara | run out (Bravo) | 26 | 43 | 3 | 0 | 60.47 |
| Kevin Pietersen | b Taylor | 100 | 91 | 10 | 1 | 109.89 |
| Paul Collingwood | b Bravo | 6 | 11 | 1 | 0 | 54.55 |
| Andrew Flintoff | c Powell b Sarwan | 15 | 20 | 2 | 0 | 75.00 |
| Jamie Dalrymple | run out (Smith) | 1 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 16.67 |
| Paul Nixon (wk) | b Bravo | 38 | 39 | 4 | 0 | 97.44 |
| Liam Plunkett | c Bravo b Taylor | 2 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 66.67 |
| Stuart Broad | not out | 5 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 100.00 |
| James Anderson | not out | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0.00 |
| Extras | b 6, lb 11, w 5 | 22 | ||||
| Total | Nine wickets, 49.5 overs | 301 |
Fall of wickets: 11/1 (Strauss), 101/2 (Bopara), 154/3 (Vaughan), 162/4 (Collingwood), 185/5 (Flintoff), 189/6 (Dalrymple), 269/7 (Pietersen), 271/8 (Plunkett), 298/9 (Nixon).
West Indies Bowling
| Bowler | O | M | R | W | Economy |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Corey Collymore | 10 | 0 | 61 | 1 | 6.10 |
| Daren Powell | 10 | 0 | 58 | 0 | 5.80 |
| Jerome Taylor | 10 | 1 | 65 | 2 | 6.50 |
| Chris Gayle | 5 | 0 | 32 | 0 | 6.40 |
| Dwayne Bravo | 9.5 | 0 | 47 | 2 | 4.78 |
| Ramnaresh Sarwan | 5 | 1 | 21 | 1 | 4.20 |
Why Match 23 Belongs in the Celebration
This match illustrates how a competitive farewell can reveal more than a ceremonial victory. West Indies created winning positions through batting power and timely wickets, but could not finish either innings decisively.
England’s escape belongs alongside South Africa surviving Malinga’s four wickets in four balls in our 5000 ODIs archive. Both reward attention beyond the headline performance.
For the wider historical picture, explore our cricket coverage. Lara’s career deserved celebration, but the match refused to accommodate sentiment. England’s last pair made sure his farewell remained fiercely contested until the end.