Curtly Ambrose turns 61: Here are the former West Indian pacer’s 5 greatest Test spells

After West Indies declared on 267/8 in their second innings, it was up to their bowlers to restrict England from chasing the target of 356 and Ambrose’s spell helped in making it a lot easier for the other bowlers. The English batters had no answer to Ambrose’s amazing deliveries and succumbed to them one after another. The pacer’s 8-wicket haul massively helped the hosts bowl out the visitors for 191 and win the match by 164 runs.

Ambrose decimated the Australian batting order with an exceptional bowling spell which saw him rack up 7 wickets and give away only 25 runs. Thanks to this spell, the hosts got bowled out by the West Indies for only 119 runs in the first innings. In reply, the Windies posted 322 runs and then a 6-wicket haul from Ian Bishop saw the hosts get bundled out again, this time for 178 runs as the visitors won the match by an innings and 25 runs.

Ambrose was the star of the match as he shattered the England batting order in both the innings. After West Indies posted a total of 252, the visitors took the lead by scoring 328 runs. However, they could have scored much more if it wasn’t for Ambrose’s spell of 5/60. As the hosts set a target of 194 for the visitors to chase, their bowling attack went all out on the England batters. Ambrose’s sensational 6-wicket haul proved to be crucial as they bowled out England for only 46 and won the match by 147 runs.

The South Africa bowling attack did a fantastic job by bowling out the hosts for 283 runs in the second innings and set up a target of 201 runs. It was expected that the visitors would chase the target easily as they had posted a great total of 345 in their first innings. However, an amazing 6-wicket haul from Ambrose saw the South Africans crumble and what looked like an easy chase became a daunting one. In the end, it was the hosts who prevailed by 52 runs as the Proteas got bundled out for only 148.

A superb bowling performance from Ambrose massively helped the West Indies in bowling out the Proteas for 195 runs to set up a target of 320. The pitch in South Africa had so far proven to be a nightmare for the batters and it continued to be so for West Indies in the final innings of the Test. A 5-wicket haul from South African pacer Allan Donald saw the West Indian batters crumble and get bowled out for only 141 runs as the visitors lost the match by a massive 178-run margin.