One-All!

In the words of calypsonian David Rudder, it was high mas'.

Uncontrollable celebrations, typical of any Carnival or Grand Kadooment, unfolded at Kensington Oval yesterday afternoon after the West Indies predictably completed an emphatic series-levelling victory over India in the third Cable & Wireless Test.

It was the West Indies' first win in a Test in nine matches and ten long months. And when it was achieved at exactly 1:11 p.m., it would not have been out of place to believe they had won the World Cup final or the big Caribbean Lotto jackpot of $2.75 million.

The cacophony of noises around the ground made it almost impossible to hear the voices of the captains and coaches at the after-match Press conference.

Sweet calypso and reggae blared from the sound systems on the lower level of Greenidge & Haynes Stand; horns and percussion instruments reverberated around the Oval; and excited fans screamed themselves hoarse outside the Sir Garfield Sobers Pavilion.

And who can forget Julian Hunte, who arrived at the Oval minutes before victory armed with a Barbados flag and conch-shell and dressed in a colourful outfit.

Other spectators danced and pranced a lap around the ground with countless flags of almost every nationality in the region. Alcoholic beverages might have had something to do it with.

It might have been a disappointment to some of the 10,000 fans in the stands that the match finished so early in the day. Vendors with loads of food would have been particularly worried when India lost three wickets inside the first 90 minutes.

In the end, the visitors, who have now lost seven times in eight matches at Kensington, managed to set the West Indies a straightforward target of five, which was achieved with no bother. India, resuming their second innings on 169 for four, still 123 runs in arrears, were eventually bowled out for 296.

An hour after the completion of the match, about 2 000 fans were still around basking in the glory of the West Indies' first Test win since July 22 last year.