The OFFER

It was a Batting pitch as evidence by Warner's 122 not out.

70 overs to chase 370 : was gonna be a piece of Cake

Crap , the par score for an ODI 50 over is 300 plus....

Smiff is a FOOL to think we would be lured into that Trap 

From an entertainment standpoint you would have preferred to have seen the two captains try and manufacture a result. However, from the West Indies perspective, getting a draw here, regardless of the circumstances, is good for their mindset and pysche. Given the difficult nature of the tour, getting a draw in this final Test at least let's them leave with some positivity.

Dilli,

WI have been using those "positivity" since Sammy's days as captain! Counting those rain saved matches as positives!

How has that been going so far? 

Draw due to days of rain is no positives in my view.


The Windies should have taken the offer to show their mettle, if they have any!


Nothing to lose really  but a chance to gain a victory with the Aussies going for it!

Haha!! ... not only 'positives' from rain saved matches but also 'positives' from matches they've lost (or so they've said)

WI should be so full of 'positivity' they could've positively taken up Smiffy's offer ::LOL::

.... and they weren't humiliated in the warm up match and test matches in Hobart and MCG ?????? ::yawn::

Smiff was trying a ting to make it a sporting game and Windies didn't have the b@lls to try a ting !!!

Series gone !!!! ..... Windies had nothing to lose !!!  Should've taken up the offer !!

If they don't play to win they will never learn how to win .... this was an opportunity to stop the defensive cricket and learn how to hunt down a WIN

Mail and Googs, those are both very fair points and well taken. Moral victories count for nothing, but speaking as a former captain, when going through a poor run, I would gladly take a draw as opposed to another loss. Losing a Test where less than 180 overs are bowled, no matter how contrived the result, would have been a soul crusher.

I don't think there was any realistic chance of West Indies taking all 10 wickets, regardless of how aggressive Australia batted. Lets not forget that West Indies had taken just 10 wickets in the two previous Test matches combined. Had West Indies set Australia a target of 350-370, the only two outcomes, in my opinion, were either an Australia win or a draw. There was little upside in West Indies agreeing to Smith's offer.

South Africa have done well since their readmission into Test cricket, in part, due to their conservatism - their primary objective has been not to lose, the secondary one is to win.

In the circumstances in question, I could not disagree more!

West Indies had nothing to lose rather something to gain with a possible win and some respect. If Australia goes to number 1, from a Windian view point, who cares as they are languishing in no mans land.

I appreciate one has to be measured but having lost the series 2-0, and convincingly at that, go for it! Yes if the series was 1-1 or 0-0 then yes I can see the need to be measured. Therefore, this certainly was not a time to be exhibit those characteristics in my humble view!

Personally I would have respected that more and who knows 10 wickets could have been taken.

Sometimes we get far too bogged down in statistics instead of playing what is quite a simple game.

They had zilch to lose!

Australia on the other hand had everything to WIN

Their attempt regardless of how unethical it may have been

was rejected by West Indies .

They had better odds at making an OFFER : to the rain gods