BBC SPORT | Special Events | 2000 | England v West Indies

It was 1969 and Thunderclap Newman topped the charts with "Something In The Air" when England last overcame the Windies in a Test series.

And the tourists' captain Jimmy Adams admitted that 3-1 was a fair result and reflected this summer's exchanges.

Top wicket-taker

Gough finished as top England wicket-taker with 25 to win his award, a sequence highlighted by five dismissals of Brian Lara.

The Yorkshire paceman also had the pleasure of removing Lara, the Windies' last real hope, on the final day as England surged to a 158-run victory.

Caddick: Celebrates another key wicket

Gough said: "When you've got players like Gower, Botham, Willis, Gatting and you see 3-0, 5-0, 2-1, 4-1 to West Indies, it's turned around and it's England 3-1. We are all proud to be part of that team.

"This year I've been surprised at the way we've gelled together, everybody who has come in has fitted in well.

"And we've got bowlers who can compete with everyone in the world. Obviously we still lack the express pace and the magical spinner, but as a four we've bowled excellently all season.

"Nasser has been magnificent, he's a proud captain and wants everyone to do well. He's by far the best captain I've played with, a top bloke and I hope he keeps going and going and going."

Four wins

With the series in the bag, and the most successful summer since 1978 - which included four Test wins - out of the way, Hussain looked both relieved and weary.

He admitted: "It's been a phenomenal summer of cricket. What's sunk in is that we've won and you didn't really know that until Courtney Walsh got hit on the pads.

"When Lara and (Ramnaresh) Sarwan had their little session, your heart started to go a bit then because there's such a big difference between 3-1 and 2-2.

Tension

"The tension out there between balls was as bad as anything I've experienced.

"You wondered if Lara could do it - he's a little genius. It's been a really long summer but very fulfilling.

"It's just drained me. I felt it would be nice for this team to break that 31-year record and I haven't thought about anything else for the last couple of months other than how to win this series - I know that sounds pretty sad.

"It makes me feel immensely proud, holding that trophy up in front of all those supporters. I'm proud of the team, they can be very proud of the 2000 season they have put in.

"The wheels might come off in the winter, we might have been poor before - but they can be proud of what they've achieved," added Hussain.


	Links to more England v West Indies stories