By David Jackson
West Indies lost yet another ODI series; defeated
by an Indian team that was missing a number of
key players. West Indies was competitive in the
first two matches, even putting up a score of over 300 in each
match, and this was quite encouraging. India won the first
ODI by 3 runs in a heart-gripping thriller that could have gone
either way.
The second ODI was equally thrilling, with India
going on to win by two wickets. In the third match, however,
the boys in maroon were completely outplayed by India,
losing the series 3-0, and regrettably slumping to its ninth straight
loss in ODIs. India won that third ODI by 119 runs, to
sweep the three-match series. This was a shortened one-day
International which was interrupted by rain.
In this third and final ODI, India won the toss and batted. Its
innings began in cloudy conditions. In the 22nd over, India was
112-0. This opening stand was broken shortly afterwards at
113 when Dhawan was caught by West Indies captain Nicholas
Pooran at midwicket from the bowling of Hayden Walsh.
The rain began after the 24th over when India was 115-1. It
continued heavily for more than two hours and when play
resumed, the match had been reduced to 40 overs per side.
After the resumption, the Indian batsmen went on the attack
and blasted 110 runs from 12 overs, before the rain
returned and ended the innings at the conclusion of
the 36th over.
The West Indies innings got off to a poor
start when it lost Kyle Myers and Shamarh
Brooks, both for ducks, to the bowling
of Mohammed Siraj in the second over.
Shai Hope held the top order together
with 22 before being stumped off the
bowling of Yuzvendra Shahal, who
finished with 4-17.
Brandon King and captain Nicholas Pooran appeared to give
West Indies some hope in the middle order, but Brandon King
got out at a critical moment, caught at mid-on by Dhawan off
the bowling of Prasidh Krishna in the 22nd over. West Indies
was now 119-6. Pooran was then joined by Jason Holder,
but the run rate soon climbed to over 12 runs an over. The
pressure was too much and the wickets came tumbling down.
Soon it was all over.
West Indies ODI series defeat by India, following its ODI series
defeat by Bangladesh in which they had also lost all three matches,
shows that this continues to be West Indies’ weakest format, and
despite its improvement in the batting in the first two matches
against India, the eventual result clearly indicates that there is much
room for improvement. West Indies MUST go back to the drawing
board and work on those areas of weakness that make the team
perform so poorly in this format.
But what are the areas where much improvement is needed? Let me
start with the batting. There are still too many dot balls. Although we
are beginning to see more effort to rotate the strike by our batsmen,
it is not enough. In addition, there are still too many instances of
‘over-aggression’ in the first half of the innings, when the goal should
be on building a solid foundation. Once the foundation is set, the
batsmen middle-order batsmen can then gradually increase the run
rate, before going after the bowling in the last 10 or 15 overs. We
are still seeing too many injudicious strokeplay and ‘soft dismissals’.
Kyle Mayers, for example, has to learn to control that tendency to be over-aggressive. He is a
supremely talented striker of the ball but we need more mature batting from him. Shai
Hope at the top of the order has shown his usefulness in anchoring the innings. He continues to be criticized by some for his strike rate but to me, it is not a big issue. I just want him to
maintain consistency.
The bowling is a major worry for West Indies in this format. West
Indies bowlers need to maintain a consistent ‘line and length’, to put pressure on the
batsmen of the opposing team and induce errors. Our bowlers
generally lack variations and the wicket-taking ability is often
absent. In ODIs, taking wickets is extremely important. It helps
to stem the run rate and prevents the opposition from building
worthwhile partnerships. In addition, West Indies does not have
quality ‘death bowlers’, and too many runs are often scored by
the opposition in the last 10 or 12 overs. West Indies could do
well with the services of a bowler like Obed McCoy in the ODI
squad, but the selectors are probably nervous to include Obed
McCoy himself, due to that nagging injury that threatens to derail
his cricketing career. He is a superb T20 bowler, who has a lot
of variations up his sleeves and that makes him a difficult bowler
to score off, especially in the death overs. I personally believe he
would do well in the ODI format of the game. The Guyanese
Gudakesh Motie has impressed me and I hope to see more of
him as an economical left-arm orthodox bowler. Akeal Hosein
continues to do well Also.
Alzarri Joseph, in time, can become a very good fast bowler. He
has shown some improvement as a fast bowler and I will continue
to wish him well. I like Romario Shepherd as an all-rounder and
lower-order finisher. He however just needs to work out some
issues he is having and become a more quality bowler, especially
in those crucial ‘death overs’.
And what can we say about Hayden Walsh Jr? He was praised in the beginning for his wicket-taking
ability, but he is far from economical as a bowler. When he
flights the ball on good length he looks more threatening, but as
I have said and will keep saying, he bowls too many short-pitched
deliveries. He is one who has to do some serious work to maintain
his place on the side. In the bowling department, therefore, the
cupboard is bare. Jason Holder is back, after a deserved rest. He
doesn’t yet look himself, but he has proven his worth on so many
occasions that I won’t question his ability. We now look forward
to the crucial ODI series against New Zealand, beginning on the
17th of August 2022, following the ongoing T20 series with India
and the T20n series to kick off the New Zealand tour to the West
Indies.
Really hard!
So it is indeed, back to the drawing board, so that West Indies can
be better prepared to perform at a consistently good level as the
squad continues to prepare for the ODI World Cup next year.
West Indies must wrestle itself from this mediocre performance.
Winning builds confidence and motivates one to do even better.
Losing often has the reverse effect. We do have talented players
but they must show greater fight, greater commitment, greater
focus, grit, and determination to win matches and ODI series. The
team requires it; the fans expect it.