Cricket: Seize key moments against India says Sammy
West Indies captain confident of comeback as 2nd Test starts today.
KOLKATA:
The West Indies need to win key moments in the second Test against India starting today at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, according to captain Darren Sammy.
The tourists trail 1-0 in the three-Test series following their five-wicket defeat in New Delhi.
The West Indies had seized the advantage when they dismissed India for 209 runs after posting 304 in the first-innings, but failed to cash in and crashed to 180 in the second before India overhauled the target.
“It’s about capitalising on key moments. Hopefully, we can do it in this Test and bounce back,” said Sammy.
“Despite the result, we did control the first two days of the first Test,” said the captain. “Had we batted better in the second-innings it would have been a different ball game.”
Managing spin holds the key
The West Indies failed to cope with India’s slow bowlers in New Delhi, with debutant off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin bagging nine wickets in the Test and left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha claiming seven.
Having employed only one spinner, Devendra Bishoo, in the last Test, the tourists are now considering naming a second spinner in their playing-eleven as the pitch is likely to help slow bowlers.
“We will consider the option of the other spinner we have in the squad, namely Shane Shillingford,” said Sammy.
Meanwhile, India fast-bowler Ishant Sharma also said the spinners are likely to play big roles on the Eden Gardens pitch.
“In India, we get wickets like this only, so we can’t complain,” said Sharma, the most experienced bowler in the Indian side with 125 wickets in 39 Test matches.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 14th, 2011.
The West Indies need to win key moments in the second Test against India starting today at the Eden Gardens in Kolkata, according to captain Darren Sammy.
The tourists trail 1-0 in the three-Test series following their five-wicket defeat in New Delhi.
The West Indies had seized the advantage when they dismissed India for 209 runs after posting 304 in the first-innings, but failed to cash in and crashed to 180 in the second before India overhauled the target.
“It’s about capitalising on key moments. Hopefully, we can do it in this Test and bounce back,” said Sammy.
“Despite the result, we did control the first two days of the first Test,” said the captain. “Had we batted better in the second-innings it would have been a different ball game.”
Managing spin holds the key
The West Indies failed to cope with India’s slow bowlers in New Delhi, with debutant off-spinner Ravichandran Ashwin bagging nine wickets in the Test and left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha claiming seven.
Having employed only one spinner, Devendra Bishoo, in the last Test, the tourists are now considering naming a second spinner in their playing-eleven as the pitch is likely to help slow bowlers.
“We will consider the option of the other spinner we have in the squad, namely Shane Shillingford,” said Sammy.
Meanwhile, India fast-bowler Ishant Sharma also said the spinners are likely to play big roles on the Eden Gardens pitch.
“In India, we get wickets like this only, so we can’t complain,” said Sharma, the most experienced bowler in the Indian side with 125 wickets in 39 Test matches.
Published in The Express Tribune, November 14th, 2011.