Former West Indies opener Philo Wallace described the feeling of watching the West Indies batsmen struggle against spin bowling as “disheartening.”
“It’s very disheartening to see our batsmen continue to struggle against spin,” said Wallace on the Mason & Guest radio show in Barbados on Tuesday.
The West Indies suffered an embarrassing 0-3 series defeat against Bangladesh last week at Providence in Guyana, a surface known to favor spin bowling.
“They have to find a method of how to play slow bowling. I find it very uncomfortable that our batsmen don’t seem to understand how to play on that type of surface,” said Wallace, who played seven Tests and 33 ODIs from 1997-2000.
The inability to play spin meant that the hosts were unable to bat out the full 50 overs in any of the matches, something Wallace said is not acceptable.
“You can’t consistently get bowled out inside 50 overs. When you find yourself three or four wickets down inside the first 20 overs, you’re going to struggle. They’re not getting the starts from the openers. The middle order is struggling and leaving it to some sluggers at the bottom,” he said.
When questioned about a solution to the problem, Wallace pointed to something that has been an issue for the West Indies in limited overs cricket for more than a decade, rotation of the strike.
“You have to be fit and you’ve got to work around the ball and know your partner at the other end. When you get your ones and twos up front, it will make it easier for the guys at the back end,” Wallace said.
He further emphasized his point by highlighting an innings played by South African Rassie van der Dussen against England on Tuesday where he scored 134 off 117 balls hitting only 10 fours and no sixes. South Africa hit no sixes in their innings and were able to score 333-5 from their 50 overs before bowling England out for 271.
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Leeward Islands Hurricanes on the verge of victory over Guyana Harpy Eagles at Providence
Tournament leaders the Guyana Harpy Eagles are on the verge of a crushing defeat at the hands of the Leeward Islands Volcanoes in their final round game at Providence.
Kemol Savory and Veerasammy both scored half-centuries to help the Harpy Eagles, who started day three 48-1 trailing by 77 runs, post 267 in 79 overs in their second innings.
Savory finished 66* off 157 balls while Permaul made 65. Earlier, Kevlon Anderson and Kevin Sinclair both made 31.
Rakheem Cornwall finished with 4-58 off 22 overs for the Hurricanes.
Chasing just 143 for victory, the Hurricanes ended day three 81-1 with Kieran Powell on 47 and Keacy Carty on 17.
The Harpy Eagles entered the round with a 10.2-point lead over the Windward Islands Volcanoes, who are currently in the driver’s seat against the Barbados Pride at Queen’s Park Oval.
Windwards Volcanoes restrict Barbados Pride to 28-3 at stumps on day three chasing 236 for victory at Queen’s Park Oval
The Windward Islands Volcanoes will enter Saturday’s day four of their final round fixture against the Barbados Pride seven wickets away from a possible title-clinching win after restricting the Pride to 28-3 chasing 236 for victory at the Queen’s Park Oval.
The Volcanoes recovered excellently to make 225 off 73.2 overs after starting the day 14-4 with Kavem Hodge and Sunil Ambris at the wicket on four and zero, respectively.
The recovery effort was led by Ambris thanks to a crucial 141-ball 79 including nine fours and a six while pacer Ryan John and wicketkeeper Tevyn Walcott made valuable contributions of 37* and 35, respectively.
Jomel Warrican took 4-58 for the Pride while Akeem Jordan and Jair McAllister took two wickets, each.
Chasing 236 for victory, the Pride were 28-3 off 17 overs at stumps with Jonathan Drakes (9) and Chaim Holder (0) at the crease.
If the Windwards Volcanoes win and the Guyana Harpy Eagles lose to the Leeward Islands Hurricanes, the Volcanoes could lift the title.
T&T Red Force crush Jamaica Scorpions by nine wickets at Torouba
In the battle between bottom-placed teams, Trinidad and Tobago Red Force crushed Jamaica Scorpions by nine wickets with more than a day to spare in their West Indies Championships match at Torouba on Friday.
Needing 99 for victory, after dismissing the Scorpions for 275, TT Red Force cruised to 102-1 in 24.2 overs. Vikash Mohan was unbeaten on 44 and Darren Bravo 14 when victory was achieved. Kamil Pooran was the batsman dismissed for 39 by Jermaine Blackwood.
Bottom-of-the-table Jamaica had resumed from their overnight score of 199-5 with Abhijai Mansingh on 10 and Aldane Thomas seven when play began. The pair would add a further 53 to their overnight stand of eight but were dismissed in quick succession by Shannon Gabriel for 32 and 39, respectively.
The dismissals triggered a slide that saw the hapless Scorpions lose their last four wickets for just 23 runs slipping from 252-6 to 275 all out.
Gabriel ended with figures of 2-52. Imran Khan claimed the last three wickets - Jeavor Royal, Ojay Shields and Marquino Mindley - to finish with 4-47. Anderson Phillip took 2-46 and Bryan Charles 2-75.
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