Caribbean Times 5th Issue - Friday 30th September 2016

Friday 30th September 2016 c a r i b b e a n t i m e s . a g 19
Windies hoping to turn corner
SHARJAH, United Arab Emirates –
On the heels of an embarrassing whitewash
in the preceding Twenty20 series,
West Indies’ three-match One-Day International
series against Pakistan will
take on new value when it bowls off
here Friday.
The reigning T20 World champions
showed little of their usual swagger as
they suffered heavy defeats in every
game and with the tour quickly going
horribly wrong, it will be left to the ODI
side to arrest the slide, especially with
the Test series following.
West Indies’ batting looked a shadow
of the fearsome machine it has become
in recent years as it stumbled and stuttered
on slow pitches in Dubai and Abu
Dhabi, and against both pace and spin.
However, ODI captain Jason Holder
said he expected a different approach
from his side in the 50-overs format, as
batsmen would have the benefit of time
on their side to explore the Pakistan attack.
“You have more time. It’s 300 balls
in one-day cricket whereas in T20s there
are less balls,” he told reporters here
Thursday.
“It’s obviously an opportunity for
our guys to have a longer look. In terms
of our opening batsmen they can have
a longer look and not have to run the
game down.
“I just think it’s important that we lay
that foundation and as we always speak
about in the dressing room, it’s always
important for one of our top four batsmen
to bat as deep as possible and get
a big score.
“I think once we do that, more often
than not we get a very, very good total
and that’s just the way we go about planning
our cricket.”
Holder will also be confident that the
West Indies fortunes can turn around
with the several changes made to the
ODI side.
He welcomes the experienced quartet
of wicketkeeper/batsman Denesh
Ramdin, left-hander Darren Bravo,
left-arm spinner Sulieman Benn and
Test vice-captain, Kraigg Brathwaite –
though the latter is yet to play an ODI.
Off-spinner Ashley Nurse, another
seasoned campaigner in domestic cricket,
has also joined the squad along with
talented 19-year-old fast bowler Alzarri
Joseph and experienced left-hander Jonathan
Carter.
The Windies, with the same core of
players, were good enough to reach the
final of the Tri-Nations Series involving
Australia and South Africa back in June
in the Caribbean.
And Holder believes they can use
that momentum to get the better of Pakistan
and also improve their status in
the international rankings, with qualification
for the 2019 World Cup also in
mind.
“Obviously with the points system
and the way the ICC has structured
the cricket going forward, we have to
take each game as a very, very serious
game,” Holder pointed out.
“Every game is points-related obviously
and the points are very close [with
Pakistan’s] at this present time. We can
only control what we can control and
that’s us playing good cricket so we just
want to start this series.
“We had a very good series last series
in the Tri-Nations Series and it’s
just important that we continue on from
there, keep the momentum going into
that one.”
The last time the two teams met in
an ODI, West Indies inflicted a heavy
defeat on the Asian side, with a 150-run
victory during last year’s Cricket World
Cup.
However, West Indies have not beaten
Pakistan in a bilateral series in 24
years, a disappointing trend which the
Caribbean side will be hoping to end.
Holder said West Indies were looking
at different aspects of their game –
especially the death stages of the innings
– during planning sessions and were focussed
now on executing properly.
“We’ve obviously mentioned the
death overs in our meetings. If it is one
area we need to pay special attention to
is obviously the death,” Holder noted.
“Most teams around the world structure
their plans around the first few
overs and also pay special attention to
the death overs. Most games are won
and lost there and I just think it is very,
very important that we sit down and
plan properly.
“I think most of the bowlers have a
general plan of what they are looking
to do and it’s just important for me and
them to be on the same page. I think
once we have good communication in
terms of bowlers and the captain, then
it make life a bit easier, and if you have
options – in terms of a Plan A and then
a Plan B – it also makes life a lot easier
going into pressure situations.”
The game bowls off at 3 pm (7 am
Eastern Caribbean time). (CMC)
SQUADS:
PAKISTAN – Azhar Ali (captain),
Sharjeel Khan, Babar Azam, Asad
Shafiq, Shoaib Malik, Sarfraz Ahmed
(wk), Umar Akmal, Mohammad Rizwan,
Mohammad Nawaz, Imad Wasim,
Yasir Shah, Rahat Ali, Mohammad
Amir, Wahab Riaz, Hasan Ali, Sohail
Khan.
WEST INDIES – Jason Holder
(captain), Sulieman Benn, Carlos
Brathwaite, Kraigg Brathwaite, Darren
Bravo, Jonathan Carter, Johnson
Charles, Shannon Gabriel, Alzarri Joseph,
Evin Lewis, Sunil Narine, Ashley
Nurse, Kieron Pollard, Denesh Ramdin,
Marlon Samuels.