Bowlers must get it right

WHEN I predicted in my last article that there would be a result at the Queen’s Park Oval, secretly I wished that it would be in favour of the West Indies team. I had the privilege of spending the entire five days of the Test match with our home team, as emergency fieldsman. The fans at the oval were overflowing with excitement, as they were overjoyed with the return of Brian Charles Lara. He did not disappoint his fans as he came big in the first innings with 196 runs. Many also came out to see “Bigger Better Cricket” with the return of Chris Gayle, Ramnaresh Sarwan, and Dwayne Bravo. It was an open game up to the end of the fourth day. West Indies batsmen Sarwan and Bravo, put on a formidable total in the second innings to set the Windies up for a possible victory.

However, it would be accurate to say that the odds were in favour of South Africa, as it was clear that one more wicket on the morning of the fifth day would change the game. With two overs to go for the new ball on the last day, South African pacers knew that they were guaranteed to bowl out our lower order before lunch. Despite, centuries from record holder Lara in the first innings and middle order Sarwan in the second innings, the West Indies team was not able to set a large enough total for the South Africans. The increasing number of no-balls, bowled by our pacers continue to set us back. One can never tell what the outcome of the game would have been, had we gotten those early wickets in the second innings.

In short, we failed to make enough runs, and in the final analysis we still struggle to take 20 wickets. In our first Test match in Guyana, our batting helped us to draw against South Africa. I feel therefore, that we are in a spot of bother. On a good day, if our batsmen are shining then we are almost guaranteed to draw a Test match. However, if they are not, then are we almost guaranteed to lose? In the recent past we had the likes of the great Courtney Walsh and the great Curtly Ambrose. These guys had the discipline to put the balls in the right areas consistently. In a situation where the opposition needs 144 runs to win a Test match on a deteriorating Queen’s Park Oval wicket, with the likes of Walsh and Ambrose, you had a greater chance of winning.

It is my opinion that our region still produces fast bowlers with raw talent. Many wonder if Walsh and Ambrose were the last to be born. No there are many more. However, talent or no talent, if our fast bowlers do not develop the discipline necessary to put the balls in the right areas more consistently, it will be a long road ahead before we can attain an outright victory in a Test match. Well, it is one nil, with two more to go and I am hoping that we work on our bowling, so that we can secure an outright victory in Barbados.