Ramnaresh Sarwan – West Indies Cricket Team

Ramnaresh Sarwan admitted that the West Indies opener, Chris Gayle is missed badly and further speaks about Windies chances to get back in the series after their loss in Trinidad in the 1st ODI against India.

West Indies middle order batsmen, Ramnaresh Sarwan, has admitted that the team is indeed missing the explosive, Chris Gayle. However, he later stated that the players knew that it was not in their hands to do anything about the on-going spat between Gayle and the WICB.

Gayle was left out of the squad for the lone T-20 match and for the on-going 5 match ODI series against India. The explosive batsmen failed to get in terms {disagreement between the two} with the WICB which led to his absence in the home series. Gayle was the orange cap holder in the recently held IPL season, where he played fewer matches than others and amazed everyone with his form as he bludgeoned everyone to become the highest run- getter.

Sarwan stated “You are putting me in the spot”, after their loss in Trinidad against the World Champions, India.

He said “Yes, we are missing him to be honest. It’s very difficult to replace someone like Chris at the top. He is the most feared batsmen in world cricket when it comes to ODI or T20. The selectors have made a decision and we need to work with what we have.

Sarwan also stated about his form saying that he is not at his usual best and insisted that the best is yet to come. He scored 56 runs of 94 deliveries after Sammy elected to bat first after winning the toss. Although, Sarwan took time to settle in, he balanced the innings well with Marlon Samuels, after the Windies lost quick 3 wickets for 60-odd runs.

Sarwan said “I haven’t had the best run since the World Cup. “I am not still fluent. Few things are wrong; I am working hard at it with Desmond Haynes. For me it’s the matter of rotating the strike. I don’t think I am as fluent as I used to be. My strike rate has been a little awkward. This innings will give me some confidence and hopefully I can kick on from here.

Talking about the Windies, the team does not look in the right shape. However, they fought back against Pakistan in the ODI’s and then won the 1st Test, which eventually ended the series in a 1-1 draw. But, spin bowling seems to be a big trouble for the team. They struggled against Pakistan and the struggle seems to continue. Harbhajan Singh took three wickers, while Suresh Raina grabbed two and Amit Mishra bowled tightly. The spinners made life difficult for the batsmen and it was very hard for them to score of the spinners; as the spinners were the pick of the bowlers for India.

However, Sarwan stated that the team is working hard to rectify the problems and adapt to such situations.

He added “It’s a matter of adjusting to the conditions and to the quality of the bowlers we have been playing against. “It’s not frustration. It’s bit disappointing for us. Most of us have got starts since the World Cup and it’s a matter of improving on those. We have tried to help each other. It’s just a process and hopefully couple of young guys will pull through.”

After losing the T-20 match and the first ODI, Sarwan is still confident of a turn-around. He said “The spirit is still pretty high.” “Don’t forget we did well against Pakistan. We won the last two ODIs and the first Test. We haven’t got the start we wanted this series but there are four games to go. We have had some positives: Marlon Samuels hasn’t played for a while and it was good to see him get a good score today. Bishoo has consistently bowled well and Anthony Martin did well today. Dwayne Bravo is a sort of individual who never lacks confidence. Before this series ends he will come back with a good knock.”

The Windies have been criticized for their lackluster performances, especially against the spinners as they tend to struggle every time the spin attack in introduced. Sarwan further added “When you are not winning, everything becomes an issue with media and public. It’s bound to happen. Yes, the spinners have been giving us trouble in the middle overs; we need to bat well and get more consistent. We haven’t had the best of runs in the last 15-20 years. It’s the matter of us getting everything together. We need to be consistent with batting and bowling. Consistency has been lacking.”

The West Indies should now forget everything and look forward to the rest of the series. Spinners have been a problem, but as Sarwan said that the team is improving and working hard, they should overcome this problem and get going in the series. They need to do a lot of thinking and homework for the rest of the matches and work hard against the Young Indian Brigade, who continues to impress millions of hearts across the globe.

Tags: Chris Gayle, Cricket, India, ODI Series, Opener, Ramnaresh Sarwan, West Indies, WICB