SYLHET, Bangladesh, CMC – Interim West Indies one-day captain Rovman Powell conceded Friday leaving out speedster Oshane Thomas had been a mistake in the Caribbean side’s selection for the decisive third One-Day International.
Following the comprehensive eight-wicket loss, Powell said they had misjudged the conditions and opted for the extra spin option in the form of left-armer Fabian Allen.
The 21-year-old Thomas featured in the opening two matches, taking three for 54 in the second match which the Windies won by four wickets to level the series 1-1.
“We did (misread the pitch). If we hadn’t misread the wicket we wouldn’t have dropped Oshane Thomas,” Powell lamented.
“He is our fastest bowler and I think we needed him on that wicket. It’s just one of those things. We thought the wicket (would) spin a little bit more and it didn’t spin.
“We honestly thought the conditions would have spun a little bit more. We didn’t know about so much dew at this ground; it’s even more dew than what was in Dhaka. We are just reading conditions wrong and that is just a part of human nature.”
Neither Allen, frontline leg-spinner Devendra Bishoo nor off-spinner Roston Chase, who was handed the new ball, proved effective as Bangladesh overhauled a paltry target of 199 with over 11 overs to spare.
Yet again, the Windies batsmen were at fault, failing to post a challenging total after being asked to bat.
Only opener Shai Hope with an unbeaten 108 showed any enterprise, as only two other specialist batsmen reached double figures, though neither passed 20.
For the 25-year-old Hope, the hundred was his second straight, following his magnificent unbeaten 146 in the second ODI last Tuesday, when the Windies chased down 256.
Hope, voted Man-of-the-Series, drew praise from his skipper.
“Shai Hope batted beautifully throughout the entire series. We can take a lot of courage from him,” said Powell, whose form remained under the microscope with a mere 16 runs from three innings in the series.
“In both games, he stood up and batted 50 overs. He showed that the wickets here in Bangladesh you can do well on. It’s just about applying ourselves.
“We have to say congratulations to him but through the entire series, the batting unit didn’t stand; it has been a problem for us over the last few series and, to be honest, we aren’t improving.”
West Indies will now turn their attention to the three-match Twenty20 series starting tomorrow, in an effort to salvage something from a tour which saw them whitewashed in the two-Test series.
“West Indies are T20 champions. We have a very good T20 team,” Powell pointed out.
“We just have to get familiar with conditions. We know that there is a lot of dew and it is a good wicket and (we need to) come out and play the brand of cricket that West Indies want to play.”
