WI vs AUS | It is a catch-22 situation for us with Jason Mohammad, reckons Kieron Pollard
Mohammed was bowled off Zampa's bowling
|Despite West Indies’ win, Kieron Pollard reckoned that it is a catch-22 situation for the team with Jason Mohammad, who continued to slumber with scores of 11 and 2 in his last two innings. Pollard also insisted that there is a real need for improvement across the three facets of the game for them.
After having Australia by their neck, at 45/6, West Indies had a unique opportunity to kill the game earlier than the scheduled time. However, late partnerships in the lower-order, with Matthew Wade scoring 36, Starc 19, Adam Zampa 36 and Wes Agar 41, allowed Australia to reach a respectable total of 187, which nearly trumped the hosts.
Windies, in their batting also were restricted to 46/3, with Jason Mohammed continuing his struggle in the international scene, with just 11, needing the middle-order to lift them up yet again. The duo of Nicholas Pooran and Jason Holder, with scores of 59 and 52, ensured that there were no hiccups as the hosts tied the series with a four-wicket victory over Australia.
In the post-match presentation, Windies skipper Kieron Pollard talked about the situation with Jason Mohammad, who had shown great form in the Super50, with 327 runs, who could only come away with scores of 13, 8, 2 and 11 in the international scene. Pollard called it a catch-22 situation and stated that the management will take a call soon.
“The fight was great from our boys. Pooran has been looking like his own self again. Both him and Holder scrapped through for us. It is a catch-22 situation with Mohammad. He has done well in the Super50. Chase does that anchor role well for us. We will look at it as a team and look to get better in the next few games,” Pollard admitted.
While stating that, the Windies skipper admitted that the hosts have some work to do, starting with putting the foot on the accelerator after having Australia in dire straits. He also added that conceding 180-90 after the start they got was disappointing.
“When you start a cricket match you want to win. We have some work to do. I don't think we put out foot on the accelerator. Our batters didn't make it easy for us as well. Looks like we don't like to do things the easy way. The spinners were brilliant. The bowlers were brilliant. 180-190 was disappointing and that is how I would like to sum it up. I just think it's the opposition, Australia is Australia. Only one guy is missing from their bowling lineup, Pat Cummins,” he added.
Ahead of the decider, Pollard stated that the hosts would be looking to make improvements across all three facets, with there being a very short turnaround.
“Improvements in all three facets is what we'll look for. We did well in the first ODI. I thought 120 should have been the total today. There isn't much to do in such a short turnaround. T20s have done really well for us.”
