ICC World T20 | Untimely shot selections seem to be embedded in West Indies' batting culture, admits CWI President in brutal statement
Ricky Skerrit has revealed the future course of action for West Indies after they were eliminated from the group stages of the World T20 following two losses in three games. He pointed out the team's glaring deficiencies and promised a comprehensive analysis of the campaign for future improvement.
Two-time champions West Indies suffered a major setback on Friday after they failed to make it to the Super 12s stage of the World T20 currently underway in Australia. The Caribbean outfit first encountered a defeat against Scotland in their tournament opener before a comprehensive thrashing by Ireland in the final game sealed their fate in the tournament.
"I am deeply disappointed with the performance results of our team in Australia and I appreciate the sense of utter frustration that is being experienced by many," Cricket West Indies President expressed in a statement post the tournament debacle.
A young squad led by Nicholas Pooran following the exodus of past superstars Chris Gayle, Dwayne Brave and Kieron Pollard, the team was largely the victim of subpar batting performances. Against Scotland, they were bowled out for 118 while chasing 160 and then Ireland chased down a low target of 146 on Friday with nine wickets and 15 balls to spare. Even against Zimbabwe, they only managed 153 but a stellar display from Alzarri Joseph saved them the blushes.
"The ongoing inability of our batsmen to prevail over opposing slow bowling continued to be an obvious weakness in Australia, and untimely shot selections seem to be deeply embedded in the T20 batting culture of our senior team," Rickett acknowledged.
Even in the 2021 edition, West Indies had only managed a solitary victory in five games, finishing their Super 12s group second last.
"However, I want to assure stakeholders that a thorough postmortem will be carried out on all aspects of our World Cup preparation and performance, and that solutions will be found in keeping with CWI's strategy to improve the quality and sustainability of cricket on all fronts, and in all formats. West Indies cricket is bigger than any one individual or event, and continues to need the input and support of all stakeholders," the CWI President concluded.