“Would England have done that if it were an Ashes Test?” - Carlos Brathwaite slams Joe Root’s team for 'disrespecting' West Indies
Carlos Brathwaite has termed England’s decision to drag the Antigua Test into the last over as disrespectful towards West Indies even though the hosts had six wickets in hand. The visitors agreed to a draw only after the first ball of the last over was bowled, when a win was no longer a mathematical possibility.
Setting a target of 286, West Indies ended on 147/4 to draw the match on a pitch where there wasn’t much for bowlers. Nkrumah Bonner remained unbeaten on 38 and Jason Holder on 37 to help West Indies recover from 67 for 4.
While the Test ended in a draw, according to Brathwaite, England’s refusal to bring down curtains on the game earlier should inspire West Indies to prove a point in the remaining two Tests. The all-rounder told BT Sport:
"If I were a senior player in the West Indies dressing room, I would have found it a bit disrespectful that in the last hour, with two set batsmen playing as they were and the pitch offering nothing, England still felt they could get six wickets, going all the way down to five balls left.”
Brathwaite questioned if England would have adopted similar tactics against teams like India and New Zealand. He asked:
"Would England have done that if it were an Ashes Test? Would they have done that against India, New Zealand, Pakistan?”
The 33-year-old added:
"I think the answer is no, so why have they done it against us? If West Indies need any sort of steely determination added, I think that passage of play should have given them that. They should be thinking 'we have two Tests now to prove we are better than England think we are'."
🏾 #WIvENG
What a start to the Apex Test series!🙌🏾 #WIvENG https://t.co/1QXJMKJj1N
England declared their second innings just before lunch on Day 5. Chasing 286, the West Indies stumbled from 59 for no loss to 67 for 4 before Bonner and Holder held the fort.
“I'm versatile, I adapt to the situation” - West Indies batter Nkrumah Bonner
This kind of resilience is priceless! Nkrumah Bonner takes our #MastercardPricelessMoment of the 1st Test. #WIvENG https://t.co/nM5Di0iCtq
West Indian batter Bonner was named Player of the Match for his knocks of 123 and 38*. Speaking after the Antigua draw, he said that he likes to bat at the venue. Bonner commented:
Obviously, we wanted to win but we're happy with the draw. When I was young I always wanted to play Test cricket, and over the years I set out to bat long. I'm versatile, I adapt to the situation. We showed real character, the way we bowled. We've got a lot to take from this game."
The second Test of the three-match series begins in Bridgetown on March 16.