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29th April 2015 Comments Off on Sir Viv said ‘dead pitches’ not the issue Views: 1569 News

Sir Viv said ‘dead pitches’ not the issue

Former West Indies captain Sir Viv Richards has brushed aside arguments that poorly prepared pitches at both the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Ground here in Antigua and the Grenada National Stadium played against the West Indies during the first and second Tests against England.

Admitting that the pitches, during both matches were not of the best quality, Sir Viv said the home team had equal opportunities to make runs but failed to capitalise.

“How can these wickets be so bad when our players keep getting out at crucial times but when you look at the wicket itself, especially the one that we had here in Antigua & Barbuda, the one in Grenada, apart from maybe the first day, where we saw some slight movements and seam movements in the air and things like that, Antigua is pretty much dead. They are good batting wickets and this is why I felt West Indies missed a wonderful opportunity,” he said.

Last day heroics from Jason Holder, who made 103 from 216 deliveries, ensured a draw for West Indies in the first Test in Antigua, while England won the second Test by nine wickets in Grenada.

Sir Viv said players hoping to make a name for themselves should take advantage of the opportunity to get as many runs as possible.

“They’re going to become times when the wickets are going to be doing much more than that and then you would be struggling, so whenever you meet wickets that are quite conducive to your play then you to try and make hay while the sun shines,” the former skipper said.

“We are as good at striking the ball as any, but sometimes our thinking process at crucial times in matches is just letting us down,” Sir Viv added.

West Indies go into the third and final Test against England in Barbados, starting Friday needing a victory to level the series.

Taken from the Antigua Observer

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