Simmons targets 10 points
Published:Sunday | January 24, 2021 | 12:18 AMLennox Aldred - Sunday Gleaner Writer
West Indies head coach Phil Simmons, while lamenting the team’s poor showing in Bangladesh so far, is hoping to secure at least 10 points and put their first numbers up on the ICC ODI Super League table.
Following back-to-back defeats and surrendering the series 2-0, the West Indies enter today’s dead rubber at 10 p.m. Jamaica time, with only one thing on their minds, and that is to get a victory and the valuable points that will ultimately boost their morale and confidence.
“We came here for 30 points and we have a chance of getting 10 still in this competition. I also want to see improvement as we have gone from 120 to 140, but we need to get to that 230, 240, 250 mark so that we can be competitive and give the bowlers something to bowl at and show our mettle,” said Simmons upon arrival in Chattogram.
Ten points for Simmons and his troops will be crucial for the team’s chances of gaining one of the eight automatic spots for direct entry to the 2023 World Cup.
The bottom five teams will have to play in a qualifying event in Zimbabwe, along with teams from the lower divisions of the qualification pathway.
CLEAN SWEEP
With 20 points already in the bag, the Bangladesh camp says they won’t be tinkering too much with their playing eleven, as they look to go in for the clean sweep.
The West Indies, on the other hand, could do some reshuffling to try and inject some impetus into their misfiring batting unit.
Apart from Rovman Powell, who has scored 69 runs in two innings, no other batter has gone past 50 runs in two attempts at the crease.
Simmons doesn’t have a lot of options on the bench either, as wicketkeeper-batsman Jahmar Hamilton is the only other batter who has not got a game as yet. The other substitutes are fast bowlers Chemar Holder and Keon Harding.
With seven debutants on show for the regional side, Simmons says it is a chance for some players to get their feet wet at the international level and try to secure a permanent spot in the side.
“It’s a chance that guys get to show what they can do at this level. It’s also a chance for them to put their names in the hat for 2023, and also for the upcoming Sri Lanka series and others later down in the year. It’s good to see what people are made of,” added Simmons.