Wavell: 'I Had to Bat Through'
Sat, Jan 22, '05
West Indies' hopes of beating Australia for their first VB Series win were dashed by rain at the Gabba in Brisbane but fans could take pride in two standout performances in the match.
Opening batsman Wavell Hinds hit a measured 107 from 138 balls (8x4), his third ODI ton against the world champion Australians and left-arm pacer Pedro Collins continued to impress with a three-wicket haul in just four overs. After the game, Hinds and Collins addressed the media.
On if he particularly enjoys the Australian bowling since he has scored three of his five centuries against Australia:
I just try my best to make sure I put my best foot forward seeing that the Australians are the benchmark for international cricket and the stage we were in, having lost our first two games, it called for someone to come big and I tried my best to put my hand up and make the best of the situation.
On if the game plan is for him to bat through the innings:
The game plan is always for us, as openers, to get the team off to a good start and bat as long as possible and whoever stay in as long as the situation calls for. I think, given the fact that Chris (Gayle) went early today and a couple of other wickets followed somebody had to bat through the innings.
On if that was the most tired he has ever been while batting:
It was a very challenging day, the conditions were very humid and given the fact that we had to run for a lot of our runs and playing on these big fields in Australia caused a lot of running so I think it was very challenging today.
PEDRO COLLINS
On how he felt:
I felt pretty comfortable today, I had my rhythm going for me, the ball was coming out my hand pretty nice, it was moving both ways and I got results. I put the ball in the right areas and I got results for it.
On whether the overcast conditions helped his bowling:
The conditions help a lot but I think I was a bit more focused today knowing that we had to win this game and it was very important. I mean we had to step up to the plate and I know Australia is a team, as soon as you slack up they will kill you, so I had to be on the ball from ball one today.
On getting Ricky Ponting with a peach of a delivery:
It?s always a joy to get the big guys out. That?s a thing that I want to keep up, hopefully I can get him out the next time I bowl at him.
On which wicket he enjoyed the most:
Andy Symonds, because he was playing for the ball to come in. The ball angled in and then it shifted, that was a beauty. I enjoyed that because I outsmarted him, out-thought him.
On being disappointed with the result:
Of course I?m disappointed with the result. There are not many teams that go about having Australia 5 wickets down for less than 40 runs. We had the upper hand but once the rain came, we can?t control that so hopefully in the next game we can play with the same intensity and look to beat Pakistan and get some more points on the board.
On the positives of this game:
Wavell (Hinds) got a hundred and that was good to see, getting the first hundred for the tournament for the West Indies team. Hopefully the batters can take some notes from that because the wickets here are pretty easy to bat on and Wavell proved that today. From the bowler?s perspective once you get the ball in the right areas you can get these guys out. They are not machines and hopefully we can get it on.
On whether he thought the team could finish it off if they had the time:
Definitely! The guys were pretty hyped and it was good to see the enthusiasm of the guys out there. We wanted to win but unfortunately the game ended the proceedings.
* Transcript provided by team sponsors Digicel.