Collymore: Best Form of my Life
West Indies fast bowler Corey Collymore, who bowled exceptionally in the first two Test matches against Pakistan but without much luck, plans to put aside the disappointment and get on with the job of leading the West Indies bowling attack.Collymore talked about being in the best form of his life, his role in guiding the young fast bowlers and looking for greater rewards in the final test match in Karachi where the West Indies will be looking for a victory to square the series. Following are excerpts of his comments:
On what he is looking forward to in the final Test match in Karachi:
Obviously we have to look for a win. We have to put all our efforts for a win. Hopefully I can keep bowling the same way but pick up a few more wickets.
On how he feels about his bowling form:
I think I'm bowling well but just not getting the rewards in terms of wickets. I still think I'm in good form, for the last two to three years I felt I have been bowling well. I feel as though over the past two to three years I have been in the best form of my life.
On whether he gets frustrated when he beats the bat regularly without getting the edge:
Sometimes you get frustrated but at the end of the day you still have to get the batsman out. Cricket is team sport and not an individual sport and you have to realize that you are creating pressure at one end and the wickets are falling at the other end and that's where Jerome (Taylor) comes in. I think we are a wonderful bowling combination.
On whether he is surprised on how well Jerome Taylor has come on in recent months:
I'm not surprised at all with the way Jerome is bowling. From the first time I saw him bowl I knew he had what it took to be a good fast bowler. Back then (in 2003) he needed to get stronger.
The three years he's been out of cricket he had a lot of time to reflect and get stronger which helped him to get successful at this level which has him with 39 wickets in 9 test matches. That's very good when you consider that (Glenn) McGrath used to aim for about 4 wickets per Test.
On responding to Taylor's praise for his support and advice:
I guess it stems from the fact that when I came up the same way. A lot of senior players like Vassy (Vasbert Drakes) and Cuddy (Courtney Walsh) helped me. I try to do the same thing and in the last two to three years I have been playing with Jerome and Fidel (Edwards) and the three of us have a great friendship going.
We call each other on a regular basis wherever we are in the world. That friendship will help us to know each other's game and help one another as we go along. I also learnt a lot from my games master at school, Peter Vaughn and Keith Boyce and in the latter part of my career I have been getting a lot of help from Darnley Boxhill and I passed on the information to Jerome.
On the pitches in Pakistan:
Obviously these tracks are not tailor made (no pun intended) for fast bowling. We are a little disappointed with the pitches but at the end of the day you still have to do the job you've been selected to do so that is where the mental toughness comes in.