THE HEATED BATTLE that transpired during the WICB regional match between Barbados and Trinidad and Tobago didn’t go overboard according to one of the coaches of the teams.
Barbados coach Vasbert Drakes saw nothing untoward when the players on both sides were engaging in a series of exchanges on the third day of the match at Guaracara Park on Sunday.
It was a day on which tempers flared, words were traded and hands were pointed in all directions amidst an absorbing duel for first innings honours.“
Cricket is a game where tempers are going to flare once you are competing. I don’t want the public to look at it in a negative way,” Drakes told MIDWEEK SPORT.
“I always tell my players to make sure you have some sort of control over what you are doing because there are umpires and there are rules and regulations that you try to follow.
“We have a tendency to blow things out of proportion. It is just a matter of respecting the game and being accountable for what you do. From my point of view, some tempers flared but I believe the game was still played in a good, competitive spirit.”
Lost the advantage
As the action was heating up in the middle, Barbados were gradually losing the advantage they had created when they reduced Trinidad and Tobago to 131 for five in response to their challenging 395.
The hosts battled their way back to reach 390 for nine at stumps and achieved first innings points early on the final day before the match petered out into a tame draw.
Drakes, however, was very satisfied with the positives that came from the game and they were highlighted by a century from Kraigg Brathwaite and other significant scores by captain Ryan Hinds, Kirk Edwards and Shamarh Brooks.
“Coming into the competition, we’ve set some goals as a team and individuals and we pretty much hit our targets in the batting department,” Drakes said.
“From a bowling perspective, if we had grabbed some of the chances that went a-begging, we would be in a lot stronger position in terms of taking first innings.
“The batters who got in looked very comfortable against the Trinidad spinners. For once, I felt very happy from a coaching perspective where our batsmen were consistent on a pitch that gave us some challenges previously.”
Drakes had a further word of praise for 18-year-old opening batsman Kraigg Brathwaite who batted solidly in compiling an unbeaten 102 on the final day.
Mature innings
Playing in only his fifth first-class match for Barbados, Brathwaite displayed high powers of concentration in occupying the crease for four and a half hours in which he faced 278 balls.
“It was a great innings, an innings of maturity. He’s a young guy. He has dominated cricket since he has been playing the game. It’s a sign that this guy has some special talent,” the coach said.
“He still has a long way to go in terms of playing at the level we want to see him. We’re not going to rush him. We’re going to let him develop and learn his cricket.
“At the end of the day, you can’t learn in the better environment than you have now with someone like Desmond Haynes and Emmerson Trotman passing on information to him.”
While Barbados’ batting was outstanding, the bowlers made early inroads before meeting resistance and the cause wasn’t helped by no fewer than five missed chances.
As a result, Drakes was quick not to write off his bowlers, after, also taking into consideration the nature of the surface.
“Our first priority is to play some positive cricket. We did that. Going forward, we want to get the team to gel as quickly as possible,” he said.
“It was a very docile wicket so I am not going to criticize my bowlers too much. We want to win games, but at the end of the day, the wicket has to be conducive to taking 20 wickets in a match.”