West Indies Skipper Roston Chase Admits Selection Error After Pakistan Levels Series

'We could have made room for an extra spinner': West Indies captain Roston Chase rues selection after Pakistan level series

Port of Spain, August 6

Pakistan levelled the two-match Test series 1-1 with an eight-wicket victory in Port of Spain after spinners dominated proceedings, claiming 20 of the 30 wickets that fell to bowlers during the match. West Indies, however, fielded only one frontline spinner in Jomel Warrican, while Pakistan played two specialist spinners -- Sajid Khan and Ali Usman.

"I don't want to say we misread the pitch, but we didn't think that it was going to spin as much from so early," Chase said after the defeat, according to Cricinfo. "So I think that that is where the problem came in."

"And also my injury, I think that we thought I would have been able to bowl a lot more, but rushing back from the injury a bit too quickly, and I was still in some pain in terms of bowling. So I think that was a bit of a dilemma for us," he added.

Chase, who has been nursing a finger injury since before the series, was expected to support Warrican with his off-spin but was unable to shoulder a full bowling workload.

Reflecting on the team combination, the West Indies skipper said another spinner could have been accommodated, although not at the expense of his place in the XI.

"Captaining the side, I would never leave myself out to play anyone else," Chase said. "If I am outright injured and can't play, then I would sit out. But once I can still play as a batsman, I will always play. But I do think that we could have made room for an extra spinner, but it wouldn't have been [instead of] myself at all," said Chase as per Cricinfo.

Chase also felt his seamers were slow to adapt to conditions that offered little assistance to fast bowling, allowing Pakistan to seize control of the contest with a brisk first-innings response.

"I think that we took a bit too long to adapt to the conditions," he said. "The wicket wasn't one that was assisting the fast bowlers as much like [the] Brian Lara [Stadium in Tarouba, which hosted the first Test]."

He added, "So I think it's a case where we needed to be more patient and just try to defend one side of the wicket and just try to squeeze them as much as possible into making a mistake, but we still tried to blast them out per se, and I think that gave them too many runs before we really locked it down and stuck to the plan and were a bit more disciplined."

West Indies were further hampered when seam-bowling all-rounder Justin Greaves suffered a leg injury while batting in the first innings and was unable to bowl. Greaves had starred in the opening Test, earning the Player of the Match award after taking seven wickets, including a five-wicket haul.

"Yeah, it was a big miss for me because when things tend to start straying away, Justin is a guy that I can always call on to come and pull it back. He's that guy that he's more of a holding bowler, but he holds so well that it creates so much pressure that he tends to get wickets as well, by batsmen making mistakes, and we saw it in the last game - once he gets going, he's really hard to stop. So, yeah, it was a big miss for us as well with that injury. So I just hope that he can get back to full fitness as quickly as possible," Chase said.

Despite the defeat, Chase reserved special praise for left-arm spinner Warrican, who bowled 46 overs in Pakistan's first innings and claimed a six-wicket haul.

"Yeah, I thought his effort was a magnificent one," Chase said.

"I mean, he bowled really long for those wickets, and I thought his patience was up to par. I thought he really stuck to the task and just put the ball in front of the batsman and allowed the pitch to work for him, and he finally reaped the reward," he added.

He further added, "So I want to say congrats to Jomel Warrican and especially for a guy who hasn't been playing as many matches given that we tend to go with the pacers more often than not."

The West Indies skipper also backed veteran pacer Kemar Roach, who crossed the 300-Test wicket mark during the preceding series against Sri Lanka, to continue for as long as he feels capable.

"Kemar Roach, he's a legend. I will always encourage Kemar to keep going. I think Kemar is kind of a guy that, he knows himself, he knows his limits, he knows his body. And for me, if I had to say it, I think it would be up to Kemar for when he's ready to call it quits. He's been doing very well for us - past 300 wickets, he still has a lot to offer. I will always encourage Kemar to keep going," Chase said.

Pakistan's victory in the second Test ensured the two-match series ended 1-1 after West Indies had won the opener in Tarouba by 90 runs.

— ANI