Sammy encouraged by 'defensive' Tigers

West Indies captain Darren Sammy's reaction at the post match press conference at the Sher-e-Bangla National Stadium yesterday perhaps best described the way the game's balance 'see-sawed' from one side to the other. It was, in a sense, a mixture of both joy and relief that engulfed every statement made by the visiting captain.
“If you remember, in the press conference we had before this series, I said that we had a lot of respect for Bangladesh and we were not going to take them lightly and we didn't,” said Sammy, reiterating his team's approach in this series. “Had we taken them lightly, the result after the first innings would have caused panic in our dressing room. It was a hard-fought Test match and it will definitely boost up our confidence and improve the attitude of the players in the dressing room,” he added.
Sammy, who marshalled his bowlers accordingly in the last session of the Test, stated that it was the 'different attitude' shown by the Bangladesh batsmen that gave him the confidence to take an attacking approach. “Normally, Tamim (Iqbal) and the other Bangladesh batsmen go after the new ball. So to see them coming out there and leaving deliveries alone, I kind of liked it. Had they got off to a flier, then we would have to pull back. So when we saw them playing defensive we became more comfortable,” explained Sammy.
When asked which was the turning point of the match, Sammy was unwilling to single out a specific moment, saying that there were several pivotal junctures.
Despite being bowled out early in the day, Sammy stated that he always backed his bowlers. “The pitch we saw from the last session (4th day) and the way it played today morning (5th day), there was something in it for the spinners. We saw how Gazi and Rubel bowled yesterday and this morning, so I was confident that my bowlers could do the job for us.”
With four specialist bowlers in the side, the 28-year-old captain changed his attacking approach frequently, varying it from spin to pace accordingly. Tino Best, who picked up a five-for, did inflict the main damage, but Sammy was of the opinion that it was an all-round bowling effort that helped them bowl the hosts out for a small total, while reserving special praise for Best.
“The effort from Tino this afternoon -- putting the ball consistently in the right areas, was brilliant. Ravi Rampaul, for the last two years has been in good form. He has got a habit of picking up the wickets. He is the one man I can count on to come and make something happen,” he added.