West Indies skipper Kieron Pollard has slammed the pitch at Kensington Oval in Barbados following a six-wicket loss in the third and final ODI against Australia. After opting to bat first, the Windies were all out for just 152 runs in 45.1 overs. In reply, the Alex Carey-led side reached 153/4 to chase down the target in 30.3 overs.
Even the previous ODIs also witnessed the similar story where a string of low-scoring encounters took place. In the series opener, Australia scored 252/9, and in reply, the hosts could only manage 123. In the subsequent match, Australia were packed at 187, and the Windies chased the total with 4 wickets in hand. The trend continued when both sides met in the series decider.
After the final ODI, Pollard did not shy away from criticising the nature of pitches and termed it as ‘absolutely ridiculous’. He was of the opinion that the track was not acceptable for international cricket. Polly referred to the T20I leg where high-scoring matches entertained fans, stating it was disappointing with the way the ODI series happened.
“Coming here to Barbados, I think both teams struggled on the pitch, and I think that’s unacceptable for international cricket,” said Pollard at the post-match presentation.
“We’re not going to make excuses. We accept that we batted badly, but I don’t think the scores that we have gotten in this three-match series, for two top international teams, I think that’s very embarrassing for us as a people. Coming from St Lucia to this, I think it’s absolutely ridiculous,” he added.
The Trinidadian cricketer mentioned that people blame players for not performing up to the mark, but players should get good cricketing wickets to display their potential.
“We, as players, sometimes we get the brunt of the accusations and all the bad stuff. But give guys the opportunity to come and play on some good cricketing wickets. It goes back even to our regional cricket as well. I think as a whole, we need to do better, and we as individuals need to do better as well,” Pollard added further.
