Lead-off hitter John Campbell completed his first half-century Test in the Caribbean, while the West Indies took a seven-wicket victory over Bangladesh on the fourth morning of the first Test in Antigua on Sunday. Campbell resumed 49 for three and needed just 35 more runs at the start of the day to complete a modest goal of 84. Campbell dominated the score alongside vice-captain Jermaine Blackwood (26 not out). He completed his third Test half-century overall with a sweep for four before emphatically sealing the result with a long-range six in the same over from part-time spinner Najmul Hossain.
Any small Bangladeshi hopes of raising further alarm in the West Indies camp never materialized as sailor Khaled Ahmed, who took three early wickets late on the third day to bring the home side down to nine for three, proved equally ineffective as the other bowlers used by captain. Shakib Al Hasan.
After careful batting the night before to keep the innings steady, Campbell and Blackwood had total freedom to rack up the remaining seven overs in less than half an hour within a 79-run uninterrupted tie.
For Shakib, who returned to the Test side as captain, the early batting capitulation at the start of the Test game was the determining factor in the final result.
“That one session killed the match for us,” was his candid assessment at the end of the match as he reflected on the first morning of the match on Thursday, when Bangladesh lost six wickets before lunch en route to a 103 route.
“From that moment on we were always behind the game. It’s not acceptable at all. We’ve done this quite regularly now in our last four-five Test matches.
“Our batsman has to find ways to survive, stay on the wicket and get runs. Then the bowlers have a chance to win the game for us.”
Roach to ‘keep working’
Shakib’s West Indian counterpart was the luckier man at the end of the game, although Kraigg Brathwaite would have preferred to see his team’s better overall hitting power in the first innings.
“I thought Bangladesh was a pretty good bowler, so it was a good attempt for us to get over 100 overs, although I would have liked to have had a few more runs in the first innings,” said the home captain, looking back at a West Indian 265 first inning total in which he and vice-captain Blackwood combined for 157 runs.
Not surprisingly, he was full of praise for man of the match Kemar Roach in leading the bowling efforts.
“He continues to lead the way, both on and off the field,” Brathwaite said.
“I was especially happy with the way we took advantage of the conditions on the first morning. It wasn’t just a matter of turning and bowling and expecting the wickets to fall.
“We bowled well, correct lengths and lines and were rewarded to set the tone for the rest of the match.”
Roach finished with seven wickets in the match, including his tenth Test innings five-wicket haul in the second innings.
He has 50 Test casualties at Sir Vivian Richards Stadium and tied with Michael Holding on 249 wickets to be joint sixth among the leading West Indies wicket-takers.
“I’m a really big person when it comes to stats so it’s very satisfying to be with the legends of the game but I’ll just keep working and hopefully get to that 300 wicket mark,” said Roach, who turns 34 on June 30.
promoted
Before that, he has the chance to single-handedly claim sixth place on the Caribbean wicket taker’s list when the second and final Test opens on Friday at St Lucia’s Daren Sammy Stadium.
(This story was not edited by DailyExpertNews staff and was generated automatically from a syndicated feed.)
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