Sammy says Windies must master batting first ahead of series-deciding ODI

GEORGETOWN, Guyana (CMC) — West Indies head coach Daren Sammy says his side’s chasing strength is clear, but the team must also learn how to win when it bats first.

His remarks come before the decisive third One-Day International against New Zealand, with the series locked at 1-1. In the opener at Providence Stadium, the Windies won the toss, put New Zealand in, and comfortably overhauled a target of 267. In the second match at the same ground, they chose to bat and were dismissed for just 138.

Speaking on Wednesday in a pre-match interview, Sammy said the regional side needs better balance across every match situation.

“It seems like whoever wins the toss looks to bowl first, but we have to become a team that can set totals and also defend it and we’re working on that. “We just need to apply that same mindset that we have in the chase, whether it be a turning wicket, which is what we’re faced with now in Guyana, but it is something that we really have to get better at and making better decisions when the challenge comes from the bowlers,” Sammy said.

He expects a sharper batting display in a high-stakes game three. With the last two fixtures scheduled for Kensington Oval, he stressed the value of arriving in Barbados ahead 2-1.

“I think we all know what the big difference was between game one and two; we didn’t bat as well as we should have in conditions that we are quite familiar with. “So it’s important for us as a batting group to be a little bit more aware of the situation and assess a little faster as to what is required on the surface and what is a good total on that surface. Yes, the conditions are challenging, but if we stick to the process of how we go about doing things, we give ourselves a better chance of executing our batting plans,” Sammy said.

“The bowling was good, we made them fight for the total, but we all saw if we had put a better score on the board we would have been in a better position to win. “…Trusting the process is something we’ve been preaching, and home success is really one of the things we really want to improve on… Apart from the Sri Lanka series that was rain-affected, we’ve had a good record at home, so we want to keep that record and we do that by trying to go into Barbados one up and trying to be better in Barbados and give ourselves a better chance of qualifying [for the 2027 Cricket World Cup] and winning the series, which is the main objective,” he added.