By IANS,
Georgetown (Guyana) : West Indies captain Darren Sammy commended his team for battling it out in the first Test against Pakistan, and said they badly needed the win after some ordinary performances at home.
The West Indies won the closely contested match by 40 runs Sunday and claimed their first Test victory in over two years. The West Indies made 226 and 152 and bowled Pakistan out for 160 and 178.
“We as a team needed this performance,” said Sammy, who got the man of the match award for picking up seven wickets.
“Lately, things had not been going well but I had the belief, this team had the belief,” Sammy said Sunday.
Sammy praised the batsmen for showing patience and hanging on a ‘tough’ wicket. In the second innings West Indies were struggling at 74/6 before veteran Shivnanraine Chanderpaul (36 not out) and newcomer Devendra Bishoo (24) shared a crucial 48-run partnership for the ninth wicket.
“It was a difficult pitch. We found ourselves not playing the spin too well. But I commend the guys for the effort, they batted out time and put in a total which in the end was enough to get the victory,” he said.
Sammy was ably supported by Ravi Rampaul in the bowling department. Rampaul justified his selection over Fidel Edwards by picking up a seven-wicket haul.
“Rampaul looks fit, and has worked really hard with Ottis Gibson (coach). It was a tough decision to pick between him and Fidel Edwards,” Sammy said.
Pakistan captain Misbah-ul haq expressed disappointment at the loss and admitted that his team made far too many mistakes.
“To lose this Test is disappointing, they played better cricket and bowled disciplined lines,” said Misbah, who fought back with a valiant 52 in the second innings after Pakistan, chasing 219 for victory, lost three wickets for two runs.
“We dropped so many catches and gave away so many runs to the lower order. We are a little disappointed with the batting also,” Misbah said.
The second and final Test at St. Kitts starts May 20.