da pixbet： Bennett King, the West Indies coach, said his side had only themselves toblame for not forcing a result during the second Test at Multan
Cricinfo staff25-Nov-2006
‘Corey Collymore bowled exceptionally well’ – Bennett King © Getty Images
Bennett King, the West Indies coach, said his side had only themselves toblame for not forcing a result during the second Test at Multan. MohammadYousuf and Abdul Razzaq eventually steered Pakistan to safety on the finalday, after they began their second innings 234 runs behind but it mighthave been different had Yousuf not been dropped at second slip when on108. He went on to make 191.King told reporters at the National Stadium in Karachi, ahead of the finalTest, “We certainly had our opportunities and were in a strong position, Iwouldn’t say it was disappointing but we only have ourselves to blame forthe result and we need to raise our fielding standards. Certainly the halfchances we have to make sure we take them. On these types of wickets youdon’t get a lot of opportunities so when they come your way you need tomake sure you take them.”Yousuf has been a regular beneficiary of West Indian lapses through theseries, being dropped four times in three innings. He has 439 runs in theseries so far. “I think our bowling has been not too bad overall but wehaven’t taken our opportunities. We dropped him on 40-odd in the firstTest and let him off the hook in the second Test as well. He is certainlya good player and in form and we will certainly take care this time. If wetake our opportunities we can be in a strong position again.”The Multan pitch was criticised by seemingly anyone who came within a mileof it, but particularly so by both captains and Danish Kaneria. Itoverlooked the fact that this was the first drawn Test from five matches on atraditionally high-scoring ground and King at least was happy that hisbowlers managed to create enough chances from the surface.”I think the pitch we just played on, we created enough opportunities andwent past the bat enough to get edges. Collymore bowled exceptionally welland had people edged the ball instead of missing it as often as they didthe result would have been different,” King said.He added, “I certainly think we extracted as much as we can out of thewickets and we have to make sure we maintain our line and disciplines andnot just get frustrated that we are beating the bat or catches are goingdown.”More help should be on offer in Karachi. The last two Tests here haveproduced outstanding cricket, where bowlers and batsmen have tussledevenly. As ever, there is grass now, though whether it will be asplentiful in two days’ time is uncertain. King said, “There is grass butwe expect that it will be taken off in a couple of days. It looks like apretty good batting track, slow, but probably taking spin as it goesalong.”His side has been on the road for some time now, ever since the DLF cup inMalaysia in September but that hasn’t led to a tailing off inperformances, a trait that has pleased King. “We are very determined. Wehave been on the road for three months and the boys played some of thebest cricket on the fifth day when most sides would probably start to feelthe effects of a long tour. But these boys have shown mental fortitude andI am very encouraged by the performance of the last game. We expect to gofrom strength to strength.”