WI captain: A better performance from the batsmen needed

If the West Indies are to salvage the Test series against South Africa they will need to win the second and final Test match which begins today and that means a better batting performance from the home team.

The West Indies were bowled out in the first innings of the first match for 97 runs and captain of the team Kraigg Brathwaite said that it was the first innings that really hurt the team and put them on the backfoot.

Though both innings are important Brathwaite said that it is the first innings that sets up the game and he believes that the batsmen will now have to do better, especially in the first innings.

“As batters we know we have work to do and we look forward to the challenge.”

He mentioned that one thing that was important was the mental side of the game as one has to get your mind in a good place and being positive knowing that they are capable of getting the job done. “It is easy to doubt yourself at times but you have to back your plans.”

However he said that another thing that needed to improve was the shot selection as they could have left more of the balls and more consistently throughout the day and not just for short periods.

He dispelled any rumor that the West Indies are prone to  thefast short ball, saying that his batsmen are capable of doing well.

Brathwaite mentioned that one of the key things was learning form the loss and they have and they had “a good practice session yesterday and the guys are looking well.”

“We got to keep going we can’t just relax. We learnt a lot for me it is keep backing and trusting that plan.”

Shannon Gabriel is set to make his return having been named in the 13 man squad and he will bring more experience to the bowling line up.

The bowling has been good and it is now for the batsmen to give them something to defend which includes using a different plan if a situation such as the one encountered with Quinton de Kock who batted well comes up again.