Reason prevails and Windies win
KEEPER JARS HIS KNEE ON SODDEN OUTFIELD Tourists see off England following ultimatum.
West Indies captain Carlos Brathwaite said his side were so concerned about the prospect of “career-threatening injuries” on a sodden outfield they considered abandoning before beating England in a Twenty20 international.
None of the West Indies team on Saturday had been involved in their side’s recent 2-1 three-Test series defeat in England.
Instead Brathwaite and his men had arrived directly from the Caribbean Premier League Twenty20 tournament.
Conditions at the Riverside, the home of Durham, were always likely to prove challenging for a team used to the rather warmer climate back home.
But jokes about the weather gave way to major concern when Windies wicketkeeper Chadwick Walton, changing direction to field a deflected ball, slipped and jarred his knee on an already wet outfield that had been exposed to yet more rain during the game.
Walton recovered, however, and he was behind the stumps as West Indies completed a 21-run win – their 11th in 15 Twenty20 internationals against England.
But it almost did not happen after Walton’s injury, with Brathwaite telling a post-match news conference: “I had a chat with a few of the boys while Chadwick was getting treatment and most of them said it was unsafe.
“I told the umpires the boys had some concerns – it could be a career-threatening injury next.
He added: “We kind of gave it an ultimatum ... we got the outfield roped and we were in agreement that if it continued to be unsafe or if anything dramatic or drastic happened we’d call it quits. But cricket was the winner.”
Durham later revealed that three spectators were injured after falling on unstable flooring in the North East Terrace, with stewards evacuating the area.
The returning Chris Gayle (40) and his heir apparent Evin Lewis (51) got West Indies off to a flying start with a rapid first-wicket stand of 77 before England, with Liam Plunkett and Adil Rashid sharing six wickets, restricted the tourists to 176/9.
The key passage of play started when paceman Brathwaite bowled Alex Hales for a rapid 43.
Hales’s exit sparked a slump that saw three wickets lost in quick succession, with key batsmen Joe Root and Twenty20 captain Eoin Morgan falling cheaply as England slumped to 68/4 on the way to a total of 155 all out. – AFP