After the West Indies’ historic loss to Australia at Sabina Park, captain Roston Chase didn’t hold back. He called their collapse, resulting in the second-lowest score in Test history, heartbreaking and embarrassing.
Chasing 204 to win on day three, the team was crushed for just 27 runs in 14.3 overs. This handed Australia a 176-run victory and a 3-0 series sweep. The innings was full of unwanted records, like seven ducks and a combined top-six score of only six runs, the lowest ever in Test cricket.
A clearly upset Chase spoke at the post-match press conference, saying he was disappointed in the team’s poor performance:
It’s disappointing. We keep getting into positions where we could win, but then we just give up and don’t fight in the final innings with the bat. It’s really heartbreaking because I think this happened in all three Tests, and we aren’t learning from our mistakes. We need to take a hard look at that. Getting bowled out for under 30 is, of course, embarrassing.
Chase thought the target was doable and didn’t blame the Sabina Park pitch, even though he knew batting conditions were tough throughout the series.
I thought it was realistic. The wicket was a good wicket, still good for batting. I didn’t think there was anything too bad in the wicket, unlike the last two games where the ball was moving or bouncing all over the place. So, we thought 204 was gettable. But with the start we had [11 for 6], it’s very hard to score those runs from there, Chase said about the 204-run target.
Looking back on the series’ pitches, he said, I think the pitches were tough. I don’t want to say they favored the bowlers too much, but they were tough because this is probably the first series I’ve ever played where no batter reached a hundred for either side.
Facing a big challenge to rebuild before their next Test series in India this October, Chase stressed the need for serious self-examination and detailed prep work.
We as batters need to really examine ourselves. The next series is quite a way off, so we have time. We need to really look at our batting this series and see where we can improve and how we can get 300 runs on the board, Chase added.
The road ahead for West Indies cricket, especially their weak batting lineup, looks tough after a series marked by one forgettable, record-breaking collapse.