Hyderabad: West Indian all-rounder Roston Chase believes that the return of Jason Holder and Kemar Roach from injury can be a blessing for the team and can certainly improve their inexperienced bowling line-up.
“It is always good to have the captain (Jason) back. I am not sure what the line-up will be for the next match. I can’t really say who is playing but it is good to have Kemar Roach back. He is a senior player and brings a lot of experience to the team. It is good to have both of them back for us,” he said.
He also felt the team needs to bat more cautiously and not throw away wickets. “As far as application is concerned, India scored 600 plus runs in the first Test and it was always a difficult task for us. It’s a huge score to surpass. On the first afternoon, the boys were a bit tired having fielded for so many overs. We didn’t really apply ourselves on the field. We were trying to be aggressive which is good but the Indian bowlers bowled really well. Shot selection was a bit off. we didn’t really match our aggression with effects. We were not really in control of some of the shots we played.”
He also said that the team has special plans to trouble Indian batsmen, especially Prithvi Shaw who hammered a century on debut.
Chase said he would be ready to chip in with the ball like he did in Rajkot. “The Rajkot pitch was a good one. We had also got accustomed to the ball, which, after it got a bit old, was a little slippery. What we need to do is find a way to get the ball swinging a bit more because the Indian fast bowlers has bowled reverse swing very early and that’s something that we need to look up to,” he said.
Roston recalled the 2017 England tour, where they came back from 0-1 to win the second Test. “It’s a similar situation. We did not play well in the first game so we are looking to fight and come back stronger in the second Test. The boys had some nervous energy in the first game which led to the downfall. The team has a certain plan and we are ready for the second Test,” he added.
In 2016, Roston batted for an entire day against India and saved his team from losing the Test. He batted quite easily against Ashwin. He can replicate the same even with the conditions being quite different.
“Cricket is played on the field so anything is possible out there. Once you believe in your abilities and have confidence in your teammates then anything is possible. I think we can overcome any situation,” Roston said.
