West Indies captain Shai Hope could not help but criticise his bowlers openly after his team’s shocking loss against the Netherlands in the ongoing ICC World Cup Qualifiers 2023.
West Indies are on the verge of missing out on the World Cup after suffering their second loss in the Qualifiers. Before losing to Netherland, they were defeated by hosts Zimbabwe. West Indies looked set to win the clash against Netherlands after a century from Nicholas Pooran propelled them to a huge total of 374 for 6.
However, the West Indies bowlers failed to defend the total as the scores were tied at the end of 100 overs. The contest was eventually decided by a Super Over and Netherlands won it by 22 runs. In the super over, Logan van Beek smashed 30 runs against Jason Holder before West Indies finished with 8 for 2.
Shai Hope slams West Indies bowlers:
Speaking at the end of the disappointing result, Shai Hope could not hide his frustration. The West Indies skipper stated that he and his teammates let themselves down. He then took shots at the bowlers, saying that he expected them to defend the big total.
“We just let ourselves down. I can’t see us scoring 375 and losing. Honestly, I thought it was enough. I expected the bowlers to do the job. Just unfortunate we lost. The picture is right in front of us now. We need to do better,” said Shai Hope.
Netherlands skipper Scott Edwards, on the other hand, was over the moon after the memorable win. The skipper stated that his team could not have played a better game of cricket, adding that Logan van Beek and Teja Nidamanuru batted really well.
“Still soaking it in. Can’t play a better individual game of cricket. They batted sensationally. We bowled well in patches. We thought we conceded 60 more. We had the belief though. That innings from Teja and van Beek was special,” said Edwards.
“We pride ourselves on our running. You hit gaps and run hard. Logan was in a bit of a trance. I don’t think he was listening to me. He was hitting everything for fours and sixes. This was going to be a massive game for us. To go in with two points is good,” Edwards added.