Alzarri Joseph, the West Indies pacer, has found himself in hot soup after he stormed off the field after an argument with captain Shai Hope during the recent third ODI against England.
The unforeseen occurrence occurred at the start of the final One-Day International at Kensington Oval, confusing fans and players. Alzarri Joseph stated his dissatisfaction early in the game when England was at 10/1.
He was noticeably irritated by the field placement following his first ball of the fourth over. The West Indies fast bowler appeared angry, waving toward the slips, as he was upset with the field arrangement by captain Shai Hope.
Despite the tension, Alzarri Joseph maintained his stint and quickly struck with a blazing 148.2 kph short ball, dismissing England’s Jordan Cox, who passed the ball to the wicketkeeper and skipper Shai Hope.
Alzarri Joseph has a heated argument with Shai Hope; and walks off the field leaving the team with 10 players
After removing Jordan Cox, Joseph stunned everyone by going off the field without saying anything to Hope or celebrating the key wicket during the third and final ODI.
Joseph stormed off the field, grumbling and furiously, after saying something to his Caribbean teammates. He then noticed him seated in the dressing room, looking furious.
However, West Indies coach Darren Sammy attempted to calm Alzarri Joseph just beyond the boundary, but the fiery pacer stayed determined and sat alone in the dugout, keeping the audience and players in the dark about what had occurred on the field.
Gets angry! 😡
Bowls a wicket maiden 👊
Leaves 🤯An eventful start to the game for Alzarri Joseph! 😬#WIvENGonFanCode pic.twitter.com/2OXbk0VxWt
— FanCode (@FanCode) November 6, 2024
Joseph returned to the field at the start of the sixth over but didn’t bowl again until the 12th. He bowled two more overs before departing the field after two misfields from his bowling enabling England to score two runs by overthrow. He returned later to bowl two more middle overs, concluding with three in the death.
Daren Sammy reacts to Alzarri Joseph’s actions
West Indies head coach Daren Sammy has labeled Alzarri Joseph’s behavior during the third ODI against England as “unacceptable”.
“Behaviour like that is unacceptable on my cricket field. We will be friends…but in the culture I’m trying to build, that’s unacceptable. We will definitely have a chat about that,” Sammy said to TalkSPORT after play.
On the other hand, Former England hitter Mark Butcher, who was commentating during the incident, condemned Joseph’s behavior.
“Many times, as a captain or as a player, you have a disagreement about something on the field. But you work that out either behind closed doors or you get on with your job. Your captain asks you to bowl to a field; you bowl to it,” Butcher was heard saying.
The West Indies won the ODI series 2-1 after winning the third and final ODI by eight wickets. England was asked to bat first and scored 263/8 in 50 overs, thanks to half-centuries from Phil Salt (74) and Dan Mousley (58), as well as contributions from Sam Curran (40) and Jofra Archer (38*).
In response, Brandon King (102) and Keacy Carty (128*) led West Indies to 267/2 in 43 overs, winning both the match and the series.
Also Read: Jay Shah To Leave BCCI Secretary Position? Senior Official Gives Final Verdict