West Indies coach Floyd Reifer Urges Middle-Order Batsmen To Show More Intensity

West Indies batting unit once again crumbled under pressure as they went down against India in the second ODI at the Port of Spain in Trinidad. The hosts were all out for 210 runs while chasing 259 runs by DLS method to help India secure a crucial 1-0 lead in the series with only one match to follow. West Indies head coach Floyd Reifer has urged his middle-order to show some intensity in the next game and back the bowlers.

Jason Holder & Co produced an excellent effort with the ball in the last ten overs to restrict India to 279 runs. Previously, it was Virat Kohli’s masterclass and Shreyas Iyer’s outstanding knock that helped the Men in Blues dominate the middle overs. But once Kohli got out, things got mild as West Indies staged a fine comeback. However, it was the batting unit that failed to offer consistency, which led them down in the encounter. Evin Lewis and Nichols Pooran showed glimpses but couldn’t carry it on to play a big knock and help his side clinch a victory.

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West Indies head coach Floyd Reifer urged his middle-order to show some intensity and gain from this experience. He also added that his batters gifted wickets which should not repeat in the next game on August 14.

“We have to learn from this experience. The guys in the middle need to show a little more fight and grit. We should look to build partnerships in the middle. We were in front of the game today, but we found a way to gift out wickets. They need to learn from this and get better,” Reifer said.

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Furthermore, Floyd Reifer also congratulated Chris Gayle on playing his 300th ODI matches. He is the only West Indies cricketer to register this milestone as he overtook Brian Lara’s record of most games. The southpaw, however, managed just 11 off 24 balls before Bhuvneshwar Kumar trapped him leg-before.

“300 games is a great achievement. Congratulations to him, it is great to see him achieve this landmark. He went past Brian Lara today to become the highest run-getter for Windies, so it is great,” Reifer added.

In conclusion, Floyd Reifer hailed his bowling unit for putting up clinical performances with the ball. The West Indies coach said that they will have to assess themselves and come out stronger in the next game to avoid another series defeat.