NORTHAMPTON, England : Ravi Rampaul said he and the rest of the West Indies bowling attack would have learnt a few valuable lessons, after they endured a tough day in the field in their tour match against the England Lions on Friday.
The West Indies fast bowler said it was the first, real work-out for the attack since their arrival in England last Wednesday and this allowed them to understand how to bowl in conditions that are likely to prevail throughout their three-Test series against England, starting next week.
“I thought it was a big improvement from [Thursday],” he said. “I thought I bowled too short [the previous day], and after speaking with the coach and some of my teammates, I recognised that I had to bowl a fuller length in these conditions.
“Basically, it was just about executing. I went out there, followed instructions, got some movement, and it paid off.”
Rampaul was the pick of the Windies’ bowlers with three wickets for 79 runs from 24 overs, but James Taylor led the Lions’ defiance with a polished 118, propelling them to 341, replying to West Indies first innings total of 147 on the second day of the four-day, first-class match at Wantage Road.
West Indies’ first tour match against Sussex ended last Monday at Hove in a no-result, due to rain allowing just 34 overs, and Rampaul said the weather could play a big role in the upcoming series.
“It is totally different from bowling in the Caribbean,” he said. “It is cold, so it becomes a mental thing, but you just have to block it out and continue doing what you are doing.”
Rampaul and his fellow bowlers were frustrated on Friday, after wobbling the Lions on 98 for five before lunch, as Taylor anchored the home team’s revival.
It’s a pattern that has dogged West Indies for the last year-and-a-half and Rampaul said the bowlers needed to remain focussed when they have opponents under pressure.
“We fight hard for the first five or six wickets, and then probably release our feet from the gas, believing the rest of the batting will fall easily,” he said.
“We are learning in every game we play. To finish off the tail, we need to get the ‘killer instinct’ back. But this was our first [real work-out] here, and maybe the next time, we will be better.”
West Indies reached 28 for three in their second innings at the close.
The first Test against England starts this coming Thursday at Lord’s.
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