The first T20 international between West Indies and New Zealand is scheduled to start today at Sabina Park. This will be West Indies’ last series before the T20 World Cup and will be a crucial one for all.
Head coach Phil Simmons said that these three matches are very important for selecting the final squad of the World Cup.
“It’s difficult but we have three more matches and after that we’ll sit down and make decisions as to who fits into the way we want to play. I think the three matches will be important for a lot of players.”
Also, his hope is to win this match for Jamaica’s 60th independence and bring honor to the local fans.
West Indies enter the tournament with a series defeat, while New Zealand enter the tournament after a very successful series. The head coach further stated,
“We keep trying to make sure that the people around the world who we represent are on a high, so that is never out of our purpose and we want to continue to do that.”
And,
“We try to concentrate on the things we have not done right and if we can get the things that we haven’t done right, correct, we will be in a position to win more games than we lose.”
However, after the one-day match against Ireland eight months ago, on January 16, no international cricket match has been held at Sabina Park in Jamaica and several non-cricket events took place on the field.
As the Jamaica Premier League used Sabina Park for most of the domestic football season, several private events, as well as concerts and parties, marred the Sabina Park grounds.
On Tuesday, the West Indies team was given a covering and netting to facilitate practice.
Sabina Park Chief Caretaker Michael Hilton, who was busy on the ground with his team for today’s match, told the media that despite things happening outside of cricket like football, he ensured the ground was in good condition.
“We were well prepared and we planned out our approach very carefully. What we did was to leave a lot of grass on and so even though there was a lot of football and things happening, that didn’t do too much damage.”
The Cricket Association of Jamaica made sure that the stadium was quickly made suitable for cricket by using some new equipment. Accordingly, Hilton expects that the pitch will be good for the bowlers and batsmen of both teams.
“The pitch is expected to play very well. It will have something in it for everyone, bowlers, batters as it is expected to play true, with even bounce and carry.”