West Indies will finally have their wish granted when they would get to play on the hard and bouncy pitch in the fifth and the final ODI at Sabina Park, Jamaica on Thursday.
Reports from Jamaica suggest that a tough batting surface awaits the two teams, something which the West Indian captain Darren Sammy has been yearning for throughout the series.
It has, however, come too late for the hosts who are facing a threat of a clean sweep by the Indians on their own home soil.
India leads the five-match ODI series 3-0.
Chief curator Charles Josephs said that the pitch will have more bounce and pace, than what has been seen in the series so far.
“I expect us to have a wicket that bounces more than the ones that we have seen in the eastern Caribbean,” said Joseph, who has been curator at this venue since 1962.
This venue is prone to heavy showers but Joseph is confident that he would get the track of his liking.
“We have always dedicated ourselves to producing hard, true pitches that are good for both batsmen and bowlers alike, and despite losing a couple days due to rain, I expect us to meet our aim,” he said.
Sammy has been quite vocal in his criticism about the wickets for keeping low and slow in the series so far.
He made the same points while playing against Pakistan, where tracks in Guyana and St. Kitts in two Tests were no better.
“We had the same experience against Pakistan and even then, the pitches supported them,” Sammy had lamented after the one-off Twenty20 against India in Trinidad on June 4.
“It’s a home series, but it feels like the pitches are out of our control. We can only ask for what we want, but it’s up to the groundsman to prepare it. Our coach Ottis Gibson has written to the authorities about it but to no avail,” he had further stated.
Sammy’s remarks came against the backdrop of a Twenty20 World Cup match between these two teams in Kensington Oval, Barbados last year when West Indies singed India with short-pitched bowling.
Sammy had demanded something similar in the present series but his request was not granted.
“We have requested for bouncy pitches but as I said, we don’t prepare the pitches. The pitches in the present series so far has suited the spinners and it has played straight into the hands of Indians who have some world class tweakers in the ranks,” he said.
The final ODI will be one of the two matches scheduled at Sabina Park during the series.
While the two teams take each other on Thursday to bring the lid on the ODI series, they would clash in the opening Test at the same venue on June 20.
