PORT OF SPAIN, Trinidad (CMC);
Legendary West Indian batsman and Jamaican cricket icon Lawrence Rowe has voiced his frustration over questionable umpiring decisions that he believes significantly impacted the West Indies in the first Test against Australia in Barbados.
Speaking on iSports on i95.5 FM with host Andre Errol Baptiste on Saturday, Rowe pointed to South African third umpire Adrian Holdstock’s controversial calls as a major turning point in the match.
Despite the assistance of replay technology, at least three decisions went against the home side, leaving the West Indies camp deeply aggrieved.
Rowe highlighted the dismissals of batsmen Shai Hope and captain Roston Chase as particularly damaging.
“I believe we got a couple of bad decisions, Hope and the skipper. I didn’t think either of them was out. They were batting well, both on 40-odd, and looking set. On that wicket, you need to settle in, and they were doing just that. One of them could have gone on to score a hundred. If we had a lead of 70 to 100 runs, things could have been very different.”
The batting great argued that chasing a target of 170-180 to win the Test would have been far more manageable than the daunting 300 set by Australia.
“Chasing 300 was always going to be difficult on that track. A smaller target would have changed the mindset of the batsmen completely,” Rowe explained.
Despite the disappointment, Rowe expressed optimism about the team’s potential to bounce back in the second Test.
“This squad has talent. I was very impressed with the bowling; they performed extremely well. As for the batting, we have players who can deliver, but some make avoidable mistakes that prove costly. If they harness their abilities and play with greater determination, I believe we can turn things around.”