This will be the beginning of things to come: Sammy
October 8, 2012 · 0 Comments
COLOMBO
West Indies skipper Darren Sammy said the World Twenty20 victory over Sri Lanka here Sunday was very special and will be the beginning of things to come.
“This hopefully will be the beginning of things to come. Hopefully this team will go on. For the last two years, we’ve shown the never say die attitude but we haven’t had the results,” said Sammy in the post-match presentation ceremony.
“This moment we’re going to live forever. The team has been through a lot in the last 10 years. The mission was to win the World T20, the belief we left the Caribbean with has pulled us through. Today we were down and out but our never say die attitude came out.”
This was the West Indies‘ first world title since they won the World Cup in 1979.
Sammy thanked his supporters before taking a lap of honour around the ground.
“Thank you to everyone who supported us. The tournament is for the fans. The love we felt from the Sri Lankan people is tremendous and we want to thank them for that,” said the 28-year-old.
Sri Lankan skipper Mahela Jayawardene, who top-scored for the hosts with 33, gave credit to his opponents, stating that a couple of errors on the field while batting and bowling took the momentum away from them.
“I think the first 10 overs were fantastic, they knew they had to go for it. A couple of mistakes on the field and three, four bad overs shifted the momentum. It was tough for us to get into it. The boys tried well. We’re disappointed,” said the 35-year-old cricketer.
“A couple of overs they went after us, against our best bowlers. Marlon (Samuels) batted very well. I backed my No.1 bowler to deliver but Marlon batted very well.”
“While batting, we lost momentum when (Tillakaratne) Dilshan fell. They bowled really well. We just needed to keep the pressure on which we didn’t. We need to sit down, have a good chat, and move on,” said Jayawardene, who reportedly quit as T20 captain of his side.
We’re not just trying to compete anymore: Sammy
Colombo: An exultant West Indies cricket captain Darren Sammy said winning the World Twenty20 title, the team’s first major trophy in 33 years, has proved that the Caribbeans are gradually moving towards reclaiming their past glory.
‘We’re not trying just to compete any more, we believe we can win against good opposition. We showed signs of that in the last year or so, but we were not winning. Hopefully, this can be the start of something good for the West Indies team and the people,’ Sammy said after the Windies beat hosts Sri Lanka in the final last night.
The West Indians, who have struggled at the international level for over two decades, were, for a change, among the teams favoured to do well in the tournament. And they did exactly that, dancing their way to the title.
Sammy, whose place in the team itself has been questioned several times, proved his worth in the crunch match with an important 26-run knock down the order, besides grabbing a couple of wickets.
‘We will definitely cherish this moment. I will for sure. We’re going to relive it every day of our lives. This is the best moment for me in any cricket. This here (the trophy) is for the Caribbean people,’ Sammy said.
‘West Indies fans all over the world have been craving success. I know they’re partying from Jamaica down to Guyana. And we know how to party. I think they’ll need a lot of bartenders.’
The all-rounder said despite the sometimes harsh criticism he came across about his worth in the side, he always believed in his abilities.
‘The commentators get paid to speak. The media get paid to write stories. I get paid to play cricket,’ Sammy said.
‘Critics will always be there. Someone might find something wrong I did today even though we won. That does not worry me. The most important thing is that the team did well,’ he added.
By Web Editor
Tags: beginning, side, title, West Indies, win, year
AUTHOR BIO
CanIndia News - Canada's favorite south asian newspaper!
