| The
left-handed batsman was ruled caught by Rikki Clarke off Gareth
Batty in the first innings after scoring 14 runs, and he gesticulated
to the standing umpire to show he had not played the ball.
But he said the English players were cursing the umpires when given
out and when decisions were turned down against them and they were
never reported to the match referee in any of the games.
“I made a mistake and I was fined; I don’t have a problem
with that but the English players were openly disrespecting the
umpires, cursing them all the time, and all the umpires did was
issue warnings to the players,” Kelly stated.
“What I did was silly and I will never do that again, but
the English players were doing much worse and they weren’t
reported or fined.”
However, Kelly admitted that once the games were over between the
two teams, noting that some of the games were fought doggedly to
the end, the players enjoyed a great camaraderie off the field.
“In the first game that the West Indies (“A”)
won by one wicket, it got really tense at the end,” Kelly
recalled.
“The English players were appealing all the time and jumping
around; they were really trying to influence the umpires.
“They just played their cricket hard; the good thing is that
once the game was over, there was a nice spirit between the teams.”
The Trinidadian all-rounder is happy with his performances in the
series, especially the two four-day “Tests” in which
he picked up 10 wickets.
While it was not an electrifying performance, Kelly thinks it is
a great stepping-stone to his ultimate goal: the West Indies Test
team.
“The first game, I thought, was very instructive,” Kelly
confided.
“At first, I took some time to settle but then I started putting
the ball down in some good areas.
“I noticed that if the ball is too close to (Vickram) Solanki
he was in a little trouble.
“My first wicket was one of the opening batsmen and then I
picked up Solanki after he had made 85; that was really a big boost.
“I thought I learnt quickly: What is a dot ball to a Caribbean
batsman will be hit for four by the English players, so I had to
put the ball down in the right areas.
“I learnt I had to be a little more patient and work the batsmen
out.
“In the second game (in St. Lucia), I again picked up three
wickets in the first innings; I felt I had bowled quite well in
both innings.
“I also realise now that international cricket is about being
consistent.
“My advantage is that I am a side-on bowler; I can swing the
ball and I can bat a bit, and that is what Dwayne Bravo is doing
for the West Indies team.
“People tend to rate me only as a One Day cricketer, but I
think I proved a point during the series against the English team;
I can also play the longer form of the game.
“There are many instances in my career when I had to bat patiently
and for long periods; I think I can adapt to both One Day and Test
cricket, but I am always going to have that big hitting dimension
to my batting.
“I can’t avoid it. I am a big guy and I can give the
ball a smack or two.”
Kelly conceded that Test cricket will be much more difficult than
the “A” series, but he won’t know if he is ready
for the big times until the selectors give him the opportunity.
“I think the selectors are not ready to push me as yet,”
Kelly confided.
“The selectors have their ideas and I have mine.
“In the meantime, I will continue to develop my game and when
the time comes, if the selectors ever need me, I hope I can make
a contribution.”
Kelly then added: “I have to credit Bernard Julien, who has
been working a lot with me at (Ceramic Tile) Merryboys; he showed
me how to bowl the in-swinger.
“That is paying dividends and I have used it to get a few
wickets this season.” |
