West Indian captain Brian Lara has said he could not be "too sarcastic"
about his team, which was trying to with their chronic middle order collapse to
bounce back in time at the cricket World Cup.
The West Indies, who lost their Champions Trophy title to Australia
after losing in the final last year, were thrashed by India after they
just managed to prevail over Kenya in their World Cup warm-up games.
"You can't be too sarcastic about the team. We have been in the finals
of most of the tournaments we have taken part in. So it's not that the guys
haven't performed," Lara said.
The Trinidadian said most of the time the team appeared to struggle when the
middle order failed to make any sizeable contribution.
"It's a chronic problem. Our batsmen somehow are able to get out of difficult
situations. That's what we are lacking at the moment.
"You would notice that most of these guys bat for number three or four
for their state sides so when they need to come lower down the order, they struggle
to adapt. It's a situation we are trying to come to terms with," he added.
About his side's performance against India, Lara, however, said it appeared
as if all the guys wanted to rush back home.
"I told them we needed to play cricket till 5 pm but we looked to be in
a hurry to rush back home. So after the game we had a couple of hours in the
middle. It's always better to have a match simulation rather than do nets."
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