West Indies captain Shai Hope hit back at a reporter after his side’s five-wicket defeat to India in the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup Super 8 clash on March 1 at Eden Gardens.
India chased down 196 in 19.2 overs to seal a semifinal berth, leaving Hope to reflect on a disappointing outing both individually and as captain. The right-hander managed 32 off 33 balls before being bowled by Varun Chakravarthy.
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At the post-match press conference, Hope was questioned about the tempo of his innings and whether he felt responsible for West Indies finishing short of an imposing total on a batting-friendly surface. While he initially conceded he could have accelerated earlier, he grew visibly frustrated when the question was repeated.
“You all make me laugh, man. Yes, I’ll take the blame if that’s what you want me to say. I should have batted a lot faster, that’s what you wanted me to say,” Hope remarked.
“In situations like this, when you’re struggling, everyone struggles. I don’t think I was batting badly; I was just finding fielders and trying to play according to the situation. I wanted to bat deeper and take on most of the spin threat in the middle overs, but I just didn’t get going today. But yes, I’ll take the blame.”
Hope began cautiously, scoring just two runs off his first eight deliveries before striking Hardik Pandya for a six and a boundary to build some momentum. However, he found it difficult to rotate strike against India’s spinners and eventually lost his stumps to Chakravarthy.
He shared a 68-run opening stand with Roston Chase, who made 40 off 25 balls. Late contributions lifted West Indies to 195 for 4 in their 20 overs.
The total, however, proved insufficient as Sanju Samson smashed an unbeaten 97 off 50 balls to guide India home and knock the hosts into the semifinals.
