‘Happy to be among the greats’ – Kemar Roach
Two balls. Two edges. Two wicket-keeper catches. Kemar Roach had taken out struggling opener KL Rahul for 6 and Indian captain Virat Kohli for his fourth ever Test duck.
And when Ajinkya Rahane edges the hat-trick ball towards the stumps, Roach is sure the ball is going to hit the stumps. But it doesn’t. It misses by an inch and the fast bowler slumps to the ground. He sits there for a minute unable to believe his luck.
“Of course!” Roach exclaimed when asked if, for a second, he thought he’d got the hat-trick. “Inside edge and missing the stumps – a bit unlucky but I am pretty happy with what happened
“It was a good feeling. Obviously, the Indian batting line-up is very strong, so to be on a hat-trick against those guys is obviously a good feeling. I’d have liked to get it, but a little more luck the next time it hits on the stumps and it will go my way, but I am pretty happy for what happened.
“I think as a bowling group there is satisfaction in how we have done so far. Kudos to the guys. Happy for myself to be, obviously, be among some of the greats, so it’s a great achievement for me as well.”
The focus is on West Indies’ batting now with India setting them a massive 468 to win. But Roach has a plan. “There is more than enough time,” he said. “Two days left in the Test match. Just bat. Nothing more to be said about that. The guys haven’t had a good score in this Test series so far, so it’s about guys just applying themselves and going out there and being positive and put some runs on the board.”
West Indies can take heart in conditions becoming a little better for batsmen but Roach said it will still be a challenge with bowlers like Bumrah and Ishant Sharma conjuring near-perfect deliveries.
“It’s flattened out a bit more. It’s not as bouncy as it was the first couple of days. There is still enough there for the bowlers. Still have to apply yourself as a batsman and have to grind and get that score, but I think once you get in it gets way easier – so it’s all about the guys being positive and grinding and obviously getting the score.”
Roach is eager to help out in that regard as well. “Yeah, obviously I am pretty confident with the bat recently. Just backing my ability, trust my talent and go there and hit the ball. I have been doing it pretty well and pretty proud of that. I just keep it simple for me – I know my shots and I just wait for the balls to come in that area.”
Speaking about the West Indies bowling unit including his relationship with captain Jason Holder and Shannon Gabriel, Roach said they’ve been performing exceptionally well in the last two years, and are communicating well as a unit.
“I think it’s about bowling in partnerships. I think all teams do that – the Indian team does that very good as well. I think with us we have been together for a while, so we understand each other, so we understand when it’s time for us to hold and when it’s time for us to attack and give yourself a break and let someone else get involved. I think we have been doing it very well, we are very in sync and we are communicating very well with what we want to do.
“I think the trick about it we stick together a lot, communicate very well, so we know what we are about, what roles we have to play when it comes to certain sessions, so our clarity is very clear when it comes to bowling. So, I think that’s what has been working for us for the last two years. If we stick together and stand apart, I think we have big things coming for us in the next couple of test matches.”
