1st ODI: 295 a pretty decent total, maybe 15-20 runs short, says WI opener Campbell

Thiruvananthapuram, Sep 27 (IANS) Opener John Campbell opined that the West Indies posting 295/7 against India in the first ODI at the Greenfield International Stadium made for a ‘pretty decent total,’ though he felt they were 15 to 20 runs short of achieving a good score on the black-soil pitch.

Campbell, who hit 62 off 60 balls with six fours and three sixes, put on 135 runs for the opening wicket with Justin Greaves, who hit a fluent 101 off 108 balls, including hitting 12 boundaries – his maiden ODI century, despite being troubled by shin cramps.

“I think it just happened. Justin had a really good start, so I just tried to play a supporting role as best as possible to get going,” Campbell said to broadcasters in a mid-innings chat.

He felt conditions were harder for the batters to make runs later in the innings, as the West Indies fell five runs short of reaching the 300-run mark on Sunday. “I think it’s a pretty decent total, maybe 15-20 runs a little bit short. But having said that, I think when the ball gets a little softer, it’s a little bit more difficult to score,” added Campbell.

Asked if his Test outing in New Delhi last year had helped him while batting in Thiruvananthapuram, Campbell said, “Well, apparently it’s a good outing for me. The ball was coming out pretty decent to the bat, so I just tried to stay in the moment as long as possible and get in a strong position to play good shots.”

Campbell also revealed the visitors had tried to shut out distractions off the field, especially with the Cricket West Indies (CWI) announcing that a 25 percent pay cut would happen in the central contracts.

“Yeah, definitely. With a lot of noise around outside of the cricket, we just decided we just want to come out here and put on a good show for ourselves and make the people back home proud,” he concluded.

–IANS

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