Hardik Pandya criticises the West Indies cricket board for failing to make “basic arrangements” for Team India, saying, “Don’t want luxury.”
The last ODI of the series and the post-match Indian captains’ speeches seemed to go well together. The stand-in captain of the men’s team, Hardik Pandya, questioned the arrangements made by the West Indies Cricket Board during their tour after women’s team captain Harmnapreet Kaur faced harsh criticism and received a two-match suspension for her actions during the third ODI against Bangladesh and her comments about the umpires during the post-match presentation.
Hardik made no attempt to disguise his anger with the travel arrangements and other matters following India’s thrashing of West Indies by 200 runs in the third ODI to end the three-match series 2-1.
In order to offer additional opportunity to young players like Sanju Samson and Ruturaj Gaikwad, regular skipper Rohit Sharma and ace batter Virat Kohli were rested for the second time in a row. Daren Ganga, a well-known commentator and former West Indies opener, questioned Hardik on the amenities at the Brian Cricket Stadium in Tarouba, which held its first ODI, during the post-match presentation ceremony.
While praising the stadium and labelling it “one of the nicest” venues, Hardik quickly shifted the conversation to the West Indies Cricket Board’s failings during India’s tour. Hardik continued to lament the lack of “basic necessities” and demanded that the hosts take care of that going forward.
“We have played on some nicer fields than this one. The next time we visit the West Indies, things might be better. from travelling to handling many different tasks. There were some problems last year as well. It’s time, in my opinion, for West Indies Cricket to pay attention to this and ensure that when a team travels, basic essentials are provided for us—we don’t demand luxury. Other than that, it was great to be here and play some decent cricket,” Hardik Pandya said on Tuesday.
The Indian cricket team had already complained to the BCCI about their late-night journey from Trinidad to Barbados being delayed by nearly four hours, leaving them exhausted before the opening ODI of the series.
Senior cricketers even asked the BCCI to stop scheduling late-night flights when there is only a small window of time between games.
