Everything we do is for the
betterment of West Indies - Brathwaite
Allrounder Carlos Brathwaite, who hit four successive sixes a
t the start
of the final over to snatch the World Twenty20 title from England's grasp in
Kolkata, has said "everything we do is for the betterment of West
Indies." Brathwaite's comments echoed the emotional address from West Indies captain Darren
Sammy, who expressed disappointment that his players had not received the
support he felt they deserved.
"Most of the nations have more resources than we do, but we have
natural talent," Brathwaite, 27, told ESPN Caribbean. "It has been
said we don't have brains, that we don't harness our talent, that we do things
off the field that contribute to poor on-field success. But I just want to say
being around these guys, that everything we do on and off the field is for the
betterment of West Indies, not just the team but also cricket and the region in
general."
West Indies began the final over, bowled by Ben Stokes, needing 19 runs
to win. Brathwaite, playing his first major tournament, launched sixes over
long leg, long-on, long-off and deep midwicket off the first four balls to
complete one of the greatest finishes in the game.
"It was a little nerve-wracking to be honest, I just tried to stay
focused, use my cue words, watch the ball and take some pressure off
Marlon," Brathwaite said. "It would have been too hard to give him a
single and expect him to do it all. I just had to bite the bullet and try to
get a couple of boundaries, which fortunately I did, give God thanks for
bringing it home for the people in West Indies.
"After the third six I just backed myself, go hard, if it goes in
the air I knew Marlon would finish it but I knew I had to be there as close to
the end as possible. We continued to back ourselves, back our strength and our
strength is hitting boundaries. Once we knew it was manageable we knew we could
do it.
"I just want say a special mention to everyone in Sergeant's
Village, my family, my friends and especially to Mr Erroll Edie, the master
bat-maker from the Caribbean. He made this special beauty for me to use in the
World Cup and he told me, 'Carlos, go out there and smash 'em'. Erroll, I did,
and now we are world champions."
Watching from the other end, as Brathwaite brought the trophy home, was
Marlon Samuels, who had kept the chase alive with an unbeaten 85 off 66 balls
as the top and middle order fell around him. Brathwaite gave his senior
team-mate due credit.
"It's us against the world and someone needed to take responsibility.
And today Marlon Samuels after a slow start took responsibility and played a
fantastic knock," Brathwaite told Star Sports. "That was amazing man, I wish I could use some expletives on TV
to really express how much of a top knock that was. He did it in 2010, and I
knew if Samuels was there in the end, he'll bring us home in 2016. It was a
matter of when and not if.
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