JOIN USMarlon Samuels had served some appetisers all through the tournament and on the big day he delivered a blow from which Sri Lanka couldn’t recover in the World T20 final, eventually crashing to a 32-run loss.
“I have had some tough times but I never give up,” said the Jamaican after his bruising 78 played a crucial role in West Indies’ victory here on Sunday. “This moment I will cherish all my life. We haven’t won a title in years and this victory is for our people, our past cricketers.
This is to say that the West Indies cricket is back. Lasith Malinga got me out in an IPL match and today it was nice to get some runs off him,” said the right-hander who won the man of the final award.
Draped in the Caribbean flag, skipper Darren Sammy was brimming with pride. “I don’t play for glory, I play for the Caribbean people,” the all-rounder said, barely managing to keep his emotions in check. “We always had the belief and we crossed all the hurdles.
We had a tough time when we batted and they bowled really well, they fought but we got those runs towards the end and that momentum stayed with us when we bowled. Before we got back to the field, I asked Dwayne Bravo, it’s his birthday today, to say a few words and he said, ‘let us go out there and give it our all.’
“We needed wickets and Ravi (Rampaul) did well. This trophy is for the Caribbean people and I will cherish this forever. From Jamaica to Guyana, there will be celebrations back home and I guess we will need a lot of bartenders,” remarked the all-rounder who himself played no small role in West Indies' win, scoring a brisk 26 and picking up two wickets.
Sammy also lavished praise on Samuels for his brilliant counter attacking fifty that gave Windies a fighting score.