Benjamin wants consistency despite impressive victory

Despite his team’s unpredictable innings-and-four-run victory over the Barbados Pride in the Digicel 4-Day Championships last Thursday, newly appointed head coach and former West Indies fast bowler, Winston Benjamin, has called for consistency as the competition matures.
The Antiguan, who spoke from Barbados, said there were moments in the match when they almost let it slip from their grasp.
“We should have bowled them out for less than 100. We gave away 52 runs trying things that we didn’t need to try. If we had executed or been a bit more patient then we could have bowled them out for under that score,” he said.
“We need to be consistent and not just for games like this [against Barbados] but for the other games to come and as I said in my [previous] interview, my aim is not to go out and win the competition but to improve the cricket, and when we win then that is a bonus,” he added.
Antiguan fast bowler Gavin Tonge collected 6-21 from 12 overs, finishing with match figures of 9-26, as the Pride were bowled out for 116 in their second innings about 50 minutes before the scheduled close on the second day of their second-round match at Kensington Oval.
It was the Hurricanes’ first victory over the Pride at the West Indies first-class level in eight years and also their eighth victory ever over the same opponents, whom they have only ever beaten once in the Leewards.
The trick, Benjamin said, is knowing exactly what each player brings to the table and how it could benefit the team.
“Most of these guys, I have worked with them at youth cricket-level so they know exactly how I operate. They are grown men now so you can’t deal with them now how you use to deal with them when they were younger. But once you get them to understand what you are trying to achieve and to accomplish and they buy into it, then it makes your job so much easier and I think they’re doing that,” the former player said.
“As I said to them, we don’t have a team of big stars but with what we have we can get the job done and I think they, themselves, want to better their performances from last year,” he added. 
The thrilling victory came when the sub-regional team was without fast bowler Alzarri Joseph who is on tour with the senior West Indies team and Rahkeem “Jimbo” Cornwall who is playing with the West Indies A.
The Hurricanes, whose preparations had been hampered by the passage of Hurricanes Irma and Maria, have still not fully recovered Benjamin said.
“There are one or two person who might still be a bit off from exactly where they should be at this time but we can say that we are happy with the way things are going,” he said.
The Hurricanes gained 19.8 points while the Pride team earned a meagre 3.6.
Hurricanes face Guyana in St. Kitts starting Thursday after the match was moved from the Sir Vivian Richards Cricket Ground which is currently housing Barbudans displaced by Hurricane Irma.