COLOMBO, Sri Lanka, CMC – At the start of the day, run-scoring appeared a quandary for West Indies opener Adrian Barath. By the end, however, he had reeled off his maiden One-Day International century against a quality Sri Lanka attack.
Relying on his huge self-confidence, a generous a slice of luck and maturity beyond his years, the gifted 20-year-old right-hander stroked 113, playing in only the sixth ODI of his career.
“Sri Lanka have a very good, experienced bowling attack with Murali (Muttiah Muralitharan), (Lasith) Malinga, (Ajantha) Mendis, and Kula (Nuwan Kulasekera),” the Trinidadian said, after rain forced a no-result in the contest at the Sinhalese Sports Club.
“Looking at that attack before the game, you sometimes wonder where the runs would come from, but it’s all about the self-belief and knowing that you can do the job.
“The team also has a lot of belief in me and it always helps when you have the full support of those around you. At the end of the day you have to back yourself.
“I had a clear understanding what my role was, and that was to knock the ball around and look for every scoring opportunity and don’t out myself under any pressure.”
Fuelled by Barath’s century and a composed 75 from Ramnaresh Sarwan, West Indies racked up 245 for five after captain Darren Sammy called correctly at the toss.
When Chris Gayle (4) and Darren Bravo (8) departed cheaply to leave the Windies in a spot of bother at 41 for two in the 13th over, Barath and Sarwan put on 165 for the third wicket.
Barath survived a chance at 54 off Mendis to hit eight fours and two sixes off 129 balls while Sarwan, in his first match game in eight months for the Windies, counted four fours and a six in an innings lasting 100 balls.
“From the very start we knew as a team it was very important for us to get a very good score on the board,” Barath pointed out.
“It was unfortunate that we lost Chris and Darren early in the innings so I had to work the ball around and try to build a good partnership with Ramnaresh. We knew we had to consolidate.
“We understood our roles and at that stage in the game it was just to knock the balls into the gaps and pick up the singles and twos, and play through that difficult period.”
He said the experienced Sarwan’s support during the partnership had been crucial in achieving three figures.
“The ball was moving around a lot early on in the innings and I was thinking it was a ‘220-pitch’ because the bowlers were getting the ball to swing. As the ball got a bit older things became a bit easier,” Barath said.
“Having him [Sarwan] at the other end helped me a lot in my innings. He spoke to me a lot while we were at the crease and urged me to keep going. I want to thank him for his support.”
The second ODI of the three-match series will bowl off Thursday at the same venue.
