Windies hero Brathwaite admits mishit key six

KOLKATA — West Indies hero Carlos Brathwaite revealed Monday he had mishit one of the massive sixes which clinched cricket's World Twenty20 trophy as he commiserated with Ben Stokes for monstering his bowling. The 27-year-old Brathwaite pummeled four sixes in a row at the start of the last over in Sunday night's final to dramatically deny England victory at Eden Gardens in Kolkata. His third six over long off brought the scores level and took the game away from England once and for all. In an interview with ESPNcricinfo, Brathwaite said he had followed his partner Marlon Samuels' advice to "swing for the hills". He described the shot that sailed several rows back in one of the stands as "a mishit". "I miscued the third one, but a 65-meter six and a 94-meter six are still six runs," said Brathwaite. "I just got it over, kind of spooned it over long-off. And then, I knew the West Indies are world champions, but I didn't want to get too far ahead of myself." With only one run needed off three deliveries, the rest of the team gathered around the boundary rope and then surged onto the field in jubilation as the fourth ball also went for six. A distraught Stokes, whose death bowling was one of the key factors in England's passage to the final, sank to his haunches as the West Indies players celebrated around him. Samuels and Stokes, who have a history of onfield clashes, had more verbal exchanges during the final over which led to the West Indies batsman being fined 30 percent of his match fee. An unrepentant Samuels taunted Stokes at the post-match press conference by saying the England all-rounder should have been aware that winding him up would only backfire, but that he "doesn't learn". But Brathwaite was more magnanimous Monday, calling Stokes "an absolute legend in his own right". Cricket could be a cruel game, he said. "You shouldn't forget what he has done for England in the past couple of months... To Ben, tough luck last night, commiserations to you and the England team. Wish he has a long and successful career ahead of him." Nicholas sorry for 'short of brains' comment that riled Sammy English commentator and columnist Mark Nicholas apologized Monday for suggesting that World Twenty20 champion West Indies lacked cricketing intelligence. Following the Caribbean side's stunning four-wicket win over England in Sunday's final in Kolkata, victorious West Indies captain Darren Sammy said Nicholas' remarks had riled his side. "Mark Nicholas described us as a team with no brains," said Sammy in an emotional post-match interview. Sammy was referring to a March 3 column for the ESPNCricinfo website when, looking ahead to the World Twenty20, Nicholas wrote: "West Indies are short of brains but have IPL (Indian Premier League) history in their ranks." Nicholas, in his latest Cricinfo column, published Monday, said he offered an "unreserved apology" to Sammy, "a man I hold in the highest regard," for his "throwaway phrase". He added: "Clearly, the West Indies team is not 'short of brains'. "I did not say West Indies were 'brainless' or had 'no brains'....but I did say something unworthy of the game and disrespectful to a great cricketing legacy," explained Nicholas, a television commentator with both England's Channel Five and Australia's Channel Nine. Former Hampshire captain Nicholas played alongside several West Indian greats during his time with the English south coast county, including outstanding pacemen Andy Roberts and Malcolm Marshall. On Monday, he lauded Roberts, off whom he took his first first-class catch, as the man who "led the thinking of a truly great collection of West Indian fast bowlers". "Then I had 13 years with Malcolm Marshall, my best friend in cricket. I also had the privilege of giving the eulogy at his funeral in Barbados — the saddest occasion," recalled 58-year-old former batsman Nicholas. Although critical of Nicholas in his post-match interview, all-rounder Sammy was even more scathing regarding the West Indies Cricket Board (WICB), with whom leading players have been locked in a long-running pay dispute, and said they had "disrespected" the team. Nicholas said he understood the captain's frustration, writing: "Those of us who have let him down took a hammering. Fair enough too. "I shall never forget the World T20 final of 2016. Neither will Sammy. I wish him and his men nothing but joy." — Agencies