Kemar Roach takes knee & remembers father after dismissing in-form Tom Latham; see picture

It was a bittersweet moment for West Indies cricketer Kemar Roach as he gave his side an important break in the NZ vs WI 1st Test match. Both New Zealand and West Indies players were seen wearing black armbands on the first day of the  NZ vs WI 1st test in Hamilton to remember Kemar Roach’s father, Andrew Smith, who recently passed away. The New Zealand vs West Indies 2020 T20I series has already been won by the hosts 2-0 after the last match was rained out. 

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Kemar Roach father death news

Amidst the new quarantine rules, many players have had to make tough decisions on the tour. Indian captain, Virat Kohli's decision to leave the tour to be there for the birth of his first child has received much media attention. Similarly, Indian bowler Mohammed Siraj's decision to stay back with the side in Australia after losing his father, also resulted in many reactions on public platforms.

Roach, who is currently in New Zealand with the West Indies squad, received the news of the death of his father while preparing for the 1st Test match that began at Seddon Park on Thursday. Like, Siraj, Roach chose to stay back and fulfil his national duty. The 32-year-old gave the West Indies a major breakthrough on aDy 1, removing the in-form opening batsman Tom Latham for 86 and breaking his growing partnership with captain Kane Williamson at 154. 

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Rather than a usual celebration, Roach dropped to his knees after bowling out Latham, in honour of his father. At the end of Day 1, New Zealand have made 243 for the loss of just two wickets. Captain Williamson will start on 97 tomorrow, along with Ross Taylor who is on 31*. West Indies will need to swing into action quickly if they want any chance of preventing a clean sweet by New Zealand. 

West Indies' team manager Rawl Lewis also released a statement, saying “On behalf of CWI and the West Indies cricket team, I offer condolences to Kemar and his family back home. Losing a loved one is never easy, and we want to offer our full support to Kemar during this very difficult time." 

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Black Lives Matter at the NZ vs WI 1st Test

Amidst the Black Lives Matter movement, West Indies captain Jason Holder revealed that he was pleasantly surprised with Kane Williamson when the Kiwi captain approached him by his own volition to discuss whether the teams should take a knee for the movement before the Test. Both teams took the knee ahead of the first Test. An image Williamson embracing Roach also made the rounds on social media on Wednesday.

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Image Credits: Criccrazyjohns Twitter