Carlos Brathwaite bowled over by Old Trafford

The Windies’ seventh and eighth games of the tournament are taking place at Lancashire’s Old Trafford Cricket Ground. And with a day of downtime on Sunday, the world-renowned side made the short journey over to the Theatre of Dreams.

“It’s the first time I’ve actually been in and around the stadium,” Carlos Brathwaite told us, less than 24 hours after his outstanding performance nearly produced a remarkable comeback against New Zealand.

“I’ve watched from afar, but I haven’t been in the stadium from a fan’s point of view. Walking through the directors’ box and walking through some of the hallways, it gives you a sense of folklore and you know something special has happened, and will continue to happen, in these hallowed halls.

“Everything has a bit of prestige about it,” he added. “Obviously you expect to see some prestige with Manchester United, but to then experience it is a different level. It’s mind-blowing.

“To sit on some of the seats that some of the great players you’ve watched have sat in is amazing, and I guess a few of Sir Alex’s famous hairdryer treatments would have been in this dressing room as well. So, just to be in and among history and prestige has made my day.”

Another interested visitor on Sunday’s tour was West Indies assistant coach Roddy Estwick, who spent time in England during his playing days.

Cricket was evidently not the only sport on his mind in that time, and Estwick revealed he used to regularly make the trip over to Old Trafford.

“I’ve been to the stadium lots of times, as far back as 1986 when people like Mike Duxbury and Viv Anderson were playing, and Gary Bailey was in goal,” said Estwick.

“To come and see something like this today is a real pleasure and I’ve really enjoyed it. To sit in the dressing rooms were people like Roy Keane have sat is something that dreams are made of, so I’m really thankfully for the opportunity to be here."

Supporting the Reds over all those years, Estwick has seen plenty of high points and he admitted that our former Irish skipper is responsible for his all-time favourite United memory.

“It has to the game against Juventus when were 2-0 down in the 1999 Champions League semi-final second leg. Keane rolled his sleeves up, we won 3-2 and we went through to the final. 

“Unfortunately, he had to miss the final but for me that was one of the greatest sporting performances I’ve ever seen.

“Keane is my all-time favourite United player. And then Dwight Yorke, being a West Indian as well. That Treble-winning side of ’99 was outstanding with him and Andy Cole and the ‘Class of ’92’. What a group of players!”

Both Estwick and Brathwaite had a go at sitting in Ole Gunnar Solskjaer’s seat during the tour, with the latter even fielding a few mock questions from his team-mates in the post-match media room.

But the Windies captain isn’t sure he could handle the day-to-day stress of coaching the biggest team in the world.

“I’d love to be Manchester United manager. I don’t think I can handle all of the pressure that comes with it but,” he added with a grin.

Next up for the West Indies is Thursday’s game against India at Old Trafford Cricket Ground. The Windies still have a small chance of progressing to the knock-out stage of the tournament, but must almost certainly beat India to keep their dwindling hopes alive.

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