“A nice and competitive game,” is what West Indies Test Captain Kraigg Brathwaite expects when his team continues their preparation for their two-match series against Australia by taking on an Australian Prime Minister’s XI in a four-day game warm-up fixture beginning on Tuesday in Canberra.
The Windies already have one warm-up fixture under their belt, a high-scoring three-day match against a combined NSW/ACT XI which ended in a draw on Saturday.
That game saw the Windies get scores of 424-9 declared and 114-4 while their opponents got 426-4 declared.
“Everyone is feeling good. We had a nice, competitive three-day game. The pitch was more batting friendly but I think our bowlers got a good run out as well.”
Australia’s PM’s XI will feature players with a lot of international experience and Brathwaite says this will give his side a big test ahead of the series.
“This second game is obviously a different team; a much more competitive team so we look forward to that challenge,” he said while also noting how important it will be to get used to the pink ball ahead of the first test.
“Gearing towards the first test, it will be good to get used to the pink ball and the conditions here in Australia. It will react differently off the surface, especially when the lights turn on. It tends to do a lot more at night so that is something we have to keep on our minds,” Brathwaite added.
The match gets underway on Tuesday at 10:00pm Jamaica time (11:00pm ECT).
Louis in, Chanderpaul dropped as West Indies squad announced for England Tests
The Cricket West Indies (CWI) Senior Men’s Selection Panel has unveiled the 15-member squad set to tour England for the three-Test Richards Botham series, which starts at Lord's on Wednesday, 10 July 2024.
Test matches between these two rivals date back to 1928 when the West Indies made their first trip to England. The Teams now compete for the Richards Botham Trophy, named in honour of West Indies legend Sir Vivian Richards and England great Lord Ian Botham.
Captain Kraigg Brathwaite will continue his leadership role, with fast bowler Alzarri Joseph again serving as Vice-Captain. The team is scheduled to arrive in England on 23 June for a training camp at Tonbridge School, ahead of a 4-day warm-up match at Beckingham commencing on the 4 July.
CWI Lead Selector, the Most Honorable Dr. Desmond Haynes, expressed confidence in the squad's composition.
“The squad has been shaped with both experience and emerging talent, ensuring a strong balance as we face the challenge of playing in English conditions. Over the past year, our red-ball program has continued to develop. Following our victory in the last Test in Australia in January, it is evident that we are seeing the fruits of that investment. Each player selected has earned their place through consistent performances and hard work. We are confident that this blend of seasoned players and emerging faces will perform admirably against England.”
Young Fast Bowler Jayden Seales returns to the squad having missed the last Test Series against Australia due to injury and experienced all-rounder Jason Holder has earned a recall having made himself unavailable for the last tour.
There is also a first international selection for 23-year-old opening batsman Mikyle Louis.
Louis, a former West Indies U19 International, scored 682 runs in his debut First Class season for the Leeward Island Hurricanes at an average of 48.71. Should he debut for the West Indies in England, he will become the first Kittitian to wear the famous Maroon test cap.
The West Indies 15-member test squad is as follows:
These players will be supported by the following team management unit:
West Indies' last test match was a resounding victory in Australia earlier this year. Since then, all selected players were involved in the West Indies Championship, which concluded in April and was won by the Guyana Harpy Eagles.
19-year-old fast bowler, Isai Thorne will travel with the squad as a development player, following impressive performances in this debut First Class season taking 31 wickets at average 16.29 in his first eight matches.
The West Indies are the current holders of the Richards Botham Trophy following the 1-0 Home Test Series win in March 2022.
Afghanistan make fast start as Uganda endure T20 World Cup debut to forget
Afghanistan made a statement of intent as they opened their T20 World Cup campaign with a 125-run victory over debutants Uganda.
With matches against the West Indies and New Zealand to come in Group C, Jonathan Trott's side were quick out of the blocks in Guyana.
Rahmanullah Gurbaz (76) and Ibrahim Zadran (70) led the way with an impressive opening stand of 154 after 14.3.overs.
However, Afghanistan collapsed somewhat later on, adding just 29 more runs as they finished at 183-5.
Nevertheless, they were quick to ensure Uganda were unable to build any momentum. Fazalhaq Farooqi dismissed Ronak Patel and Roger Mukasa in consecutive deliveries during the first over.
Indeed, it was a true baptism of fire for the T20 World Cup debutants, who were bowled out for just 58 with four overs still remaining.
Data Debrief
Afghanistan set the tone with a fast start in Georgetown. Zadran and Gurbaz's opening stand of 154 was the second-highest in T20 World Cup history, behind only the 170 of England's Jos Buttler and Alex Hales against India two years ago.
Farooqi then took centre stage in the field, claiming his first five-wicket haul in T20Is and conceding just nine runs - four of which came from his first ball. His 5-9 was the fourth-highest figure in tournament history.
Nortje not 'looking too deep' at career-best tally in World Cup opener
Anrich Nortje says he is "trying not to look too deep" at his career-best bowling total in South Africa's win over Sri Lanka.
Proteas' dominant bowling limited Sri Lanka to their lowest-ever T20I run total in their World Cup opener on Monday as they recorded a six-wicket victory.
Nortje was the standout amongst the bowlers and earned player of the match after finishing with a career-best 4-7, helping to stop Sri Lanka at 77 in the 20th over.
While Nortje was pleased with his performance, he was quick to turn the focus back to the team post-match.
"I've been feeling good, it just hasn't paid off in the last few games," he said. "It's great to finally get a result, some balls went my way, but I try not to look too deep into it.
"It's been a while since I've had those figures. Just happy to have pulled it off for the team. It's a great win for the team, everyone bowled really well. Kudos to the rest of the guys as well.
"Just to get some momentum going [is what matters], we've worked really hard and it's great to get a result."
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka were left lamenting their World Cup schedule as they will play at four different venues during the group stage, meaning awkward travel arrangements could disrupt their tournament.
"So unfair for us, we have to leave every day [after the match] because we are playing [at] four different venues," Maheesh Theekshana said.
"It's unfair. The flight we took from Florida, from Miami, we had to wait like eight hours in the airport to get the flight. And we came around.
"We were supposed to leave at 8pm, but we got the flight at 5am. It's really unfair for us, but it doesn't matter when you play [on the field]."
However, captain Wanindu Hasaranga was quick to explain the team were not using that as an excuse for their performance, and understood that nothing could be changed at this stage even after complaints to the ICC.
Next up for South Africa in the group is Netherlands on June 8 in New York, while Sri Lanka play Bangladesh on June 7 in Texas.
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