The hosts posted 268 all out from their 50 overs after the West Indies won the toss and elected to field first at the Harare Sports Club.
After a 63-run opening stand between Joylord Gumbie and Captain, Craig Ervine, Zimbabwe quickly lost four wickets for 49 runs to be reeling at 112-4 at the halfway point of their innings.
Half centuries from Sikandar Raza and Ryan Burl then rescued Zimbabwe from what looked to be a spot of bother.
Raza, coming off a century against the Netherlands in their last game, led the way with a 58-ball 68 including six fours and two sixes while Burl made an even 50 off 57 balls including five fours and a six.
Earlier, Ervine made 47 while Gumbie scored 26.
The Zimbabweans were helped by the West Indies dropping five catches. Raza was dropped three times.
Keemo Paul led the way with the ball for the West Indians with 3-61 from his 10 overs while Akeal Hosein and Alzarri Joseph both took a pair of wickets, each.
The West Indies then started their chase relatively well with openers Brandon King and Kyle Mayers putting on 43 for the first wicket in just six and a half overs before King was dismissed for a rapid 20.
Johnson Charles fell soon after for just one before Captain, Shai Hope, joined Mayers at the crease.
The pair put on a further 64 before Mayers fell in the 21st over for 56.
Nicholas Pooran joined Hope at the wicket and the two centurions from the last game plotted to continue from where they left off in the last game.
That was not the case, however, as Hope fell for 30 just three overs into their partnership.
Pooran (34) and Rovman Powell (1) then fell in quick succession to leave the West Indies 180-6 in the 33rd over.
Jason Holder then came to join Roston Chase, who was batting well in the midst of the carnage at the other end, and the pair looked comfortable, adding a further 37 runs before Holder fell for 19 in the 41st over.
Keemo Paul then came and went for just one before Chase’s resistance was ended for 44 to leave the West Indies on the brink at 224-9 in the 43rd over.
With the score on 233 in the 45th over, Alzarri Joseph chipped a ball to Sikandar Raza at short mid-wicket to confirm the 35-run win for Zimbabwe.
Tendai Chatara led the way with the ball with 3-52 off 9.4 overs while Blessing Muzarabani, Richard Ngarava and Sikandar Raza all took two wickets, each.
Both teams have already advanced to the Super 6 stage. Zimbabwe will play the USA in their last group game on Monday while, on the same day, the West Indies will face the Netherlands.
Sri Lanka began the day 46-2 from 21 overs and batted out the day to reach 328-8 from 119 overs, thanks to a brilliant unbeaten 153 from Dhananjaya de Silva.
The Sri Lankans now have a lead of 279 runs heading into the fifth and final day with two wickets still in hand.
Simmons says with 98 overs on the final day, a target close to 300 would be a tough one for his team.
“Ninety-eight overs tomorrow and 300 runs to get is a little bit difficult, especially on a wicket that’s going to be turning a lot,” he said after a frustrating day for his players.
So far in Sri Lanka’s second innings, West Indies spinners have accounted for 95 of the 119 overs bowled but Simmons doesn’t believe the quick bowlers were underutilized.
“Not really. I think it was a case where the spinners had to be used more. The fast bowlers were used accordingly. That’s the situation with both teams because Lakmal didn’t bowl much for them,” he said.
Simmons also praised Dhananjaya for playing well rather than blaming his troops for taking their foot off the gas.
“I think Dhananjaya batted really well and controlled the game. The wicket wasn’t ragging as much as we thought it would on the fourth day and he controlled the innings. It was a superb hundred. I think he played us out of the game,” Simmons said while offering some hope for his side with the pitch seemingly improving for batting as the match progresses.
“The pitch looks to be good still. I think in the first Test too, on the fifth day, the pitch was still good and this pitch seems to be as good as that so when it’s rolled tomorrow, we’ll see how it plays out.”
When asked about his message to the team after such a tough afternoon session, Simmons said sometimes you just have to credit the opposition for playing well.
“Just have to appreciate the fact that some days you meet people who just play well. We fought hard. The bowlers fought hard. We did all that we could do. On the field we were energetic all the time so it’s just that he batted well,” he said.
The West Indies coach concluded by saying that his team should emulate how Dhananjaya played when it is their turn to bat on day five.
“We just have to make sure we bat with an attitude of wanting to score all the time while attempting to bat out the day. That’s what you should be looking to do if you can’t win the game,” he said.
Day five begins at 11:15 pm local time.
The magnificent Broad (6-31) took four wickets in the morning session on day three of the decisive third Test as England bowled the tourists out for 197.
Rory Burns (90), Dom Sibley (56) and Joe Root (68 not out) then piled on the runs before England declared on 226-2, setting the Windies 399 to win.
Broad, who struck a rapid half-century on Saturday, removed John Campbell and nightwatchman Kemar Roach late in the day on Sunday to take his tally of Test scalps to 499 and leave Jason Holder's side deep in the mire on 10-2.
Rain looks set to hold England up in their victory charge on Monday, but head coach Simmons wants to see the Windies put up a fight whenever they are able to take to the field over the final two days.
He said: "We haven't had any centuries in this series, so I'm always going to be putting pressure on them to go out there and get it.
"The wicket is still a good wicket to bat on, so they have to set themselves targets of getting a big hundred.
"Tomorrow is only the fourth day, so we have a lot of time to bat, we've got to show that determination to get big scores."
West Indies wicketkeeper Shane Dowrich took a nasty blow to the face when trying to take a short ball from Shannon Gabriel and was replaced by Joshua Da Silva, but Simmons revealed there was no serious damage done.
He said of Dowrich's injury: "I think he was lucky it came off the glove first. He has a little cut on the inside of the lip, but no damage to the teeth.
"It's just a cut and it's been sealed up by the doctor. I guess now all he has is a big headache."
The West Indies will face Pakistan in three T20I and three ODIs during the tour that concludes on December 20 and Simmons is expecting members of the team to stand up and be counted.
“We’re looking to see who’s going to put their hand up to be a major player in this team. It’s about them putting up their hands and saying we want to go forward with this team. We want to do the things that are necessary to help this team win,” Simmons said.
Speaking in a press conference Friday after the team’s arrival in Pakistan, Simmons acknowledged that this is the team’s first white-ball assignment since the disastrous World Cup campaign and that it is time to move on from that.
“We know what happened in the World Cup and we’re not going to go back there. We’re looking to move forward and see who now wants to move forward with this team and our different ideas of how we want to play,” he said.
The former Ireland and Afghanistan coach also expressed that while many know what these players are capable of, it is time for them to show it in high-pressure situations.
“Yes, we have an idea of what they can deliver, but they’ve got to go out there and start showing us now that they can deliver under pressure. Playing against Pakistan in Pakistan is as much pressure as you can get,” said Simmons.
Simmons says he’s anticipating how the mental approach within the squad will change.
“We’re looking forward to seeing how things are going to change within this squad, not just from a cricketing point of view but also an attitude point of view,” Simmons said.
The West Indies coach also noted the threat of Pakistan left-arm pacer Shaheen Shah Afridi.
“He’s been brilliant for Pakistan and I’m sure he will continue to improve. Our batsmen will work on plans to of how to play him, how to score off him and we’ll see how their plans work out when the games come about,” said Simmons.
The Windies were consigned to a 3-0 whitewash at the hands of Bangladesh on home soil and face a huge challenge when they face India.
Nicholas Pooran has endured a poor start to his tenure as captain and India are strong favourites to win a series that starts at Queen's Park Oval on Friday.
The highest total West Indies posted against the Tigers was only 178 and they have failed to bat out the full 50 overs time and again.
Head coach Simmons is demanding more application at the crease ahead of the series in Port of Spain.
"We have players quite capable of batting for long periods, but we need to get it together and hold strong," Simmons said.
"Players like [Shai] Hope and [Kyle] Mayers are Test batsmen, so they have the temperament to bat right through the innings."
He added: "The main thing is how we bat our 50 overs…we have to bat 50 overs and put our innings together and partnerships together.
"Somebody has to be looking to score a hundred and hold the team together. Batting-wise that is it."
Shikhar Dhawan captains the tourists as Rohit Sharma is rested along with the struggling Virat Kohli and paceman Jasprit Bumrah for a series that does not fall under the banner of the ICC Cricket World Cup Super League.
India have won 10 of their past 11 ODIs versus the Windies, with the only loss coming in Chennai back in December 2019.
Holder return boosts Windies
Good news has been in short supply for West Indies, but the return of all-rounder Jason Holder can give them a lift.
The former skipper was given a break for the Bangladesh series and the Windies will be hoping he is fresh and ready to fire on his return.
Holder needs another four wickets to become the seventh West Indies bowler to take 150 ODI wickets.
India can show strength in depth
Dhawan is set to lead a young side as India look to show their strength in depth with the World Cup to come on home soil next year.
Deepak Hooda and Arshdeep Singh are among the players who will be looking to make their mark in the Caribbean.
Ishan Kishan will also hope to get another chance at the top of the order.
The Windies line-up struggled mightily against Bangladesh, albeit in difficult circumstances for batting in the most recent One Day International series. In three matches the team, batting first on each occasion, managed just a total of 435.
The team’s captain Nicholas Pooran was the team’s scorer with 91 runs but scored 73 in the final game when the series was already decided. Shamarh Brooks was the next best and he totalled 42 over the three matches. Despite facing superior opposition, India, in another series beginning on Friday, Simmons does not expect such a brutal showing with the bat.
“You expect a better batting performance. You don’t really want to make excuses and in the last game we showed what we should have shown in the first two games, on what were bad cricket wickets on whole but we expect differently,” Simmons told members of the media on Wednesday.
“We’ve had two days of practice, we practiced yesterday and a really good session today, something that we did not get between Dominica and Guyana because of the rain that stopped us from practicing. From the sessions I have seen so far, the guys seem to be switched on again.”
Simmons has been self-isolating since and will only be permitted to re-join the team on Thursday, July 2, if he returns two negative Covid-19 tests.
However, his decision to leave the bio-secure location has raised some concerns and questions over whether the head coach unilaterally decided to leave the facility where the team has been preparing for the coming three-Test series beginning July 8.
Grave assured that Simmons received permission from the Chief Medical Officers of Cricket West Indies and the England and Wales Cricket Board (ECB).
“Yes, he left to go to his father-in-law's funeral on Friday and is now going through the re-entry process having had his whole exit and entry approved and managed by the medical teams,” Grave said.
In Simmons’ absence, assistant coaches Roddy Estwick and Rayon Griffith will oversee the Windies four-day, first-class fixture that starts on Monday.
Floyd Reifer will be the batting coach
The 30-year-old former captain has not represented the regional team since March of this year. Following his return from the India Premier League (IPL), it was announced that the player would be left out of the team, for the upcoming series, considering a recent heavy workload.
As a result, Holder has missed the team’s One Day International tours against The Netherlands, and Pakistan and a recent visit of Bangladesh. The team easily won the first series but could certainly have used Holder’s experience and explosive all-round play as they struggled to find their footing against both Pakistan and Bangladesh.
The player is once again available ahead of the team’s series against India, which begins on Friday and Simmons admits he is impressed by what he has witnessed in training so far.
“It’s good to have him back,” Simmons told members of the media on Wednesday.
“He looks fresh, he had some time out of the game. He has been bowling well the last two days and batting well too so it’s good to have him back.”
The West Indies and India will face off in three ODIs.
“Each game has a situation. Every ball is a situation in the game, and we’ve got to be able to assess that situation and know how we have to play in that game. If you’re 20-3 you play differently than if you’re 40-0. These are the little situations that we need to highlight and win and that will take us to winning the game,” he said in a press conference on Tuesday.
Simmons also explained that the return of the West Indies to the pinnacle of world cricket will only come with a focus on development at all levels.
“Definitely things need to be changed at different levels. You don’t become bad batsmen at this level,” he said.
He continued on, saying that responsibility lies with coaches at all levels to see to the development of players in the region.
“You come up here thinking you are able to play up here, but things are not going the way they should do so there must be some sort of responsibility taken from the levels before us and that’s something that has to be addressed, generally, as an organization,” Simmons added.
With that said, Simmons also acknowledged that once players get to the international level, they also have a part to play.
“In saying that, the guys, when they come up here, need to fight harder. They need to put more effort into wanting to be the best in the world when they come up here,” he added.
The West Indies will play five T20 Internationals against England in Barbados starting on January 22.
Several members of the T20 squad including Fabian Allen, Kieron Pollard, Shimron Hetmyer, Keemo Paul, Oshane Thomas, Nicholas Pooran, and Jaspon Holder, are expected to arrive in New Zealand near mid-November to join the touring party that arrived in New Zealand late last week. The players were engaged in the ongoing IPL tournament that concludes on November 10.
Pooran's time in the IPL will be winding down soon after his KXIP team were eliminated from playoff contention after losing to CSK earlier today.
Notwithstanding, for those playing in the international T20 series, it means they will be quarantined for two weeks and will only be cleared to play just prior to the start of the series on November 27.
However, Simmons, the West Indies head coach, is optimistic that the period of inactivity will have that much of an impact of the late-arriving players.
“The plus about that is that they are coming from playing in a high-quality tournament so they will be sharp. The guys that are with us, we have to get them up to that level so when we meet on as a full squad everyone is on the same page,” he said.
Rain briefly threatened to scupper the third and final match just as it had the second and Ireland will have wished for a greater downpour after being comprehensively outplayed at Warner Park in Basseterre.
The tourists collapsed from 50-1 to 138 all out following a 45-minute delay as Kieron Pollard and Dwayne Bravo snared three wickets apiece.
Simmons ensured the Windies made light work of the chase, hitting five fours and 10 sixes in a blistering 40-ball innings that surpassed his previous best T20I score of 82.
Evin Lewis added 46 from 25 deliveries in an opening stand worth 133 to help dash Ireland's chances of escaping with a series victory.
Simi Singh claimed Lewis courtesy of a top edge before Simmons ended the contest two balls later, the 34-year-old launching another six at the end of the 11th over to force a drawn series.
In the first innings, Brathwaite made 94 off 268 balls, batting for 400 minutes in the process.
“There’s not much to tell as a batsman because I think everybody’s seen his determination and unique style,” Simmons said in an interview after the match.
“He doesn’t have a problem being there for five days and doing his job which is unique because a lot of batsmen nowadays want to play shots and be done with it but, from his point of view, he wants to be there all the time for his team and that rolls into the captaincy,” he added.
Since being named permanent Captain in March 2021, Brathwaite has led the team to a series win against England and drawn series against Pakistan and Sri Lanka.
“He seems to be growing into the role as we go along,” Simmons said.
“He’s not loud but the players know what he wants in his unique way. He makes them understand what he wants from them,” he added.
Brathwaite’s next assignment will be to lead the team to victory in the second test against Bangladesh which begins on Friday at the Daren Sammy Cricket Ground in St. Lucia.
The West Indies are in England to play in a historical Bio-secure Test series against England for The Wisden Trophy and Gabriel made the squad after a long injury layoff.
According to West Indies coach Phil Simmons, Gabriel is being carefully led back into the rigours of international cricket and will likely be a part of the 14-man squad on tour, rather than in the reserves.
“Shannon has been named in the reserves. Yes, he is one of West Indies’ prominent fast bowlers but coming back from injury and we just have to make sure that especially that he was fit enough to go through the tour,” said Simmons.
At this stage, Gabriel is still not an automatic pick, but Simmons believes there is every chance he will play some part in the tour.
“There is a possibility of Shannon Gabriel joining the touring party of 14,” said Simmons.
Gabriel has not played since September of 2019 after a brief spell with Gloucestershire. The pacer’s sidelining came after an ankle injury that required surgery.
The last time Gabriel faced England, he helped the Caribbean side win back the Wisden Trophy in a 2-1 series win where he bowled with real menace, spilling over into a verbal exchange with England captain Joe Root.
According to Gabriel, that instance, for which he was suspended for five One-Day Internationals, is in the past.
Test Squad: Jason Holder (captain), Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Kraigg Brathwaite, Shamarh Brooks, John Campbell, Roston Chase, Rahkeem Cornwall, Shane Dowrich, Chemar Holder, Shai Hope, Alzarri Joseph, Raymon Reifer, Kemar Roach
Reserve Players: Sunil Ambris, Joshua DaSilva, Shannon Gabriel, Keon Harding, Kyle Mayers, Preston McSween, Marquino Mindley, Shayne Moseley, Anderson Phillip, Oshane Thomas, Jomel Warrican
The Windies were victorious by four wickets on the final day of a gripping first Test behind closed doors in Southampton.
You have to go back to 1988 for the last time West Indies won a series on English soil in the longest format, but they have two opportunities to put that right at Old Trafford.
Head coach Simmons says his players must focus on the job in hand when the second Test gets under way in Manchester, where Joe Root will return to captain England on Thursday.
Simmons said: "For me it was a great win [in the first Test] because I think that it signified a lot of hard work being done by the players over the last four or five weeks.
"But you don't come to England and just win a Test match. It was a top-class Test match, with good cricket played by both teams, and even coming down to the last hour, it could have gone either way.
"To come out on top, it’s been great for us, and it was important because you don't want to have to chase England in England. So the chasing is from their point of view now.
"But you guard against complacency by just trying to do the same things you did before the first Test. Right now, that Test match is history. We've got to be thinking about what we do from Thursday to Monday."
Simmons thinks West Indies' preparation in the bio-secure bubble of Old Trafford paid off in the first Test.
He added: "I think that has been the biggest influence on the performance. I think the fact that we've been here for that period of time, we've had quality bowling in the nets because we've had nearly 11 seamers here, you can't put a price on that.
"I think that's something that we have to look at. I don't like to go back into my [playing] days, but we would come to England and play something like three or four proper warm-up games before the first Test, and we would also have three-day or four-day games in between the Test matches.
"So I think that period of training goes a long way to how we performed in that first Test."
The team has experienced mixed results since the duo took charge, with Simmons taking the reins in September of last year and Pollard taking charge of the ODI and T20 teams the following month. Simmons previously served as head coach of the regional team in 2015 and led the Windies to their second T20 World title the following year.
Though the team is yet to put together a strong string of positive results, as they were most recently swept aside by Sri Lanka in three one day internationals, Ramnarine believes the youthful Windies squad has the ingredients to eventually get things right.
“Talent has always been there, no question about that. It takes time to groom them,” Ramnarine told the Sportstar.
“Governance is one aspect always been lacking significantly in sports generally, we in the West Indies have our own share of not-so-good people. The current captain Kieron Pollard, whom I know well, is a fantastic leader. He and Phil Simmons (head coach) bring a lot of positive things to the game, these are good guys. With time, these two have the ability, the skill and leadership to transform cricket in the West Indies.”
At the close of play, the Windwards batting a second time were 157 for 7 with Larry Edward (29) and Kenneth Dember (9) the batsmen at the crease. Asked to bat again, the Windwards found the going hard early on as the typically dependable Devon Smith was dismissed for a duck in the first over, bowled by Nial Smith. They lost Teddy Bishop (15), the team’s other opener, soon after, to leave the score at 20 for 2.
Alrick Athanaze maintained his good form for the match after first hunkering down at the crease with Kavem Hodge to briefly stop the rot. Hodge was, however, uprooted when he was dismissed lbw off the bowling of Keemo Paul for 15. Keron Cottoy added 12 before being dismissed by Clinton Pestano and Denis Smith added just four runs before departing two overs later with the score at 77 for 5, after also falling victim to Pestano.
Veerasammy Permaul delivered the crucial wicket of Athanaze, who made 58, in the 29th over with the team struggling at 125 for 7. Paul, Permaul, and Pestano have so far taken two wickets each with Smith claiming one.
Earlier, resuming the day at 181 – 5, still trailing the Winwards first innings tally of 339 by 155 runs, Singh held the Harpy Eagles innings together along with Paul as the pair put on a solid 146 for the 6th wicket to change the complexion of the match. Paul was eventually dismissed, after putting 77 on the board, when he was trapped lbw by Kenneth Dember. Singh departed two overs later, just seven runs short of a century when he was stumped by Smith off Dember. With the score then at 290 for 7, the team added another 37 runs to move to within 12 of the total.
Among them is Sir Vivian Richards, a man considered by many to be the greatest batsman of all time and one of the most destructive.
Richards, who played on the West Indies teams that won the Prudential World Cup in 1975 and 1979, said he still cannot believe that former West Indies captain Jason Holder, was not among the 15-man squad named for the world cup.
Holder, who played well in the recent CPL and took 16 wickets for Sunrisers Hyderabad in the IPL this season, was only named among the four reserve players who will travel with the team to the United Arab Emirates where the West Indies will begin the defence of their title on October 23.
The decision by the selectors doesn’t sit well with the Master Blaster.
“I felt maybe it could have been a misprint and then hearing the news as well you think you were not hearing right at that particular time,” Sir Vivian told the Antigua Observer.
“We may have our issues with Jason when he was in charge as captain of the team, but we can never doubt the individual’s ability and his talent and I just felt sad that someone with such ability couldn’t make a West Indies T20, so that suggests to me that we must be seriously blessed with talented individuals the calibre of Jason Holder.”
Despite his misgivings, Richards urged fans to get behind the team as it goes for a third world title having won the tournament in 2012 and 2016.
West Indies open their defence against England in Dubai.
Called to the West Indies squad to replace the injured Shane Dowrich, the 22-year-old Da Silva got off to an inauspicious start in his Test debut which came recently against New Zealand.
After looking at ease in the middle, a moment of indecision cost him his wicket.
When on three, he decided to play at a fullish outswinger in the corridor from Tim Southee. In an instant, Da Silva tried to pull his bat away but not far enough as the ball brushed the bat face on its way through to wicketkeeper BJ Watling.
However, in his second turn at bat with the West Indies following on, Da Silva was the most composed batsman, going on to make a polished 57. With the West Indies facing certain defeat and with only one batsman left to come, he was eventually trapped lbw by Neil Wagner. During the knock where he stroked six balls to the boundaries, the young Trinidadian impressed none other than the Master Blaster himself, Sir Isaac Vivian Richards.
“I think some of these guys should have a look at him and see how simple he keeps his game because even for the period I saw him at the crease he was compact, not flashy and had the bat coming down with all kinds of flashiness,” Sir Vivian told the Antigua Observer in a recent interview.
“He looks very respectable to me, like he knows his game.
“You see him when he is batting and when he is looking to defend, how straight his bat is. He looks organized to me and you’re not seeing that in all the other guys.”
Da Silva came away with a Test average of 30, the third best among the West Indies batsmen. Only Jermaine Blackwood with an average of 54 and Captain Jason Holder who averaged 34.33 were better.
Floyd’s death, at the hands of police officer Derek Chauvin last year, prompted global outcry and worldwide protests. In response to the incident, Holding gave powerful testimony about racial injustice, during Sky Cricket's coverage of England against West Indies in July 2020.
Holding won the Sports Journalists' Association (SJA) Award for Best Pundit in 2020 at the SJA Awards and Sky Sports won the Sports Network of the Year category. The Sports Pundit award is decided by an SJA Members' vote.
The West Indian revealed the speak has simply come from thoughts that have been buried deep in his consciousness for a number of years now.
"People don't understand what it is like to go through life and always thinking that people think less of you than what you think of yourself,” Holding said at the online awards ceremony.
"It can be a little bit tiring and when I got that opportunity it just came spilling out,” he added.
He, however, holds out hope that the process that could lead to lasting change has already begun.
"If you just look at the protests on the road and look at the faces of the people that were on the road. I saw a Swedish women's football team take a knee before a game, so it is going all over the world that people are recognising that things need to be done, and it's about time it did."
He was part of the famous Three Ws – alongside Sir Frank Worrell and Sir Clyde Walcott. He was also a highly respected coach, a knowledgeable analyst on the game for the regional and international media, as well as a former Team Manager, Match Referee for the International Cricket Council, and a member of the ICC Hall of Fame.
He passed away on Wednesday at the age of 95.
Ricky Skerritt, President of CWI said: “On behalf of CWI I want to publicly express our deepest sympathy to the family of this remarkable Iconic sportsman and gentleman, who passed away earlier today [yesterday]. I also send condolences to former CWI President Sir Wes Hall, and his family, who were all extremely close to Sir Everton. I never had the opportunity to see Sir Everton bat, but I had the opportunity to get to know him a little in his later years. I learned about his incredible career by reading about him and looking at old videos when I could. His performance stats were excellent as he set tremendously high standards for his time.
Sir Everton was, therefore, a most amazing pioneer in West Indies cricket; a gentleman and quite simply a wonderful human being. I got to spend a couple of hours with him last year just sitting at his home and talking with him, at a time when he was recovering from a serious illness. I have never known a more humble and gentle human being. I grew to appreciate his sense of humour and his love of people and witnessed the love and respect that so many held for him in Barbados and across the entire region. I am so privileged to have known this amazing West Indian Legend and gentleman. Sir Everton Weekes was truly one of the founding fathers of West Indies cricket excellence. May his soul rest in eternal peace.”
Born, Everton DeCourcey Weekes, he was a member of the famous Empire Club in Barbados, which was also home to several other legends of the game including Sir Frank Worrell, Sir Charlie Griffith and Sir Conrad Hunte.
He made his Test debut at age 22 against England at Kensington Oval in 1948 under the captaincy of George Headley. His final match was against Pakistan in Trinidad a decade later.
In his career, Sir Everton played 48 Test matches and made 4455 runs at an average of 58.61 per innings. This included a world record five consecutive centuries in 1948 – scores of 141 against England in Jamaica, followed by scores of 128, 194, 162 and 101 in India. In his next innings, he made 90.
His average of 58.61 runs means Sir Everton is one of two West Indies greats, along with George Headley, in the top 10 Test averages of all time. This average has been bettered by only four players in history to have scored more than 4000 runs. In all first-class cricket he played 152 matches and scored 12010 runs at an average of 55.34 with a top score of 304 not out.
