Heading into the final day, the Windies are 52 for 6 and chasing a massive total of 296. Bonner (18) and Joshua Da Silva (15) are the batsmen currently at the crease and will both be hoping to be the start of an unlikely recovery.
Earlier, in pursuit of Sri Lanka’s second innings total of 191 for 4 declared, the West Indies experienced a shocking top-order capitulation that left them struggling at 18 for 6 after just 13 overs.
Spin bowling continued to be the major issue for the batsmen with Shai Hope, Roston Chase, Kyle Mayer, and Jason Holder all failing to pick the straighter deliveries. Similar to the first innings, it was the loopy offspin of Mendis that the team continued to struggle to negotiate, as he claimed four in the second innings to take his tally to seven.
“I think everyone is disappointed but it’s the nature of the sport. People will get out in cricket, that will happen. It’s just up to me and Josh and the rest of the batters to get the job done,” Bonner said.
The West Indies had also found themselves in trouble in the first innings before a 62 runs late innings partnership between Jason Holder and Kyle Mayers brought some stability to the innings.
“We have about 640 balls to bat tomorrow. If me and Josh can face the majority of the balls. Obviously, we want to play each ball on its merit, respect the bowler.”
Cricket has not been played at the Olympic Games since 1900, where Britain and France were the only two teams that participated. There have, however, been numerous discussions geared towards reviving the sport at the Games in recent years, with T20 cricket identified as the best format. Narine, however, believes that T10 could also be a consideration.
“The T10 format is more exciting than the T20 format. In T20s, the batters take a few overs before starting their attacking skills, however, in T10 the batters probably look for only one or two balls,” Narine told the Daily Times.
“There’s always a possibility to attract new fans through a shorter format of cricket and more exciting cricket. It will be an exciting thing if cricket is included in the Olympics as well and hopefully, maybe T10 could be a part of the Olympics,” he added.
The 10 over-format of the sport was introduced in the United Arab Emirates in 2017, it is, however, yet to be widely adopted.
Narine will be among a number of West Indies players taking part in this season’s edition. The spinner will represent the Deccan Gladiators, alongside West Indies T20 captain Kieron Pollard.
The 36-year-old was recently recalled for the team’s upcoming series against Ireland after being out of international action for four years. During the time, however, the all-rounder has enhanced his reputation as one of the sport’s premier death bowlers.
Chairman of selectors Roger Harper admitted that a primary reason for Bravo’s inclusion is geared towards bolstering the team’s death bowling.
"Death bowling is an art," Bravo said in a recent espncricinfo interview.
"Not many people around the world have really nailed death bowling to the T. If you ask anyone in world cricket to name five death bowlers in the last decade, definitely my name will come along with Lasith Malinga, Jasprit Bumrah, Mitchell Starc,” he added.
"It is not an easy time of the game, that's why it is called death. A special skill is required to bowl in those situations. Most times, if you have the ball in the death overs, and you don't win the game, everyone turns to you, and says, "okay, it is because of the last over.”
With the team’s struggles containing batsmen during the middle and death overs, often on full display, as it was at the ICC World Cup, Bravo hopes to serve as a mentor to a new generation of West Indies bowlers.
“My motivation also to try and work with current bowlers. There's [Sheldon] Cottrell, there's Keemo Paul, there's Alzarri Joseph, there's Oshane Thomas, there's Kesrick Williams. Collectively all of us have to get better, myself included. But with the experience that I have, I can get them to understand the importance of certain deliveries and when to bowl certain deliveries and work on a better finishing game plan."
The regional team arrived in Bangladesh on January 10 and was required to quarantine for 7 days based on the country’s COVID-19 protocols. Since clearing that hurdle, however, the Test team has been free to train and will not start the series until February 1.
The Asian team is known for being particularly difficult to beat on their home turf and easily dispatched the West Indies 2-0 on their last visit in 2018. One of those advantages is said to be the team’s pitches.
“It has helped (extra time) you have to adapt to these conditions. These conditions are difficult to play in, so the more time we get to understand the conditions is the better it is for us,” Cornwall said.
“It spins a bit more here. It is always going to be drier than the Caribbean. So, we just have to adapt to it and play to the best of our ability,” he added.
The inexperienced West Indies team will be hoping for a better showing than in the recently concluded One Day International (ODI) series where the team was summarily swept aside 3-0. The ODI batting line-up found the top class Bangladesh spinners on the surfaces a difficult task to cope with.
The 29-year-old scored his first century against England in 2015, a plucky 112 unbeaten in a draw in Antigua. Following that impressive achievement, however, Blackwood seemed unable to cross the double-digit threshold. In fact, before finally breaking the streak with 104 against New Zealand, in December, Blackwood had managed to score 10 half-centuries in-between but always fell short of a triple-digit score.
Included in that number were some figures frustratingly well clear of the 50 mark, but falling just short of the 100 mark, when for all intents and purposed the batsman seemed well set to do so. The tally includes three scores in the 90s. He scored 92 against Sri Lanka, in Galle, in 2015; 95 against Pakistan, in Abu Dhabi, in 2016, and 95 against England, in Southampton, in July of last year. Prior to that, Blackwood also registered 85 against England, in Bridgetown, in May 2015. During India’s tour of the West Indies, Blackwood took the opportunity to seek the advice of run-machine Kohli when the two briefly interacted off the pitch.
“I just asked him how come all the time I score so many half-centuries and just one century, and he just replied, ‘What did you do when you scored the century? How many deliveries did you face?’ I said I faced 212, and he said that’s it, once you can bat some balls you will score runs,” Blackwood recalled.
“I took a lot from that and I’ve always told myself, after that conversation, once I can bat over 200 balls or 300, I’m going to score runs. Once I’m there, the way I bat, I’m going to score runs regardless of who I’m playing against or where I’m playing.”
The four-year partnership is expected to see fans of West Indies cricket in India given access to close to 150 international and 250 domestic cricket matches from the Caribbean. The list will include 16 International West Indies Men’s Series, CG Insurance Super50 Cup matches, West Indies Women’s Home Series, and Under-19 International Cricket matches.
In addition to a list of upcoming international tour matches, the agreement will see the platform gain exclusive rights for the next India tour of West Indies in July 2022 (three ODIs and three T20 Internationals) and any subsequent India tours within the period.
President of CWI, Ricky Skerritt, hailed the deal as having the potential to bring West Indies cricket to millions of fans in India.
“We are delighted to announce this new partnership with FanCode,” Skerritt said.
“India is one of our close allies in the cricket world and a key player in the global sporting landscape so this new agreement will enhance our presence there and also bring millions of fans closer to our team and to the magnificence of West Indies cricket,” he added.
Commenting on the association, Yannick Colaco, co-founder of FanCode, admitted the company was excited to be associated with West Indies cricket.
“The Caribbean is home to some of the most entertaining cricket played in the world. We are excited to partner with Cricket West Indies and bring close to 400 matches from the Caribbean featuring some of world cricket's biggest and brightest stars, to Indian cricket fans. This partnership will give millions of cricket fans in India the opportunity to experience FanCode and the many digital innovations we are bringing to improve the sports fan consumption experience.”
The 42-year-old batsman was widely expected to call time on his career following an unsuccessful ICC T20 World Cup campaign. Following the team’s elimination from the tournament, however, the big-hitting left-hander suggested that he may be given one more game, at Sabina Park, in his home country of Jamaica, to bid a final farewell to international cricket.
The suggestion has divided opinion. While some believe that paying tribute to a player who has scored the most runs ever in the format, with 14,321, others believe he should simply have moved on following the end of the tournament. In the past, the regional board has been accused of not honouring players that have made a huge mark for the West Indies, but some insist an exception should not be made for Gayle if his form does not merit a place in the squad. Mohammed, however, believes the solution could lie somewhere in-between.
“It’s another thing to see a situation where a player has basically called for a farewell, called for an opportunity to play a final match,” Mohammed told the Mason and Guest radio show.
“Gayle also wanted to play a last Test in Jamaica thankfully that was not granted because I think that is going down a road where players of a certain stature are making demands, which I don’t think should be entertained as far as the international structure of cricket,” he added.
“Are you saying somebody is going to be left out on merit to accommodate somebody’s farewell? Give him a testimonial, in the same way, you see in other countries…but I think it’s a dangerous precedent where someone is allowed to play an official international match as a farewell if they don’t deserve that place on merit.”
On the back of a fine century from opener Hayley Matthews and crunch-death bowling from all-rounder Deandra Dottin, the team snatched a narrow 3-run win over the Kiwis in their first match.
The Windies return to action Tuesday, at 5:00 pm, for the first time since that game, and Henry insists they will head into the contest grounded and focused on the task at hand. England will be looking to get on the board after losing their first encounter against Australia.
“For us, it really is game by game. That first game against New Zealand - Yes, we had discussions with the coaching staff. We had discussions with everybody - but as a team, you know going out there we just had the discussions among ourselves that doesn't matter what happened,” Henry said on Monday.
“We just have - once everybody takes up the responsibility that I am going to do it for the team, then collectively we will just - we all will do it for the team. And I think that's the mentality we have brought into this team going into this World Cup - that if every single player put up their hand and be like, okay, today's my day, then when all 11 players come together collectively, we will and can beat anything.”
Joseph ended the match with impressive figures of 4 for 16, but more than anything the innings will be remembered for the bowler's crucial breakthroughs when the Caribbean team’s tournament seemed destined to unravel.
Chasing a somewhat below-par total of 157, a surging Zimbabwe hammered 29 off the first two overs from the opening tandem of Kyle Mayers and Akeal Hosein. Joseph, however, struck crucially to remove Wessely Madhevere for 9 to dent Zimbabwean invulnerability and return some hope to his team, who took the initiative and battled back into the game.
Joseph’s effort was well backed up by former West Indies captain Jason Holder who claimed 3 for 12 and played a key role in ensuring the plucky African unit was restricted to 122.
In their turn at the crease, the West Indies looked set for a big score, at one point, cruising at 90 for 3, at the start of the 12th over, with a set Johnson Charles at the crease. Once again, however, the team was, however, bogged down by spin and Sikandar Raza wove a magical web to end with 3 for 19 after curtailing the Windies' momentum. At the back end of the innings, though, Rovman Powell and Hosein combined for a crucial 49 from 35 to give the Windies innings a much-needed lift. Charles had earlier given the team a strong start at the top of the innings with a purposeful 45 from 36.
Scores:
West Indies 157/7 (20)
Johnson Charles 45 (36)
Rovman Powell 28 (21)
Akeal Hosein 23* (18)
Sinkadar Razza 3 /19 (4), Blessing Muzarabani 2/38 (4)
Zimbabwe 122 (18.2)
Luke Jongwe 29 (22)
Wesley Madhevere 27 (19)
Ryan Burl 17 (19)
Alzarri Joseph 4/16 (4) Jason Holder 3/12 (3.2)
The win was the first for the Red Force over Barbados in three years. Resuming the final day on 343 for 9, the home team managed to add another 7 runs before Anderson Phillips was dismissed for 350. The total meant the Pride needed a mammoth 350 runs to win, a total they would not get close to.
Muhammad, who finished with overall figures of 34 for 4, went to work early on the innings. The bowler trapped Sheyne Moseley for five and Shamarh Brooks followed soon after for 10, which left Barbados struggling on 32 for 2. Anderson Phillip, who took six first-innings wickets, got in on the act after removing Justin Greaves for one, leaving the Pride in further trouble at 33 for 3. Shane Dowrich was next at the crease but could not repeat his first innings heroics as he became Muhammad’s third wicket.
Kyles Mayers and Kraigg Brathwaite briefly stopped the rot when they added 53 for the fifth wicket but Mayers was dismissed 10 runs short of his half-century by Akeal Hosein. Brathwaite was next to follow, also dismissed by Hosein on 36.
Kevin Stoute and last man Chemar Holder featured in another solid stand, as they added 52 runs for the last wicket but Muhammad struck again by capturing the wicket of Stoute for 33. Holder ended unbeaten on 34 off 37 as the Pride crumbled all-out for 182.
The controversial issue was brought to the fore during the England tour of the Caribbean after all-rounder Odean Smith was dropped from the team ahead of the third T20 international. Reports of the accusations were initially downplayed by Cricket West Indies president Ricky Skerrit and the senior members of the team’s hierarchy as an attempt to distract.
The CWI hierarchy has, however, since met with representatives of the West Indies Players Association (WIPA) to address the claims and the body’s Honourary General Secretary Wayne Lewis has confirmed that there are in fact a few issues to resolve.
“There were complaints to WIPA about things that happened, they were uncomfortable because of the situation, they were very unhappy and so we sat with Cricket West Indies and spoke about it,” Lewis told the Mason and Guest radio program.
“The complaint was that members within the cricket West Indies set-up were calling franchises overseas and advising them that particular players would not be given NOCs to play, and we thought that was odd because we have an MOU and a protocol that covers that, that did not include anyone from that area,” he added.
“There were situations where players were encouraged to change their agents to go with an agent of their (CWIs) choice and the players were resisting that because they had their own agents already. So that made them a little uncomfortable as well, so these issues needed to be addressed, so we did the proper thing by talking to the CWI to get to the bottom of it.”
Lewis revealed that talks between the bodies had continued to be cooperative but that a complete solution on how to address the issue had not yet been reached.
The West Indies squad have flatly rejected the suggestions that Smith's omission from the match was anything other than tactical.
At stumps, the West Indies needed another 285 to overhaul the home team for victory. Although it is the West Indies that holds the record for the highest fourth innings, which was 418 against Australia in 2002, few would bet on the current inexperienced campaigners going anywhere close.
With the team scoring below 250 in seven of its last 12 innings, the team could be forgiven to ensure that it simply did not lose the first test. In order to secure a result, however, Cornwall believes the first hour of the final day will be crucial and looks to the batsmen continuing to stymie the Bangladesh bowling attack.
“Two guys are crease, set. They just have to come out again tomorrow and start over again,” Cornwall said at the end of the day’s play.
“The first hour is going to be crucial and we can just take it from there.”
For his part, Cornwall has had a tidy bowling effort, claiming 3 for 81 in the second innings and 2 for 114 in the first.
The 32-year-old pace bowler was initially named as the 15th member to the official Test squad for the upcoming tour. Gabriel, one of the team’s lead strike bowlers, has not played cricket since September of last year after a brief spell with Gloucestershire. The player was sidelined after suffering an ankle injury that required surgery.
Head coach of the West Indies Phil Simmons, however, recently revealed the player had been training well and would be in contention for a spot in the final day Test squad.
“We have to put this in perspective. We selected 14, but Shannon, as we know, has come back from injury and being a senior member of the squad in the past two or three years we would have to look at him if he is up to that fitness level heading into the first Test,” Simmons told members of the media on a conference call on Saturday.
Gabriel claimed eight wickets and bowled with plenty of menace when the teams met in the Caribbean last year. The West Indies won the Test series 2-1. The player was, however, suspended for five One Day internationals after a verbal exchange with England batsman Joe Root.
Initially, the 32-year-old quick was included as a reserve, having recovered from an ankle injury in the past several months. With no competitive cricket available to the player during the COVID-19 pandemic, doubts had surfaced regarding his fitness.
Gabriel has, however, proven himself match fit over the last couple of weeks and is expected to return to the bowling line-up. In the warm-up matches, the bowler has claimed eight wickets at an average of just over 15.
Thursday was the last day of the West Indies' second and final warm-up game. The team’s coach Phil Simmons returned to the bench after his latest negative coronavirus test.
West Indies captain Jason Holder, who has struggled for form with the bat, tried to gain more time in the middle by promoting himself up the order to open the batting for his team, against the Kraigg Brathwaite XI. The all-rounder could only manage two off 15 deliveries, for a total of just seven runs in the warm-up games.
Gabriel was much better as he took four for 42 as Brathwaite's XI were bowled out for 178 in a drawn encounter, after resuming on 112 for seven.
Despite being one of the region’s top prospects, the 23-year-old has not played for the West Indies since 2020. Paul opted out of the team’s tour of England in 2020 but appeared against New Zealand in T20 internationals at the end of that same year. He has not been seen on the international stage since.
The player has, however, in the meantime taken part in a few T20 leagues and with the regional 4-day tournament looming on the horizon, Paul will be looking to make a statement. According to reports, the player recently turned in excellent scores in a fitness test conducted in Guyana recently.
“I am feeling excellent, I think I needed this to get back out there and bowl a few overs to get the feel of four-day cricket. My body is responding really well and for me personally, I am feeling really happy with where I am right now. I bowled a few overs on the trot, I was not feeling tired, I just wanted to put a few balls in the right area and it’s coming out really nice and I am happy with that,” Paul recently told the Guyana Times.
“I was in the Sri Lankan Premier League, it was not the best of tournaments for me, but it is always a learning experience for me; you go to these different leagues in the different continents and you play on different pitches, you gain a lot of experience so that was a major learning curve for me,” he added.
“My body is starting to feel like where it was when I first started playing. I am in the gym and I am trying not to worry about injuries. I just want to try and enjoy my cricket as best as I can. I want to represent my country and hopefully, back to the West Indies team sometime soon.”
In the 2018-2019 season, his last full season in the four-day competition Paul claimed 42 wickets in 10 matches, while scoring 260 runs.
The 34-year-old batsman is only just recovering from injury, having missed out on the team’s most recent tour of South Africa, which ended in a disappointing 3-0 loss.
According to reports, the batsman is already back in training and will be ready to go for the T20 and perhaps ODI series. The series will get underway on February 6th, while the T20 series gets underway on February 16th. Rohit is recovering from a left hamstring injury. In the past, the player has captained India vs the West Indies in three matches in 2018. India won the series 3-0. Overall, in 17 T20Is India has won 10 and lost 6.
"Rohit is fit and available for the series against the West Indies," a BCCI source was quoted as saying.
"By the time the West Indies series starts, it will be more than seven and half weeks of rehabilitation and recuperation for Rohit.
The West Indies are expected to head to India immediately after the England tour.
The Windies are currently preparing for a return to international cricket with the upcoming tour of England, after a globally enforced break due to the coronavirus pandemic. Ahead of the series, the regional team is likely to be encouraged by the fact that it once again has a full complement of first choice strike bowlers. The likes of Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel, and Alzarri Joseph are all available having recovered from injury. The regional team’s bowling attack has on occasion shown that they can be a handful for even top batting line-ups. Against England, in the Caribbean last year, Roach and Holder both claimed four-wicket hauls, with Gabriel and Joseph getting among the wickets as well. Estwick believes a major difference that has boosted the team's bowling performance in recent years is its level of fitness.
“What we’ve done is to improve our fitness, now we can sustain pressure,” Estwick said via a news conference.
“If you look back in the 80s, that’s one thing the fast bowlers had, it’s fitness. Another thing is that they (current players) are now understanding fast bowling. They have got to that age, Kemar and Shannon they are leading the charge and they are very experienced,” he added.
“Jason Holder has become a much better Test match bowler in the last two years and Alzarri Joseph is now beginning to show his potential. So were have four fast bowlers where we can challenge any team in the world.”
In fact, over the last two tours, the regional team has lost its last four games in a row against the Black Caps on their own soil, the most recent a 2-0 defeat in 2017. Overall, the West Indies have won only once in New Zealand, in 2006, with the other result being a draw in 2009. It is a record the opening batsman hopes can be improved with the current campaign soon to get underway.
“This is my third time in New Zealand. The team goal for me is to actually make sure that we can win this series. My individual goal is to make sure I can get as many runs as possible so that I can actually cement my spot in the T20 squad,” Fletcher said in an interview with windies cricket.
In 12 matches for this season’s CPL, Fletcher scored 211, with a high score of 46 and an average of 21.10 for St Lucia Zouks. The batsman believes he has improved since then.
“I’ve become a more positive player. My shot selection has improved a lot. I’ve worked hard on the physical part of my game well. I’ve been putting in a lot of strength work behind the scenes and it pays off,” he added.
The 27-year-old Brathwaite was a standout player when the regional team played in England three years ago. The opener scored 40 in the first Test, before scoring 134 and 95 in the second, forming part of a crucial partnership with Shai Hopes as the West Indies leveled the series.
The player has not been in the best of form since then. The top batsman averaged just 16 from his last six Tests, to see his overall average drop to 33. During the recent first-class championship, he was averaging a mere 25 after the seventh round of matches before knocks of 48 and 84 not out against Guyana Jaguars in the eighth round, boosted his numbers. It has led some to question his inclusion in the squad. The player, however, insisted he would not focus on either those negatives or dwell on his strong showing in England the last time around.
“I look forward to any series against England but what I’m really focusing on is obviously doing my job on the team and built that foundation, that’s all I’m focusing on,” Brathwaite told members of the media on Wednesday.
“There’s no pressure. You can’t always do well. I know my role and it just about going out there and focus on each ball. The batting hasn’t been going well the last few innings but I’m up for challenge,” he added
“Looking back, you obviously see things that you did well (2017) but that is history. I have an important job to do here and now and I’m raring to go.”
The West Indies followed up a gutsy away win over Bangladesh, with a hard-fought T20 series win over Sri Lanka, before putting on a dominant display in a One Day International (ODI) series against the same opponents.
While some may view the results with an air of skepticism, due to what they believe is inferior opposition, Murray was quick to point out that the team’s approach and attitude in recent encounters was just as important as the results and could augur well for the future.
“We are at a stage where West Indies cricket, let’s face facts, is at the bottom of the rung and we have taken the opportunity to beat teams on an equal footing with us or just above us,” Murray told the Mason and Guest radio show.
“What we saw in the One Days against Sri Lanka were people playing to their responsibilities within the team…we saw that in areas of the One Day game where people were called up to bowl at different times, people coming to bowl at the death, etc. People were moving out of their comfort zone and doing what the team needed,” he added.
“Between going from number 9 to number 1 there are going to be obstacles and hiccups along the way. We are not going to beat everybody as we go along but being able to win in tight situations is key, forget whether it was Bangladesh or Sri Lanka. In tight situations, we came out of it winning. Players are going to start believing they can win. So, when we face England, Australia, India, or New Zealand, it’s not going to be us trying to do something as a one-off but let’s get into a situation to give ourselves a chance to win. You are going to start winning more than you are losing.”
The West Indies will now turn their attention to securing victory over Sri Lanka in the two-match Test series, which begins on Sunday.
