Having watched the Kraigg Brathwaite-captained Test team defy the odds in the second of their two-match series against Australia, West Indies One-Day International captain Shai Hope is optimistic that his unit will not only continue that momentum, but more importantly, replicate the feat in their three-match series.
There was much talk about the Test team and its seven uncapped players, among them rising fast bowler Shamar Joseph, who braved a toe injury to snare a seven-wicket haul and lead West Indies to a famous eight-run win –their first in Australia in 27 years.
With the excitement of that victory still very much fresh in the air, Hope and is unit, which includes five players from the Test squad, is intent on extending the celebrations.
The three-match series bowls off on Thursday at 10:30pm.
“It was a very inspiring win that they had in the last Test. It’s great momentum for us, of course it’s a different format, but great signs for us to continue what happened in the last Test in this ODI series,” Hope said in a pre-game press conference.
“It (the mood in the camp) is pretty good. Everyone's up and ready to roll. Seeing some of these grounds here in Australia, that in itself (makes you) want to play cricket so the guys are upbeat and ready to go,” he added.
It was a mixed bag for West Indies last year where results are concerned with their failed World Cup qualifying campaign and a loss to India at the height of their disappointments. However, they rebounded with 3-0 and 2-1 series victories over United Arab Emirates (UAE) and England, followed by a stalemate with South Africa.
Despite the fact that they have won seven of 12 ODIs last year, Hope is mindful that West Indies is yet to beat Australia in a series in almost three decades.
“Like we always say in the dressing room, every game matters, not necessarily about series or an opponent. You have to take every single game as a final and it's nice to see that the guys are really taken to the new system and the we're trying to play our cricket. So yeah, it's just one game at a time and then the results will take care of themselves,” Hope noted.
That said, Hope welcomed the challenge for his fairly inexperienced squad, which includes eight players with 10 or less ODIs under their belts, as they commence the rebuilding phase to towards possible qualification for the next ODI World Cup in four years. Teddy Bishop and Tevin Imlach are both uncapped.
“Yeah, it's I think it's great to widen that pool and what is a better way to start a career than here in Australia for some of the guys. But yes, I think four years seems like a long time, but it really isn't and as much games as these guys can play over that span, I think it's going to widen the pool and then give us a headache when that time comes to hopefully select a strong squad, and then they would also gain a lot more experience with that time,” Hope, who has been at the helm for almost a year declared.
WEST INDIES – Shai Hope (captain), Alzarri Joseph, Alick Athanaze, Teddy Bishop, Keacy Carty, Roston Chase, Matthew Forde, Justin Greaves, Kavem Hodge, Tevin Imlach, Gudakesh Motie, Kjorn Ottley, Romario Shepherd, Oshane Thomas, Hayden Walsh Jr.
AUSTRALIA – Steve Smith (captain), Travis Head, Sean Abbott, Xavier Bartlett, Nathan Ellis, Jake Fraser-McGurk, Cameron Green, Aaron Hardie, Josh Inglis, Marnus Labuschagne, Lance Morris, Matt Short, Adam Zampa
West Indies fast-bowling sensation Shamar Joseph has jumped a massive 42 spots up the ICC Men’s Test rankings this week to sit joint 50th on the list.
Joseph, whose breathtaking performances in the recently-concluded two Test series against Australia earned him the Player of the series award, was instrumental in the regional side's historic second Test win against the World Champions. He took five wickets for 94 runs in the first encounter, which Australia won by 10 wickets and seven wickets for 68 runs in West Indies' famous eight-run win.
The 24-year-old Joseph and his pace partners all secured ranking upgrades, as Kemar Roach moved two places up to 17th and Alzarri Joseph inched four places up to 33rd. New Zealand’s Kane Williamson remains the Number one batsman ahead of England’s Joe Root and Australian Steve Smith, while the bowling list is headed by Indian Ravi Ashwin followed by South African Kagiso Rabada and Australia's captain Pat Cummins.
All-rounders Jason Holder, ranked at seventh, and 10th-ranked Kyle Mayers, the highest rated West Indies players on the all-rounders’ list, did not play against Australia in the recent series. India’s Ravi Jadeja heads that list.
After threatening to post an even bigger total at various points of their second innings, West Indies folded for 193 after tea, setting Australia a target of 216. But it was by no means a foregone conclusion, as the regional side's bowlers hit back late on day three, leaving their host at 60-2 heading into day four of the second Test at the Gabba.
Still, with opener Steven Smith off to a positive start at 33 not out, with Cameron Green also there on nine, Australia remain in the driver's seat to secure a further 156 runs and claim a sweep of the home Test, though this unpredictable encounter may have more twists and turns with heavy showers forecast for days four and five due to the after-effects of Cyclone Kirrily.
Scores: Australia 289-9 dec and 60-2 (Smith 33*, Green 9*, Joseph 1-19) trail West Indies 311 and 193 (McKenzie 41, Athanaze 35, Greaves 33, Hazlewood 3-23, Lyon 3-42) by 155 runs
New-ball bowlers Kemar Roach and Alzarri Joseph started sluggishly and failed to make the most of favourable conditions under lights. Australia rattled off 24 runs before opener Usman Khawaja tickled Alzarri Joseph down the leg side.
West Indies' hopes of ending a two-decade Test drought against Australia were further raised when Justin Greaves squared up Marnus Labuschagne, whose edge was brilliantly snaffled by Kevin Sinclair in the slips. From there, Smith and Green survived a probing examination before stumps.
Green was all at sea and struck on the pads by Greaves, but West Indies were unsuccessful in their review. He then edged the next delivery in front of second slip. In contrast, Smith looked technically sound and hit the ball crisply to finish unbeaten on 33 from 56 balls.
But the surface did not offer as much zip as it did late on day two when Australia had declared 22 runs behind and Josh Hazlewood had sent back Tagenarine Chanderpaul. McKenzie motored along to thwart Australia's pace attack. In contrast, skipper Kraigg Brathwaite was anchored to the crease and scored just six runs off his first 33 balls before whacking Starc uppishly through the covers for his first boundary of the innings.
The batters defied probing hard-length bowling from Pat Cummins and notched a half-century stand before Brathwaite chipped Green to cover. McKenzie slowed down and on his 50th delivery, he missed an attempted sweep to be trapped lbw on Lyon's second delivery.
Athanaze, who has had limited impact in the series, showed glimpses of why he is highly rated with several attractive strokes, as he combined well with Hodge after dinner to rattle Australia. But Lyon's later brightened their mood when he dismissed Athanaze on 35 after tossing up a delivery that was edged to slip, where Smith took a sharp catch.
It was a relief for Smith, who had earlier in the innings dropped Athanaze and Brathwaite, as West Indies fell away before their late fightback left the match delicately poised.
West Indies bowlers toiled early but struck back late to restrict Australia’s Prime Minister’s XI to 297-9 from 89.3 overs at the end of the first day of their four-day match at Canberra on Wednesday.
Having won the toss and elected to bat, the Prime Minister’s XI got a solid start as openers Matt Renshaw and Marcus Harris shared in an opening stand of 134 inside 42 overs.
Jayden Seales broke the partnership when he had Harris caught by Kyle Mayers for 73.
Renshaw made 81 for the Prime Minister’s XI, who also benefitted from 55 from the bat of Peter Handscomb as the home side looked set for a score above 400 at 250-4.
However, Roston Chase led the West Indies fightback when he dismissed Aaron Hardie for 23 and then removed Handscomb as the Prime Minister’s XI slipped to 253-6.
Alzarri Joseph then bowled Ashton Agar for 33, Michael Neser for 10 and Joel Paris for two with the last ball of the day to finish with figures of 3-52 from 17.3 overs.
Chase’s two wickets in 21 overs cost 72 runs while Kemar Roach, Mayers and Raymon Reifer had one wicket each.
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