The decisive second Test, which initially seemed set to end in three days, has now been returned to some semblance of normalcy as South Africa took charge of proceedings on day two to leave West Indies in a familiar position at Providence in Guyana on Friday.
After securing a 14-run lead when they restricted West Indies to 144, South Africa, through an opening stand of 79 between Aiden Markram (51) and Kyle Verreynne, and an unbeaten 84-run sixth-wicket partnership between Verreynne and Wiaan Mulder, all but placed one hand on the Sir Vivian Richards trophy.
They lead by 239 runs, with Verreynne, unbeaten on 50, and Mulder, on 34, set to resume batting at 9:00am on Saturday.
Still, with three more days to play and the surface getting much better to bat on with time, West Indies will cling to hope that they can turn their fortunes and register win number two to move up the ICC Test Championship standings.
Scores: South Africa 160 and 223 for 5 (Markram 51, Verreynne 50*, Seales 3-52, Motie 2-61) lead West Indies 144 (Holder 54*, Mulder 4-32, Burger 3-49, Maharaj 2-8) by 239 runs
Eight wickets fell on another action packed day, as West Indies, resuming on 97-7, got much closer than expected to South Africa’s first innings total, thanks to a 40-run 10th-wicket stand between Jason Holder, who was left unbeaten on 54, and Shamar Joseph (25).
David Bedingham was bowled by Jayden Seales (out of photo).
Mulder ended with 4-32 and Nandre Burger, 3-49, while Keshav Maharaj (2-8) wrapped things up with the dismissal of Joseph in the opening session.
With a slight lead in their favour, coupled with the lessons learnt from their first innings collapse, Markram and Toni de Zorzi (39), weathered some testy movements from West Indies seamers before lunch, and later capitalised on the significant change in conditions to lay the foundation for a massive total.
De Zorzi, who survived a scare on 36 when Joshua da Silva failed to hang on to a low catch off Jason Holder’s bowling, fell three runs later as the wicketkeeper made no mistakes on the second occasion when he knicked one behind from Jayden Seales.
Markram and Tristan Stubbs (24) continued the momentum with a 41-run second wicket stand, but they didn’t have things all their way as the Caribbean bowlers were plucky and created a few half chances—edges, leg before wicket shouts, and a chance put down by Alick Athanaze—that didn’t go their way.
Gudakesh Motie eventually trapped Markram in front shortly after he raised his half-century, and the Guyanese spinner later accounted for captain Temba Bavuma (four) soon after, which left South Africa at 134-3.
Stubbs followed shortly after to the Seales-Da Silva combination, before the Trinidad and Tobago seamer clean bowled David Bedingham for a duck as the visitors slipped to 139-5.
Snaring four wickets for a mere 19 runs in nine overs left West Indies on a high and they would have sensed another low target coming. However, Verreynne and Mulder shifted the momentum back South Africa’s way with the highest partnership of the series so far.
Cricket West Indies (CWI) has announced the squad for the upcoming home Test series against South Africa, set to take place from August 7 to 19, 2024. The series will feature two Test matches, with the first being held at the Queen’s Park Oval in Trinidad and Tobago and the second at the National Stadium in Guyana.
Key changes in the squad include the dropping of out of form batsman Kirk McKenzie and the resting of vice-captain Alzarri Joseph. Kemar Roach, who was injured during the recent series against England, returns to bolster the bowling attack. Additionally, Keacy Carty and Tevin Imlach has been called up to strengthen the batting lineup.
The squad, captained by Kraigg Brathwaite with Joshua Da Silva as vice-captain, includes Alick Athanaze, Keacy Carty, Bryan Charles, Justin Greaves, Jason Holder, Kavem Hodge, Tevin Imlach, Shamar Joseph, Mikyle Louis, Gudakesh Motie, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales, and Jomel Warrican. This combination reflects a balanced mix of experienced players and promising young talents, strategically selected to maximize performance in Trinidad and Guyana.
CWI Director of Cricket, Miles Bascombe, expressed confidence in the squad's ability to deliver strong performances against South Africa. "The selection process for this squad was led by our Head Coach, Andre Coley, pending the implementation of our new selection process, which will be rolled out in the coming days and articulated publicly shortly. This squad reflects a thorough evaluation of players' recent performances and suitability for the conditions we anticipate. We are confident that this team is well-balanced and capable of competing at the highest level," Bascombe said.
Head Coach Coley emphasized the strategic selection of a balanced mix of experience and youth to maximize performance in Trinidad and Guyana. He explained the decision to rest Alzarri Joseph, citing his recent heavy workload and the need for recuperation to ensure peak performance. "Kevin Sinclair is presently recovering from an injury," Coley added.
The full schedule for the series is as follows:
Test Series:
1st Test: August 7-11, 2024, Queen’s Park Oval, Trinidad and Tobago
2nd Test: August 15-18, 2024, National Stadium, Guyana
T20I Series:
1st T20I: August 23, 2024, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad and Tobago
2nd T20I: August 25, 2024, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad and Tobago
3rd T20I: August 27, 2024, Brian Lara Cricket Academy, Trinidad and Tobago
West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite acknowledged that his team's first innings score was below par and pointed out their lack of consistency following their 10-wicket loss to England at Edgbaston on Sunday. This defeat, which occurred inside three days, resulted in a series sweep for England.
In the opening innings, West Indies posted a total of 282, with Brathwaite contributing 61 and Jason Holder 59. However, England responded strongly with a total of 376, bolstered by significant contributions from Ollie Smith (95), Joe Root (87), Chris Woakes (62), and Ben Stokes (54). Alzarri Joseph (4-122) and Jayden Seales (3-79) were the pick of the West Indies bowlers.
Reflecting on the performance, Brathwaite remarked, "For sure, looking back, it wasn't enough runs. It was a better pitch than 280, but we showed good discipline. It's tough to take. We weren't as disciplined with the ball as we should have been to put a batting team under pressure for long periods. We have to improve on that."
Brathwaite further emphasized the need for his team to focus on consistency and execution. "We weren't as consistent as we needed to be, didn't hit the top-of-off area long enough. You give the batsmen momentum. We need to get back to where we were in Australia, hitting the top of off," he said.
Despite their struggles, Brathwaite highlighted the positive aspects of the team's performance. "We never gave up, always came back and fought. Kavem Hodge got his hundred, and we got first-innings totals. Jayden took wickets, and Motie as well. We need more cricket; playing against good players, you will improve. So I'm excited for the series against South Africa. We've got to have the right attitude and consistency."
West Indies' second innings saw a collapse, managing only 175 runs. Mikyle Louis and Kavem Hodge both scored half-centuries, but their efforts were overshadowed by Mark Wood's exceptional post-lunch spell. Wood took five wickets for 40 runs, finishing with figures of 5 for 40 from 14 overs, adding to his 2 for 52 from the first innings. His spell dismantled the West Indies batting lineup, leaving them with a paltry lead of 81 runs.
England's chase was swift and decisive. With Zak Crawley injured, Ben Stokes opened the innings and delivered a blistering 57 off 28 balls, while Ben Duckett contributed 25 off 16. They chased down the target in just 7.2 overs, securing a 3-0 series sweep for England.
Brathwaite expressed optimism for the upcoming series against South Africa, emphasizing the need for growth and improvement. "Looking forward to [SA Tests], because we have to see growth and improvement. Hit the top of off, stayed committed with the bat. Then we'll see improvements."
Australia will head into the men’s Ashes series with their players filling the top three slots in the world Test batting rankings.
In the latest weekly update from the International Cricket Council, c retains top spot with team-mates Steve Smith and Travis Head moving up to second and third respectively.
Smith climbs from third after his century in Australia’s World Test Championship final win over India, while Head rises from sixth after his player-of-the-match 163 in the same game at The Oval.
It is the first time since 1984, when the West Indian trio of Gordon Greenidge, Clive Lloyd and Larry Gomes were the occupants, that the top three positions have been provided by the same team.
Joe Root is the highest England batter in sixth.
Australia spinner Nathan Lyon has moved up to sixth in the bowling rankings after taking five wickets in the match against India. His captain Pat Cummins remains third, with England’s James Anderson second.
The first Ashes Test begins at Edgbaston on Friday.
After nearly two weeks of preparation in Bulawayo, West Indies interim head coach is eagerly awaiting the first ball of the series on Saturday morning. According to Andre Coley, the preparation has been sufficient, with numerous practice sessions and a dominant display in the three-day warm-up match against the Zimbabwe XI, across town at the Bulawayo Sports Club.
Now the attention switches the “big show” – the first Test against Zimbabwe, and the location moves to the Queens Sports Club, where the two teams will meet.
“We are confident that the areas that we wanted to address and spend some time on, we were able to do so. The facilities have generally been good and offered us enough to get through what we needed to,” Coley said.
He also expressed pleasure at the way the players have been responding to the training, noting that they have been putting in extra work in the nets and on fitness.
Regarding getting ahead and eventually winning the series, he is looking for consistency in all areas.
Wary that Zimbabwe are highly competitive at home, the West Indies will be eager to start the year right, having enjoyed some success in the longest format over the past 18 months and a series in South Africa to follow.
The first Test will begin on Saturday, February 4. First ball is 10am (4am Eastern Caribbean/3am Jamaica).
Squad: Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Jermaine Blackwood (vice-captain), Nkrumah Bonner, Tagnarine Chanderpaul, Roston Chase, Joshua Da Silva, Shannon Gabriel, Jason Holder, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Gudakesh Motie, Raymon Reifer, Kemar Roach, Devon Thomas and Jomel Warrican
Cricket West Indies (CWI) has lauded the West Indies players named in the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) Teams of the Year for 2022.
Three West Indies players were announced by the ICC on Tuesday in the annual awards.
Captain Kraigg Brathwaite was picked in the Test Team of the Year, while wicket-keeper/batsman Shai Hope and fast bowler Alzarri Joseph earned spots in the One-Day International (ODI) Team of the Year.
Brathwaite averaged 62 in seven Tests during the last calendar year, scoring two hundreds – a monumental 160 against England at Kensington Oval in March and an outstanding 110 against Australia at the Perth Stadium in December, on the eve of his birthday.
Hope maintained his consistency in the ODIs, averaging 35 with three centuries from 21 ODIs. He was among only seven players to pass 700 runs for the year.
The highlight was his knock of 115 in his 100th appearance against India at Queens Park Oval in July.
Joseph was also among the leading wicket-takers in ODIs for the year, with 27 wickets at an average of 25 runs per wicket from 17 matches and featured in all three formats.
“Captain Kraigg Brathwaite continued to lead from the front with a number of world-class batting displays, which characterize his composed and courageous style of play,” said CWI President Ricky Skerritt in praising the West Indies Test captain.
“The major achievement was leading the team to victory over England to capture the Richards Botham trophy which brought glory to West Indies fans.
“Shai Hope also demonstrated his immense talent in front the stumps and agility behind the wickets. He too showcased an exceptionally high level of skill, and a great sense of occasion, with a remarkable century to mark his 100th appearance against India in Trinidad.”
In his praise of Joseph, Skerritt said, “Alzarri I Joseph emerged as the leader of the bowling attack in ODIs and was consistent and persistent all year in all three formats.
“He has matured from an exciting young speedster to a truly world-class pace bowler and is reaping the rewards for the hard work he has been putting in off the field. We applaud all three for their outstanding performances in 2022 and also wish them continued success and growth in 2023 and beyond.”
Andre Coley has been named as the Interim Head Coach of the West Indies Men’s team for the upcoming tour of South Africa, Cricket West Indies announced Wednesday.
The West Indies Men’s team will start their 2023 international year with two Test matches against Zimbabwe. The visitors will play both matches at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo.
Zimbabwe Cricket (ZC) confirmed the schedule on Wednesday, with the first Test slated for 4-8 February, and the second Test match for 12-16 February. Ahead of the two-Test rubber West Indies will have a four-day warm-up match against a local side set for 28-31 January at Bulawayo Athletic Club.
All matches start at 10am local time (4am Eastern Caribbean/3am Jamaica).
“The tour to Zimbabwe early in 2023 will be an important part of our 2023 Test programme, which also includes series against South Africa and India," said CWI's Director of Cricket Jimmy Adams. "Having produced some good results early in 2022, the team will be eager to begin the year with strong performances in Zimbabwe.”
Zimbabwe’s last Test match was way back in July 2021 against Bangladesh in Harare and, according ZC Director of Cricket Hamilton Masakadza, they will be eager to make the most of the upcoming series.
“We are pleased to confirm the West Indies will be visiting us for two Test matches that will be played in Bulawayo,” Masakadza said.
“Although it’s been a while since we last played Test cricket, our boys will be hungry and ready for some red-ball action and I believe an exciting series against one of the game’s top sides is on the cards.”
The last Test Series between Zimbabwe and the West Indies was also played at Queens Sports Club in October 2017. West Indies clinched the two-match series having won the first game by 117 runs while the second match ended in a draw.
MATCH SCHEDULE
28-31 January: four-day warm-up match at Bulawayo Athletic Club
4-8 February: 1st Test at Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
12-16 February: 2nd Test at Queens Sports Club, Bulawayo
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