Official West Indies Thread

[PhatBoy]

So happy for you Phatboy! So much to take away from this series and that win, contributions from a number of players too which is massive.

We just don’t lose tests in Australia often at all, and we were outplayed, enjoy it!

Thank you heaps mate and thank you for being one of the more even handed contributors to the forum in general it’s nice to read unbiased commentary and insights that recognise the importance of strong smaller nations in test cricket for the good of the game.

I’d like to think if nothing else I’ve stuck pretty solid for a long time and wins like this make it worthwhile: the win in SA out of nowhere in 2007, the series wins against England, the two test wins in England on our last two tours, the win in the UAE against Pakistan, the series win against Bangladesh away, they don’t happen a lot but when they do they’re f***ing good and this is the cream of the crop.

With any luck as Roach nears the end Holder returns to the fold and these kids develop around him and some of the kids from the 19s team come into this group as well: although predictably Scotland gave up enough net run rate to cost us a spot in the next stage of the tournament

 

[Blue1980]

It didn't look like that at the time and the contrast between the Richards' West Indies side and the Border/Simpson drilled side was quite noticeable. When the Windies warmed up for a match they'd come on in dribs and drabs do some stretches and maybe in the end some fielding drills while the Aussies would come on together, run a few laps, then Allcott would lead them through stretches and warm ups followed by a Simmo fielding session. The West Indians may have worked on their fitness behind closed doors but at the time we looked the far more professional outfit even if the results might not have reflected that for a few years yet.

The Simpson era changed things a lot, but it was a bit of a culture shock to many and took a while to catch up to the likes of the Windies.

 

[Trojan90]

How do the other guys fit into the picture moving forward? Holder/Blackwood/Mayers etc. and Seales. What does a best XI look like in the future?

 

[PhatBoy]

Look to this thread for all your grovelling posts after we destroy Australia 2-0 inside 6 days over the next few weeks

Well I got that badly wrong didn’t I

 

[akkaps]

Shamar Joseph just got picked up by the PSL. He said that he is still looking to play Test cricket in the long term, so he'll need to start balancing these needs.

 

[PhatBoy]

Shamar Joseph just got picked up by the PSL. He said that he is still looking to play Test cricket in the long term, so he'll need to start balancing these needs.

I don’t mind this - that will sound like lip service but the PSL doesn’t clash with any test cricket and the way the West Indies first class season is structured, in two halves, it actually falls right in the middle of it so in theory he can play the lot if he wants to.

If he can make some money doing this, it makes it probably more likely that he can afford to commit to the test team so I’m happy enough for that to happen for now

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

I put this on the Port board's cricket thread a few hours ago and was going to put it in the 2nd Test match thread but I reckon it fits better in here.

I haven't written anything about the Test match ending so far, but what a game and what a superstar Shamar Joseph is.

Wicket with his first ball in test cricket at Adelaide Oval, bowls Windies to their first test win in Oz for 27 years, last time they won was a couple of years before he was born and Oz hadn't lost a test at the Gabba between 1989 and 2020 which was 31 tests and it took the Indian side, who were depleted of their main strike bowlers to break that streak in January 2021 and this young Windies side matched them.

I heard the interview with Shamar straight after the game, and he said he wasn't going to bowl, he wasn't even sure if he would come to the ground, but he had a chat to the team doctor who said he would get him right to be able to play. Obviously a few cortisone injections into his broken toe.

At the tea break when he had taken all 6 wickets to fall that opening session, I thought of the Malcolm Marshall heroics in Headingley 1984 when he broke his left thumb and only bowled a handful number of overs in the first innings of the game and they didn't expect him to take any further part in the game. I wondered if Joseph could almost single handed win the game for the Windies. ( Marshall had a lot more help from his teammates)

Marshall then went and batted with a plaster caste on his left wrist/arm, and basically hit the ball one handed, only made 4, but could have sat it out as the 9th wicket fell when the Windies were 20 runs up.

This was the first Windies 5-0 black wash series. Marshall came out and bowled out England for 159 taking 7/53 and it meant Windies needed 130 to win. I thought it was the 4th test in the 5-0 whitewash but it was the 3rd test. He missed the 4th test due to his injury and came back for the 5th and took a 5 for, to make sure of the black wash.

Shamar Joseph's heroics was arguably greater, as he had pain in his toe/foot which hindered him even more than Marshall's broken left thumb. Marshall had played about 30 tests and had made his test debut 6 years earlier.

I rank Marshall as the best West Indies bowler I have seen. Most of the guys that played with Andy Roberts rank him as #1 as he was the godfather that taught most of them how to bowl hostile stuff. Viv Richards named Marshall his #1 because he produced so many times for him as captain, especially on the flat decks in Pakistan and India, especially when they needed to win to draw series.

Shamar Joseph's heroics drew this series like Marshall used to do, but Marshall's teammates helped them win so many series, so if they drew one, they still retained the trophy.


Here is a short you tube video about Marshall's heroic taken from ESPN's 2001 Legends of Cricket series of the 20th Century. They named their top 50 and did a 30 minute video of each of the top 25, after Wisden named their Five Cricketers of the 20th Century, where they asked 100 cricket people to name 5 cricketers each, and 50 names ended up on the list, ranging from 100 votes for Bradman to 18 players getting 1 vote.

ESPN put Malcolm Marshall at #16. If Shamar Joseph can go close to matching Marshall's heroics over a 12 year career, and gets a bit of help from his teammates, then West Indines cricket will bounce back to a very good place. Clive Lloyd in the video asks could you ask one of those guys ( ie players of around 2001) to play with a broken arm?? Well Shamar Joseph had no problem delivering with a broken toe.

 

[RussellEbertHandball]

Just like the Gabba test of 1960, has been talked about for 60+ years, so will the 2024 test be talked about for many decades to come.

 

[Cmarsh]

Don't think there were any performances in the ODI series from the WI players to see how and when things might turn around for them in the format.

 

[PhatBoy]

Don't think there were any performances in the ODI series from the WI players to see how and when things might turn around for them in the format.

They beat England the series before this one. That’s not about to win them a World Cup or anything one result doesn’t override the other; I don’t think they’re in a worse spot after an away loss than they were after a home win

 

[PhatBoy]

First round or the regional championship is underway and so far has been a mix of encouraging and underwhelming

Jamaica have been awful against Windward islands - bowled out for 160 and 4-70 in their second innings. Windwards made 340. Kid called Ryan John took 5 for windwards: he’s made a good start to his first class career, has 20-odd wickets at mid-20s with a couple of five-fors and he’s a seamer.

Most encouraging one has been Barbados, they’re giving CCC a bit of a touch up which is probably expected but they have a kid called Kevin Wickham who is only 20 and he’s just hit his third century after 9 first class matches. Might not sound like much but for a West Indies batsman in recent times that’s a lot. He smacked 139 off 135 balls, 9 sixes and 8 fours. Curiously he’s never been dismissed between 50 and 100. I think he will find himself on the trip to England with 1-2 more scores this competition.

Sadly Jason Mohammad at 37 is still one of Trinidad’s leading batsmen and hit another hundred in their game against Guyana

Good sign for the Academy team in their return to the comp, they bowled Leewards out for 137….. not so good side for big Rakheem’s Leewards team

 

[cricketnut14]

First round or the regional championship is underway and so far has been a mix of encouraging and underwhelming

Jamaica have been awful against Windward islands - bowled out for 160 and 4-70 in their second innings. Windwards made 340. Kid called Ryan John took 5 for windwards: he’s made a good start to his first class career, has 20-odd wickets at mid-20s with a couple of five-fors and he’s a seamer.

Most encouraging one has been Barbados, they’re giving CCC a bit of a touch up which is probably expected but they have a kid called Kevin Wickham who is only 20 and he’s just hit his third century after 9 first class matches. Might not sound like much but for a West Indies batsman in recent times that’s a lot. He smacked 139 off 135 balls, 9 sixes and 8 fours. Curiously he’s never been dismissed between 50 and 100. I think he will find himself on the trip to England with 1-2 more scores this competition.

Sadly Jason Mohammad at 37 is still one of Trinidad’s leading batsmen and hit another hundred in their game against Guyana

Good sign for the Academy team in their return to the comp, they bowled Leewards out for 137….. not so good side for big Rakheem’s Leewards team

love the updates and keeping us punters up to date with what's going on in west indies cricket on a regular basis

 

[PhatBoy]

Had one of those annoying ‘reels’ pop up on my FB feed last night that I usually scroll past but it was related to Kemar Roach and had to laugh:

The BBL commentators crossed to Lehmann in the Heat dugout and asked him - prompted by what I’m not sure - what it was like coaching Roach at the team years ago and he said he was one of his favourite players or something like that and that he had him over for Christmas and that when asked what he wanted as a ‘drink’ for a gift he just asked for a bottle of Hennessy.

So Lehmann just gave him a bottle of Hennessy and Christmas was Roach downing the entire bottle of Hennessy straight, and playing CoD with one of Lehmann’s sons before pouring himself into a cab and leaving, happy as Larry

 

[akkaps]

Shamar Joseph signed as a replacement player for the Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL

 

[corbies]

IPL teams are really going to struggle with recruitment once Test cricket is dead.

 

[PhatBoy]

Some interesting scores again in round 2, particularly from the Guyana vs Leewards.

Mikyle Louis made his debut in round one and hit a 50:

This is his second match and he’s made a century in both innings for Leewards opening the batting.

Guyana need 400-odd to win, they’re 1-60 going into the last day so batting for a draw you’d imagine.

Windwards beat Barbados by 9 wickets though Kevin Wickham who hit his 3rd century in 8 first class games or whatever it is in round one, followed it with another 70 for Barbados in the first innings.
Jeremy Solozano top scored with 80-odd for Windwards as they made 320 and they rolled Barbados for 120 in their second dig and won easily.


Johnathan Carter made 150 for CCC and Chadwick Walton made 160 for Jamaica as they traded 301 and 330 scores respectively in the first innings, CCC fell in a heap in their second for 87 and Jamaica won by 9 wickets.
Not a great outcome really as both Walton and Carter are veterans in their mid 30s. Would rather see young guys making runs.

In the fourth game Trinidad and Tobago beat the Academy side but the Academy put up a decent fight: Jyd Goolie scored his second first class hundred in his 9th match for TT, they scored 329 in their first dig, after rolling the academy for 163.
academy scraped up 220 in their second, TT chased 60-odd four wickets down.

 

[Cleavy]

Antigua & Barbuda Falcons unveiled as new CPL franchise

Falcons are the first Antigua-based CPL franchise after a ten-year gap

www.espncricinfo.com

new CPL team

 

[ioppolo]

PhatBoy I assume you listen to the Caribbean cricket podcast?

 

[PhatBoy]

PhatBoy I assume you listen to the Caribbean cricket podcast?

I haven’t mate, to be honest it’s the one media format I have never really gotten into beyond the odd few here and there when a mate sends me a link to an individual episode of a particular podcast.

Is it worth a listen?

 

[ioppolo]

I haven’t mate, to be honest it’s the one media format I have never really gotten into beyond the odd few here and there when a mate sends me a link to an individual episode of a particular podcast.

Is it worth a listen?

I only found it very recently myself. It's small fry but the guy seems to be quite a close follower of the Windies all round. Definitely doesn't hold back his opinions and doesn't have much time for bullshit. Here's the latest episode (only 22 mins) where he essentially talks about how rigged the 'draw' for the T20 World cup is.

 

[PhatBoy]

I only found it very recently myself. It's small fry but the guy seems to be quite a close follower of the Windies all round. Definitely doesn't hold back his opinions and doesn't have much time for bullshit. Here's the latest episode (only 22 mins) where he essentially talks about how rigged the 'draw' for the T20 World cup is.

Thanks mate, will give it a listen

 

[Gough]

Great story.

 

[Gough]

This will be interesting.

 

[Jane Doe]

This will be interesting.

That book the unforgiven is a great read.

 

[PhatBoy]

I haven’t kept this updated as I intended to - the CWI website is terrible poor to navigate on a phone and Cricinfo barely covers the domestic comp but some encouraging scores still coming from the recent rounds: on day one of round six there was 5 centuries scored including maiden first class tons for Zachary McCaskie and Amir Jangoo, hundreds for Kemol Savory who now has 2 in 11 matches - he’s a young Guyanese keeper, and hundreds for Brathwaite and Jason Mohomad.
Brathwaite has two for the tournament so seems to have remembered how to bat.

I’m very interested to see at the end of the tournament how the volume of three figure scores stacks up to recent editions of the championship as it’s been a huge problem for our batsmen for quite a while. Seems to be a lot more this time around.