ROSEAU, Dominica, CMC – Not for the first time, captain Kraigg Brathwaite found himself urging West Indies for consistency as they geared up for the start of yet another daunting Test series against powerhouses India starting here Wednesday.
The Caribbean side enters the two-Test series battling the weight of history, having not beaten the world number one in two decades, during which time they have also failed to win a single game home or away.
And Brathwaite, a veteran of 85 Tests – 11 of which have come against the South Asian side – said if West Indies were to take anything away from the series, they would need to be consistent from the first ball at Windsor Park.
“We look forward to the challenge. I think we also look forward to the support of the Dominican public,” Brathwaite said on the eve of the encounter.
“And we had some number discussions on how we want to play, and the key is consistency. We want to be consistent, from the first innings right through the whole Test match into the second Test, and we look forward to doing that.
“We obviously would always have challenges – good bowling spells, good batting, good partnerships – but as a bowling group, we must stick together and put our heads together.
“But we look forward to the challenge here in Dominica, and we look forward to the crowd coming out and giving up some good home support, but we’re ready to go.”
When the two sides last met four years ago in the Caribbean, the hosts were receiving harsh defeats – going down by 318 runs in Antigua and 257 runs in the Kingston second Test.
Only five players who featured in that second Test are still around – Brathwaite, then captain Jason Holder, fast bowlers Shannon Gabriel and Kemar Roach, and off-spinner Rahkeem Cornwall, the latter of whom has been recalled following two years on the sidelines.
Despite West Indies’ lack of success over the last four years, however, the 35-year-old Roach has displayed precisely the consistency Brathwaite has asked for, taking 68 wickets from 22 Tests at an average of 28 to move into fifth place on the all-time West Indies bowling charts with 261 scalps.
And it was no surprise that Brathwaite pointed to the enduring Barbadian as one of the keys to unlocking India in the upcoming series.
“It’s great to have Kemar around, especially with his experience in the dressing room,” Brathwaite said.
“On the field, he always lends that advice and helping hand to the fast bowlers, even spinners.
“So it’s great to have him. He’s a legend of West Indies cricket, and I look forward to many more years of Kemar doing well for West Indies.”
Wednesday could also see a Test debut for hometown lad Alick Athanaze, the 24-year-old left-hander who has made a massive impression over the last year with his prolific scoring.
He is one of two uncapped players in the squad, the other being free-scoring 22-year-old opener Kirk McKenzie.
“You only debut once, and it will be great if he gets one at home in front of his home crowd with his family [watching]. He will feel very proud,” Brathwaite said.
“But it’s just for him to enjoy it and for us as a group to make him feel comfortable and to play his game.
“I know he has a strong mind, and he’s a solid individual, so I look forward to great things from him in the future and for West Indies cricket.”
In their two-Test series this year, West Indies won 1-0 away to Zimbabwe and were then beaten 2-0 away to South Africa.
SQUADS:
WEST INDIES – Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Jermaine Blackwood (vice-captain), Alick Athanaze, Tagenarine Chanderpaul, Rahkeem Cornwall, Joshua Da Silva, Shannon Gabriel, Jason Holder, Alzarri Joseph, Kirk McKenzie, Raymon Reifer, Kemar Roach, Jomel Warrican
INDIA – Rohit Sharma (captain), Shubman Gill, Ruturaj Gaikwad, Virat Kohli, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Ajinkya Rahane (vice-captain), KS Bharat, Ishan Kishan, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Shardul Thakur, Axar Patel, Mohammed Siraj, Mukesh Kumar, Jaydev Unadkat, Navdeep Saini
and then 