***Official*** West Indies Tour of the UK 2017

[Beamer]

they attract a bizarre amount of well wishers. as a result the credentials of their players generally gets a little overplayed.

There were other reasons. For example, we recently won 2 tests against an excellent Pakistan side. We also have had the worlds most economical bowling attack over the past 18 months in terms of boundaries per over conceded. There were genuine signs of improvement that anyone who bothered watching would have seen.

But yes I won't lie this was a disgustingly poor effort and I can't argue with any of you right now, it was embarrassing. They didn't look like international cricketers out there. Someone like Dowrich for example has really looked the part in tests so far but in this test he looked like a toddler against that bowling. Jason Holder was absolutely abysmal with bat and ball and captaincy. It wasn't good enough and I expect a huge improvement at Headingly even if they still lose.

 

[flibbertyjibber]

Dunno if they knew what it was but they certainly wanted it back!!

I was thinking how that would have played out in an Aus ground. Pretty sure you would have seen a dickhead security guard pop the ball followed by the crowd chanting "you are a wanker" for the next hour.........instead we got a hilarious piece of comedy that involved everyone. Well played all round IMO.

It was the pig that killed me, that and the bearded brides running to join in calling for the ball back.

 

[Gnske]

. There were genuine signs of improvement that anyone who bothered watching would have seen.

As a person who didn't watch, what were those signs?

 

[Adders]

It was the pig that killed me, that and the bearded brides running to join in calling for the ball back.

I've seriously watched that clip a dozen times today and I'm still laughing at it. English madness at it's very best. Love it.

 

[TestMatch]

WI just suffer from inept management. They've ostracized the Bravo brothers at the precise moment they became experienced, and replaced them with the inferior Hope brothers.

They know Roach is now a wayward, slower bowler since his injuries, but have returned to him because they've ostracized Jerome Taylor, who quit tests over bad management and pay.

They know they have only competed in tests when they have a dedicated spinner like Bishoo or Narine, but they dont let Narine play tests and always drop or misuse Bishoo.

They know Holder doesn't deserve a place on the test team (even Carlos Brathwaite is a better test player, but they've mutilated him into a T20 only slogger, much like Pollard), and that he is a passenger and political puppet like Sammy, but continually let him play.

There are only two decent fast bowler in the West Indies - Gabriel and Rampaul - but the former has never played a full test series because he is constantly breaking down, and the second is deemed too fat, though he keeps taking big wickets.

And of course management continually pushes away players at the moment they become competent - the Bravos, Sarwan, Chanderpaul (at 43 years of age, is currently dominating even Anderson in county cricket)l, Gayle, Sammy (unceremoniously dropped after two WC wins)...even Lara they pushed out 2 years prematurely. All made scapegoats.

Completely inept board, domestic system and structure.

 

[mr_mister]

As a person who didn't watch, what were those signs?

Roston Chase, Kraig Braithwaite and Gabriel all looking test class

 

[S.Kennedy]

This and the series involving Sri Lanka will probably raise the usual patronising cries from cricketing pundits for divisions. They have short memories.

 

[mr_mister]

Yeah the Jason Holder comment was a bit ignorant. His batting has come on leaps and bounds

 

[fredfertang]

WI just suffer from inept management. They've ostracized the Bravo brothers at the precise moment they became experienced, and replaced them with the inferior Hope brothers.

They know Roach is now a wayward, slower bowler since his injuries, but have returned to him because they've ostracized Jerome Taylor, who quit tests over bad management and pay.

They know they have only competed in tests when they have a dedicated spinner like Bishoo or Narine, but they dont let Narine play tests and always drop or misuse Bishoo.

They know Holder doesn't deserve a place on the test team (even Carlos Brathwaite is a better test player, but they've mutilated him into a T20 only slogger, much like Pollard), and that he is a passenger and political puppet like Sammy, but continually let him play.

There are only two decent fast bowler in the West Indies - Gabriel and Rampaul - but the former has never played a full test series because he is constantly breaking down, and the second is deemed too fat, though he keeps taking big wickets.

And of course management continually pushes away players at the moment they become competent - the Bravos, Sarwan, Chanderpaul (at 43 years of age, is currently dominating even Anderson in county cricket)l, Gayle, Sammy (unceremoniously dropped after two WC wins)...even Lara they pushed out 2 years prematurely. All made scapegoats.

Completely inept board, domestic system and structure.

You almost had me on board there, till the Chanders comment

 

[S.Kennedy]

Are all the T20 merchants playing in the West Indies right now? The only thing I know about the Caribbean Twenty20 is Paul Nixon coaches a team with a weird name.

 

[TestMatch]

You almost had me on board there, till the Chanders comment

I mean Chanders has become the team's star. Saw them play Yorkshire and Anderson couldnt buy a wicket, whilst Shiv has become their Old Man Reliable.

 

[marc71178]

I mean Chanders has become the team's star. Saw them play Yorkshire and Anderson couldnt buy a wicket, whilst Shiv has become their Old Man Reliable.

As good as Jimmy is, he's not getting his own team's batsmen out.

 

[Beamer]

Roston Chase, Kraig Braithwaite and Gabriel all looking test class

Yep in genuinely looked like some sort of test side was being built. KB is a solid opener, Darren Bravo a test class number 3, a promising test number 4 in Shai Hope, a classy number 5 in Chase who has excellent stats so far, an attacking number 6 in Blackwood, a promising keeper batsman in Dowrich. Obviosuly the 2nd opener is a big problem and Shai Hope needs to make some runs but it looked like some sort of lineup was developing.

As I said, if you look at test bowling stats over the last 18 months our attack is right up there. Gabriel has been bowling at 90 -95 mph and taking wickets, Joseph had a solid start to his career, Holder's bowling had improved to the point that he took a match winning haul against Pakistan and generally went at under 2 per over. Bishoo has taken a number of wickets as the front line spinner too.

So we had some cause for optimism that we would be compettive. We don't expect to win with this group but we do expect to compete. But in this test everything apart from Blackwoods dominating batting went out of the window. It was a complete embarresment. There were no senior players to hold things together and it showed.

If this group has anything about them at all we'll see an excellent effort at Headingly. I have my fingers crossed but this defeat was incredibly demoralising and Stuart Law has a lot of work to do with them this week.

 

[SillyCowCorner1]

Now Kraigg Brathwaite has been reported for suspect bowling action.

 

[quincywagstaff]

Re: some of the above comments about the Windies, yeah this was especially disappointing considering they’d acquitted themselves quite well against Pakistan. But those were generally on flat pitches and I think the seam and swing here really exposed their techniques; makes their limp bowling all the more baffling though.

Re: the players out of the side that could be there, the one that really hurts is Darren Bravo; for mine he’s the best bat the Windies have (certainly the best technique) and would’ve been an enormous help in these conditions.

But I think there’s too much made of the Windies players that are missing and/or were pushed out early. Someone like Ravi Rampaul looked relentlessly mediocre whenever I saw him at international level; especially Tests. I’m surprised he averaged only 34 there. And Jerome Taylor was atrocious on the last Australian tour; there were even reports he didn’t want to bowl into the wind during one of the Tests. Certainly it looked like he’d rather be anywhere else than bowling in Tests on that tour.

Jarrod Kimber wrote an article about an alternate Test XI that could’ve played but it was pretty flimsy and he seemed to write it because he had nothing else to say; just because you’re an athletic fielder or can bowl fast in T20 in its various forms doesn’t automatically mean you’ll have what it takes in Tests.

 

[Starfighter]

Yes, suggesting Andre Russell shows a measure of desperation and silliness.

 

[Starfighter]

Braithwaite's been reported for fluidity of the elbow joint in bowling.

 

[Tom Flint]

Everyone here in england is slating the windies as an embarrassmemt to cricket and how it is such a mis-match, we have short memories, it was less that a year ago that we got hammered 4-0 in india. Andd only 4 years ago where australia beat us by a combined total of about 1000 runs in 4 tests, 8 wickets in the other and we failed to pass 200 in 6 innings. Every team gets battered now and again, look at australia in sri lanka last year?

 

[MW1304]

Have to agree, the level of criticism after just one Test is beyond excessive. The context is different to those examples you give, since the Windies' problems are far more deeply rooted, but the some of the bagging of them is particularly smug.

 

[WindieWeathers]

Everyone here in england is slating the windies as an embarrassmemt to cricket and how it is such a mis-match, we have short memories, it was less that a year ago that we got hammered 4-0 in india. Andd only 4 years ago where australia beat us by a combined total of about 1000 runs in 4 tests, 8 wickets in the other and we failed to pass 200 in 6 innings. Every team gets battered now and again, look at australia in sri lanka last year��

THANK YOU SIR!!

It almost seems like commentators and fans alike seem to lose their minds when it comes to our team. Why? Can't people look at the rankings and see where we are right now? We've got a young team, many of whom are playing in England for the first time. Meanwhile England are packed full of experience and have just beaten South Africa comfortably. What on earth were people expecting from this series exactly? That we'd win? Now granted, some of the tactical decisions on the field, attitudes towards fielding, silly shot selections and loss of focus when it came to the bowling left a lot to be desired. I can take being poor but what I can't take is players not giving one hundred percent, and at times it looked like that.

But you know what? I don't really blame coaches or the players anymore. The fact is the system that produces these players is shambolic. And until that is fixed, producing test quality players will be very hard to come by. Right now all we can do is HOPE that a player comes through and can cut it. It's just hope rather than expectation. I hope Law can influence a new attitude within the camp, but it's gonna take time I feel.

Was happy to see Blackwood produce another great performance. He's done that several times since he made his debut and really should have had much more than just a single ton. Kraiggs 40 in the second innings will hopefully get him going aswell. I wan't to see Shai Hope show us something in these next two tests, otherwise he may have to step down because his average at test level right now looks very poor. Dowrich also needs to look at himself because it's been a while since he had a decent test knock.

Bishoo for Cummings and Gabriel for Joseph would be the changes I make next game. I'd also consider putting Hetmyer in for Kyle Hope. There's far too many right-handers in that top order and it's just making life too easy for Anderson and Broad imo.

In closing we do have Darren Bravo to come back into that top order and there are a few decent batting prospects knocking on the door...so all is not totally lost my friends. We just happen to have a young side taking on a very good side on their own backyard...it is what it is.