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West Indies head coach Daren Sammy did not sugar-coat matters after the ten-wicket defeat in Grenada. With another Test to come in Jamaica, he confirmed that Kraigg Brathwaite’s place is no longer guaranteed.
West Indies were dismissed for 143 in pursuit of 277 on the fourth afternoon, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood ripping through the middle order in a six-over spell that reduced the hosts from 93 for 4 to 99 for 7. A few late blows from Shamar Joseph made the scoreboard look kinder, but the series is already Australia’s.
Brathwaite’s returns – 4 and 4 in Barbados, 0 and 7 on his 100th appearance in Grenada – have turned concern into a selection meeting. Sammy admitted as much.
“He hasn’t looked good this series, and in a team where you are searching for performances, you get very close to say ‘okay, do we give somebody else a chance?’” he said. “But we will really have a good discussion, myself, the selection group, and the captain himself, about that particular situation.”
The opener averages 18.68 across his last 35 Test innings; the numbers are difficult to defend. Even so, Sammy tried to spread responsibility, pointing to the quality of the attacks faced and the youth of his own batting unit.
“The analyst was saying to me [that] in the next few Test matches we play, we will not have that quality of bowling constantly challenging us,” Sammy explained. “Obviously, the pitch was a little bit difficult, but it was difficult for both teams.”
Both surfaces in this short campaign have offered awkward bounce and seam. Australia’s top order has looked just as edgy – there have been 19 single-figure scores from their top seven – but Steven Smith’s example was held up by Sammy.
“If you look at the pitch, it was more challenging on the stumps, so you needed to have a proper technique. Look at Steve Smith, how he played very leg side-ish, but when you look at his wagon wheel, when the ball was on the stumps, he respected it. We had a lot of bowled and lbw [dismissals] by being probably aggressive on the good length, and these guys were relentless on that length. So a little bit of mindset [change], a little bit of technical work has to be done.”
That comment was diplomatically delivered, yet the underlying message was blunt: West Indies cannot keep waiting for the ball to soften or the quicks to tire. On these pitches, survival has to be earned.
Senior batter Jermaine Blackwood offered some backing for his long-time opening partner. “Kraigg’s done it for us before. A couple of low scores won’t erase that,” he said, adding that the dressing-room remained “tight”.
Selectors do have alternatives. Tagenarine Chanderpaul is already in the squad, while left-hander Zachary McCaskie has continued to press from outside during the warm-up schedule. All-rounder Justin Greaves could also be asked to stiffen the middle if Blackwood is pushed up.
Bowling, by contrast, has been a rare bright spot. Alzarri Joseph topped 150 kph on the third morning, Kemar Roach swung the new ball both ways, and debutant Gordon Bryan’s tidy off-spin held an end. Yet Sammy knows the attack cannot keep defending sub-200 totals.
“Rome is not going to be built in a day,” he said, half-smiling, half-sighing. The coach spoke of “patience” and “reality checks”, before promising more technical sessions at Sabina Park. How much of that is enough to rescue Brathwaite – or whether someone else is asked to lead off – will be decided early next week.
Series situation
Australia lead 2-0 with one to play. The final Test starts on Friday in Kingston.
