WEST INDIES – It is the third time in the series that West Indies have named the same 13 players, a reflection of the fighting spirit shown by the home team as they look to defend a proud home record of one series loss against England since 1968.
West Indies have named an unchanged 13-man squad for the third Test against England at Grenada, starting later on this week, with the series locked at 0-0 following draws in the opening two matches in Antigua and Barbados.
Kraigg Brathwaite, the captain, was the mainstay of their draw in Barbados earlier this week, as he batted for a total of 15 hours and 45 minutes across his two innings of the Test, making 160 and 56 not out from a total of 673 balls, the most ever faced by a West Indian in a completed Test match.
Jermaine Blackwood, the vice-captain, also made a first-innings hundred – his third in Tests and second against England – as West Indies posted 411 in their first innings, stretched across 187.5 overs.
Desmond Haynes, West Indies’ lead selector, said “We were very impressed with the captain Kraigg Brathwaite showing the fight in the both innings and the way he led from the front with the bat, Also, Jermaine Blackwood and the way he played in the first innings to get a century. They batted very well together. We really appreciated the fighting spirit from the batting department. We decided to stick with the same squad and want to see them continue to give a big effort in the third Apex Test match.”
The likelihood is that West Indies will name an unchanged XI for the third time in the series, with Kyle Mayers, the reserve batter, and Anderson Phillip, the uncapped fast bowler, the two squad members on the fringes.
Speaking after his match saving efforts in Barbados, Brathwaite called for more of the same attitude from his team, who have not won in ten Tests dating back to February 2021, but whose resilience has been apparent all series long.
“It was good that, after England put up 500, we as a team could fight and put 400 back,” Brathwaite said. “That’s the attitude we want, and the fans want to see. Once you continuously have the right attitude, our Test [results] will go up. In periods we could [be more attacking], but spending time at the crease and batting through three new balls is a great start for us. We need to just learn as quick as possible on the job, and improve at different periods of the game.”
West Indies Test squad Kraigg Brathwaite (capt), Jermaine Blackwood, Nkrumah Bonner, Shamarh Brooks, John Campbell, Joshua Da Silva, Jason Holder, Alzarri Joseph, Kyle Mayers, Veerasammy Permaul, Anderson Phillip, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales
