The West Indies Test tour to South Africa having ended in yet another overseas Series loss there were, however, some takeaways from the two matches played. These can, hopefully, be used as guidelines for the now still drastically required improvements to the team’s future performances!
The primary difference maker, and ultimate determining factor for the eventual Series outcome, was the superiority of South Africa’s batting. Particularly the performances of their two openers and number three batsmen, by comparison to their respective opposite numbers on the West Indies team.
South Africa’s opening pair of Dean Elgar and Aiden Markham posted opening partnerships of 141, 31 in the first Test. Their second Test partnerships were 76 and 6. By comparison, the West Indies opening stands were 22 and 0 in the first Test and just as equally dismal 1 and 21 in the second.
Individually, South Africa’s Dean Elgar posted scores of 71, 1, 42 and 5 in his four crease outings. His partner Aiden Markram was the Series Top Scorer with outstanding contributions of 115, 47, 96 and 18 in his four innings.
For the West Indies, skipper Kraigg Brathwaite endured a most miserable tour with paltry contributions of 11, 0, 17 and 18. Succumbing to the wiles of South Africa’s ace seamer, Kaiso Rabada, in all four of his innings.
As Brathwaite’s recently acquired opening partner, Tagenarine Chanderpaul was further exposed to the tribulations that can so often be a part of Test match batting. Chanderpaul was undermined by two of the best balls in the entire series. He was also once needless run out as he failed to replicate the outstanding, double-century recording success he had achieved during the preceding Zimbabwe tour. His series scores were 22, 10, 1 and 2.
South Africa’s number three batsman, Tony de Zorzi, also outperformed his West Indies rival, Ramon Reifer. The Proteas’ number three had scores of 28, 0, 85 and 1. Reifer’s contributions to the West Indies in the identical pivotal number three role were 62, 8, 15 and 0.
While De Zorzi’s overall aggregate of 114 runs from 4 innings, was, therefore, only 29 runs higher than Reifer’s 85, significantly it allowed South Africa’s batting to build important partnerships in the first innings of both Tests. Something which Reifer only managed to do in just one of his four crease appearances.
While the superior performances by South Africa’s first three batsmen may have been the primary influencing factor in determining the eventual Series outcome, the West Indies’ inconsistent bowling in the first innings of both Tests was equally important. The West Indies bowlers’ failure to maintain testing lines and lengths, until almost midway into the opening day of both Tests, allowed South Africa’s top-order batting to build foundations for what would eventually prove to be match-winning scores.
The inability of any captain to set proper fields for bad bowling is one of the universally accepted truisms of international cricket. That having been said, West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite was, however, very often befuddling with his field settings in both Tests. He was oftentimes found to be chasing the game by plugging gaps after runs had already been scored through such areas. Even more importantly several presented catching opportunities were missed as a result of the absence of fielders in key positions.
The question as to how much longer Brathwaite should remain at the helm of the West Indies Test team if its fortunes are to improve any time soon has, therefore, become one of the series’ more serious takeaway questions to now be considered. Working in Brathwaite’s favour is the harsh, most unfortunate, reality that there aren’t exactly any contenders beating down the Selectors’ door as his worthy replacements.
Brathwaite’s vice-captain, Jermaine Blackwood as well as one of the team’s most senior members, Roston Chase, both had highly unsatisfactory series. Blackwood scored 126 runs in his four crease appearances to end the series with a subpar, wholly unsatisfactory, 31.00 average.
Moreover, he also recorded a half century, 79, as his highest score. As such his three remaining innings only amounted to 46 runs at an average of just over 15 apiece.
Not at all the type of returns that would have been expected from the team’s second most experienced and important batter, behind skipper Kraig Brathwaite. The manner of some of Blackwood’s dismissals also suggested that he is now still as prone to making extremely poor shot selection errors as ever before. His continuation as the West Indies’ number four, therefore, now no longer holds much merit.
The same can also be said for Roston Chase’s tenure as the West Indies’ number five. Chase’s series returns of 50 runs from four innings, averaging 12.50 with the bat and 0/132 with the ball, would suggest that his pretentious return to the West Indies playing XI should now be immediately terminated.
In terms of its ideally preferred team balance, the West Indies can also no longer afford to have both Kyle Mayers and Jason Holder included together in the final playing XI. Holder is by far the better and more consistent wicket-taking-producing bowler. Based on his overall statistics he is also much more dependable as a batsman than Mayers. The latter apart from his debut double century and one other triple figure score has flattered to deceive as a middle-order Test batsman.
As a bowler, Mayers only takes wickets with the new ball and in conditions favouring swing. Compared to Holder who is often simply outstanding as a fielder, Mayers is also invariably a liability in that department. Holder stays; Mayers must go.
West Indies middle order batting positions 3-5 should now, therefore, be completely overhauled and restructured. Ramon Reifer, Jermaine Blackwood and Roston Chase should immediately be replaced by Brandon King, Shai Hope and Alick Athanaze in time for the next series which will be against India at home this coming summer. If he can produce sufficiently outstanding batting performances in the remaining three rounds of this year’s Cricket West Indies (CWI) Four Day Championships, Darren Bravo would also bring himself into the conversation over the now most urgently needed middle-order batting replacements.
One of the series’ additional takeaways was the tendency for the West Indies bowling unit to function best when specific targets have been set for it to achieve. This was most evident in South Africa’s second innings of both Tests when, despite having enjoyed significant first-strike leads, they were restricted to setting gettable victory targets for the West Indies to reach. Albeit far more so in the first Test when South Africa’s second innings collapsed to 116 all out leaving the West Indies with a victory target of only 247.
In the second Test, had it not been for South Africa captain Temba Bavuma’s superlative 172, their eventually set target of 397 for the West Indies to win would have been substantially less. Bavuma’s century was the backbone of South Africa’s second innings total of 321.
As skipper Kraigg Brathwaite noted during the second Test’s post-match presentations, the West Indies bowling unit must be applauded for having captured all forty of South Africa’s available wickets during the series. The bowling attack, however, now needs to be transformed into a unit that more proactively sets targets for itself than the more reactive one it has become in recent times!
Jayden Seales’, hopefully imminent, return should be of immense value in that regard. A left arm seamer who bowls at pace also, however, needs to be quickly identified and brought into the Test squad.
Gudakesh Motie must also be given an extended run as the team’s frontline spinner. His batting should also be further encouraged and that of Alzarri Joseph’s as well.
Finally, the Andre Coley Interim Head Coach experiment has not produced sufficient satisfactory results to merit its continuation. A new Head Coach along with his Batting, Bowling and Fielding Assistants, therefore, needs to be appointed in time for the forthcoming India Series
Regardless of the recent incomprehensible convoluted suggestions from Jamaica Cricket Board President and CWI 2023 Presidential Contender Billy Haven, for doing the same things differently or trying different things the same way, the definition of insanity remains as expecting positive outcomes from the continued repetition of flawed and failing activities. As the South Africa Test Series outcome has now illustrated, with crystal-like clarity, the time has surely come for required changes to be made to the West Indies team’s structure and for the insanity of persisting with the same proven-failures players to be immediately discontinued.
Time for the madness to stop!