Tough assignment for Roston Chase in first game as Windies Test skipper
West Indies v Australia | 1st Test | 25-29 June | Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados | 4:00pm
This will be Australia’s first outing following their loss to South Africa in the final of the World test Championship.
The West Indies won the last clash between these sides – a narrow 8 run victory in Brisbane in January 2024 when Shamar Joseph returned final innings figures of seven for 68 to secure a famous win.
Australia have won three of the last five games between the sides and the Windies one. The fifth game was a draw.
Neither side has played much Test cricket recently. Australia had the one-off game against South Africa at Lords, but prior to that were last in action in February. The West Indies meanwhile have been playing white-ball cricket in England and Ireland with limited success. Their last Test was against Pakistan at the end of January.
Steve Smith is injured and won’t play in eth first Test while South African-born Marnus Labuschagne has been dropped following a run of poor results. They have been replaced by teenage opener Sam Konstas and Josh Inglis.
Wednesday’s first Test against Australia will be new West Indies skipper Roston Chase’s first Test since facing the Proteas in Johannesburg in 2023.
Venue: Kensington Oval, Bridgetown, Barbados
Australia have won four and lost four of the 11 Tests they have played at the Kensington Oval
The West Indies have a very good record in Barbados; they have won 25 of the 55 games they have played there.
Australia haven’t played at the Kensington Oval since 2012. That game saw them run out winners by three wickets. Nathan Lyon is the only survivor from that team that is still playing.
The team that bats first at Kensington Oval has won 17 of the 55 Tests played there. 20 Test have been won by the side batting second.
The average first innings score at the venue is 333 while the average second innings score is marginally higher at 337.
The highest score chased to win a Test at the venue was 311/9, made by the West Indies against Australia in 1999. That chase was achieved off the back of a magnificent undefeated 153 from Brian Lara.
Weather:
For the most part it looks like it will be balmy Caribbean weather for this Test. There is a high chance of rain on day four (Saturday), but aside from that we are looking at temperatures in a narrow range between 26 and 30 degrees, a steady breeze and some high humidity. There will almost certainly be interruptions on Saturday, but it’s not likely enough to prevent the game from achieving a result.
Form (most recent game first):
West Indies: W, L, L, W, L
Australia: L, W, W, W, W.
Key player:
West Indies, Keacy Carty: Carty is a man who is improving with every outing. His Test match experience is still limited with just five games to his credit, but in ODI cricket he is now averaging 49.37 from 37 games. He is a very useful player who has made it to the top via an unusual route – he comes from the island of St Maaten and is the only West Indian player ever to come from the tiny country. Now 28-years-old, Carty is looking to make a statement and establish himself in the Test mix.
Australia, Usman Khawaja: He made scores of zero and six in the WTC Final against South Africa, but before that he was a man in form. In his previous series against Sri Lanka, he ended with an average of 147.5. At 38-years-old he is in the twilight of his career, and this will almost certainly be his final tour of the Caribbean. he will want to score big runs at the top of the order, especially in the absence of players like Steve Smith and Labuschagne.
Verdict: Australia
The Baggy Greens will be smarting from their recent loss against South Africa. No visit to Barbados is ever easy, but Pat Cummins’ side will nevertheless feel confident that they can win it as they look to start a new cycle of the WTC on the front foot. Australia’s batting may be fragile (especially without Smith in the mix), but their bowling unit is potent and should have too much for the home batsmen.
