West Indies back to the glory days?

The Windes have won their first test match on Australian soil after 27 years! It was indeed a Shamardar Jeet for them! This is similar to what the Indian Cricket team did with their B squad Down Under in the 2020/21 series with their debutants.

But this is the story of the mighty West Indies, a team that has won 2 ODI World Cups in the 20th Century and 5 titles(2004 Champions Trophy, 2012,2016 T20 WC, 2016 T20 Women's WC, 2016 Under-19 WC) in the 21st Century, but failed to be a part of the Cricket World Cup 2023.

Every team has gone through a transition phase in recent years. We have seen cricketing giant like Srilanka struggling in the last decade as their legends have retired and have failed to find the Midas touch since then. Srilanka did try to find the perfect combinations for the team in the World Cup but it didn't work well for them as the players didn't produce the spark and they won only 2 out of their 9 games with a humiliating defeat against India.

West Indies cricket has a similar story. Even though the Windes failed to qualify for the ODI World Cup, they have been winning all but silently in the last one year. Here are the ODI/T20i/Test series played the West Indies Cricket in the past year.

West Indies Tour of Zimbabwe(Jan-Feb 2023) - Test Series won by West Indies (0-1)

West Indies Tour of South Africa(Feb-Mar 2023) - ODI Series Drawn(1-1), T20i Series won by West Indies(1-2), Lost the Test series(0-2)

West Indies Tour of United Arab Emirates(June 2023) - ODI Series won by West Indies(0-3)

India tour of West Indies(Jul-Aug 2023) - T20i Series won by West Indies(3-2), Lost the ODI and Test Series

England tour of West Indies(Dec 2023) - T20i Series won by West Indies(3-2), ODI Series won by West Indies(2-1)

The Windies have done exceptionally well in the limited-overs format at home and overseas. Kudos to the Head Coaches of the respected format. But with that, we can see an aggressive approach while selecting the players as well. The selection committee led by Desmond Haynes(Lead Selector of the West Indies Senior Men’s Team), has made many such decisions to keep West Indies the Powerhouse of the Limited overs cricket.

The test series with the Aussies was another such instance. With some key names missing due to whiteball commitments and others not available for selection. The CWI made a surprising decision to add 7 Uncapped players to the squad. With Australia playing with the full-strength squad keeping the WTC in mind, this was a surprise selection made by Desmond Haynes.

"The squad has been affected by the unavailability of some key players. However, we have had a very strong red-ball program being run over the past year, which has unearthed significant talent throughout the region. The selected players have passed each test given to them and must now be given the opportunity to showcase their skills in the Test arena. Australia away is always a challenge, but we are confident in our team", said West Indies lead selector Desmond Haynes.

Recently, South Africa(CSA) had a similar approach when they announced 7 uncapped players in the Test squad for the New Zealand tour as the main team players have prior commitments with the SA 20 league.

After the historical Test win, it won't be surprising to see the confident Windes winning in the limited-overs format Down Under and challenging for the trophy.

West Indies will be playing 3 ODIs and 3 T20is starting from next week. This will be their last T20 international series before the Grand 2024 T20 World Cup in the USA and the West Indies.