West Indies Cricket Fans

As much as talk about Austin, Benn, Beaton, Martin, et al....we all must know in we heart of hearts dat de status quo will not change!!

It is all well an good talkin about prospects an performances which MERIT selection, but it is almost always hypothetical conversation as we know de batty bwoy selectors do not see sense

Dis is what saddens me most about WI cricket. MERIT is a dirty word fuh dem damn selectors.

Gils wrote:Ryan Austin's R4D stats exceed Antony Martins, comfortably.
Antony Martin has previously been tried at international level, and picked up 11 wickets in 9 innings.

I did not recommend Martin for representative selection. and he did not fail for the west indies. he did fine...tidy, kept the batting in check and picked up wickets. that is not failure early in a career. I wanted to give notice of Martin who in a very poor Leaky side has been a pillar that helps to keep them somewhat respectable. Martin is rock solid, consistent... a type on which the lot is built


Austin has outdone Benn, Miller and Permaul this season, any scenario that isn't fluid enough to accomordate this occurrence is about as usefull to west indian cricket as the current selection process.
Shillingford is injured and spinners work best in pairs, which leaves him and Narine.

well Austin is an offie...and I dont see the point in playing 2 offies. and since Dhilly and Narine ahead of him..where is he going. note how I represented myself..."in the current plenitude of spin...."

BTW, are you suggesting that being around a while disqualifies him.

not at all! I am suggesting Narine and Shilly...then possibly Austin, although Ryan Nurse might have something to say about that

So now Sammy done what should the attack be guys?

Narine
Holder
Roach (he's back training now but if he doesn't make it then Cotts or Delorn Johnson)
Shilly/Benn

Would be a very decent attack..one things for sure the absence of Sammy now allows us to play two spinners and we know NZ aren't the best against spin so that should/will be the method of attack i'd say.

AFRO being way too hard on Gabriel!

I have no problem with Gabriel. Gabriel is almost ready now to get back into a sold test career as a work horse pace man for the west indies

it was wrong and silly to take Gabriel as replacement to India and Kiwi. Gabriel does not function like that. Gabriel needs work...even more now with that remodelled action of his. he needed to bowl and bowl and bowl and bowl. that's the man. he needs to round into form and when he is ready you can tell by the stumps he rattles.

he starts by 3 wickets in a game, 3 in an innings, 5, 7 and so on..knocking over the stumps, fast, straight and don't miss the or..... now he is moving the ball about.

as long as he stays fit..and he shud with the new action in solid.. we have a real sold fast bowler in Gabriel, tall, very strong

I mean there are others who can be pik before Gabriel but he is high up on my list now that he is fit and ready.

so too is Benn high on my list, Narine and Shilly...

Miller is unlucky...lots of competiton. I am holding Bishoo and Permaul for the near future..a couple, 3 years up the road while we use up Benn and Shilly. then Narine would be at his peak and Bishoo and Permaul coming back then with experience and power... still only 26-27 years old

in the pace we are not so fortunate. Gabe is fit... but Rampaul and Roach are out..while Taylor is iffy yet. Roach, Rampaul and Taylor are our best.

Holder and Johnson are also fit. those are my 3 pacers for the tests...Gabe, Johnson and Holder.

Carlos Braithwaite as well. I am looking to include him if possible in the 15 for the test

Ryan Nurse, Miller, Bishoo and Permaul are stand by players to be called up. we can also hold the Windys pacer Peters, Pascal, Beaton, Cummins as pace stand by.

I still have no use for Cottrell. he should have advanced much more by this year. I am very disappointed by that fellas lack of preparedness in India. he was called up and was not ready to go. why in the hell wasn't he fit and ready to go?

and given his R4D last year he should have ripped it up this year when he was available.

I am not a fan of Cottrell at all. he will have to win me over again by coming good within the next year and a half. that's his window

I am piking 6 bowlers:

Gabriel, Johnson, Holder...if they are gong to leave Taylor out for the moment

Benn, Shilly, Narine

all rounder: Carlos Braithwaite...or even Ryan Nurse come to think of it. Sammys gone, Dwayne Bravo is injured. one needs to be kept around even if he does not make the final 11. those are top 2 at the moment and in good form..unless we want to add Nikita Miller as an all rounder. he is very worthy with the bat

If DW Bravo doesn't recover from injury in time, 6 pure batsman, Ramdin @ # 7, 2 spinners (Narine & Shilly) & 2 quicks should be the team balance.

No need to over complicate things. Guys like Braithwaite & Nurse are not ready for test cricket. If they play they got to bat @ # 7 the highest, which won't be ideal since that would mean batting Ramdin @ # 6, which is too high for him.

AFRO wrote:So now Sammy done what should the attack be guys?

Narine
Holder
Roach (he's back training now but if he doesn't make it then Cotts or Delorn Johnson)
Shilly/Benn

Would be a very decent attack..one things for sure the absence of Sammy now allows us to play two spinners and we know NZ aren't the best against spin so that should/will be the method of attack i'd say.

Roach is unfit, and I certainly wouldn't risk playing him since he played no matches for Barbados....

Shilly looked a shadow of the spinner he once was, and because he's now bowling front-on instead of side-on, he's susceptible to injury.

Holder did not impress for Barbados in the four-day game. Neither did Cotterrell, so I'd make both of them play in the A team.

I would like to see a left-arm spinner combine with an offspinner, along with two pacers who took lots of wickets in dung heap....

Nikita Miller or Suleimann Benn
Sunil Narine
Jerome Taylor
Shannon Gabriel

Reserves - Veerasammy Permaul, Dev Bishoo, Nelon Pascal or Delorn Johnson

Old boy!!...Kemar is back in training now...i guess the next port of call is some club matches and if he gets through that he may be picked for the three day warm up game against NZ...that will be the acid test. If he does well he'll be picked for the tests.

And LOL you just don't get it do you? YOUR HUSBAND MILLER IS NOT IN THE PICTURE!!..please get with the program

yes. I have noted critique of Shilly on his return with remodelled action.

I dont recall his stats from this R4D but didn't he take some wickets?

well if Shilly cant go then I would pik 4 pace and my spin would be settled with Narine and Benn. my intention would be to play them both, all the way through