Adams BRIDGETOWN, CANA:
WEST Indies' cricket captain, Jimmy Adams, believes the West Indies must look beyond the results on their upcoming tour of Australia and strive to establish a level of consistency overseas.
Sports journalist Tony Cozier in his column in the Sunday Sun newspaper here quoted Adams as saying, "The bottom line for any team is winning, obviously, but I would like to look beyond that and be able to say that, after three months in Australia, we can start playing with some sort of consistency away from home."
The West Indies, with a squad including four newcomers and several changes, were eliminated in the first round of the second ICC Knockout Trophy Wednesday, trounced by 108 runs by Sri Lanka in Nairobi, Kenya. They were also beaten by India by six wickets in a pre-tournament practice match.
Adams, however, put a positive spin even on this brief, unsuccessful interlude, and saw Australia not so much as the daunting challenge it is, as an opportunity to start rectifying the disappointing overseas record that brought the West Indies defeat in 13 of their last 15 Tests since 1997 in Pakistan, South Africa, New Zealand and England.
"Any exposure at this level and outside the Caribbean must be beneficial and, given the kind of squad we had here with so many young players, I'am sure they have left with something, even if we only had those two mmatches," the captain said of the Nairobi tournament.
Adams broke down his goals for Australia in what he called "smaller components."
"Taking it on a day-to-day basis, we must aim to consistently play to the best of our ability and that covers the technical, physical and mental side," he said.
"The two main points would be if we can sustain it as a process in Australia and then carry it on through the home series against South Africa, one of the best teams in the world," he added. "It's no use reaching our target in Australia and then falling down after that. Consistency has got to be ongoing."
Adams said he "had not been told" when the team would be selected for the Australian tour that starts November 7, nor was he any wiser as to whether Test cricket's leading wicket-taker Courtney Walsh would be available, although he expected he would be told today (Sunday).
"I haven't heard anything lately from Courtney, but I expect he would have made up his mind by now and would let me know in London," Adams said. "I really hope he decides to tour because he is bowling as well as ever and his experience and guidance would be a boost."
