West Indies cricket captain Brian Lara drives a delivery during a net practice session at the Queens Sports Club in Bulawayo yesterday. - Reuters BULAWAYO, Zimbabwe, CMC:
NOT FOR the first time on a road trip, West Indies are under pressure to deliver much more than promises when the second and final cricket Test against Zimbabwe begins today.
Favourites before the start of the series, West Indies found themselves playing 'catch up' for the majority of the opening Test, except maybe for the first two playing periods.
Set a highly improbable, if not possible, 373 to win, the Windies were nine wickets down in their second innings with 11.5 overs to be bowled and had to rely on the experienced Ridley Jacobs and neophyte Fidel Edwards, playing in only his second Test, to take them to safety against a team that have lost their previous 11 Tests.
"This second Test is a very big test for us to pass," West Indies manager Ricky Skerritt told CMC Radio Sports.
"We must step up to the plate and put our best foot forward. Our 'A' performance has to be on show and we have to learn our lessons from the first Test match and move on to play some good cricket."
NOTORIOUS
With the Queens Sports Club pitch notorious for spin bowling, and with the authorities promising another turner, West Indies have named off-spin all-rounder Omari Banks, as well as fast bowler Mervyn Dillon in a squad of 12 from which the final 11 will be picked.
Not surprisingly, teenaged fast bowler Jerome Taylor, who has not fully recovered from a lower back injury, has been omitted, and the rest of the 11 who played in Harare Test remains unchanged.
"Banks would have had a chance to play in the first Test had he been fully fit, but he was slow to recover from a stomach ailment," said Skerritt, in explaining the changes.
MOST EXPERIENCED
"Dillon is still the most experienced fast bowler that we have in the side. I think the captain likes to know that he has that kind of an option available to him. At this point in time, when the team has to be calling on its best assets, I think the captain sees Dillon as a potential trump card in this respect."
Recent overseas travels have ended mostly in a disaster for the West Indies, and losing this Test series to Zimbabwe would mean that they have hit rock bottom something that many West Indian fans may find very hard to stomach.
"I think in the first Test some of the players were rusty in terms of playing first-class cricket," Skerritt said.
"I think making the mental adjustment from One-day cricket to the intensity of Test cricket did not happen as quickly as it should have. We have to make sure that we learn what we did not do in the first Test and do it well in the second Test."
DEEPLY WOUNDED
Zimbabwe were deeply wounded at not completing their first victory in a Test against the West Indies. They can take heart in knowing that they batted better, bowled better, fielded better, and looked like the better team in the opening Test.
They have named an unchanged side, but should not believe that they have everything together either.
West Indies worked over their top-order batting quite easily and they will have to fortify this part of their game should the real West Indies batting also turn up, Zimbabwe's bowling too, may prove to be a little thin.
But that's just it a real West Indies team will have to show up.
Squads:
ZIMBABWE (from): Heath Streak (captain), Tatenda Taibu (vice-captain), Trevor Gripper, Vusiwuzi Sibanda, Mark Vermeulen, Stuart Carlisle, Craig Wishart, Stuart Matsikenyeri, Andy Blignaut, Raymond Price, Blessing Mahwire, Jordane Nicolle.
WEST INDIES (from): Brian Lara (captain), Ramnaresh Sarwan (vice-captain), Chris Gayle, Wavell Hinds, Daren Ganga, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Ridley Jacobs, Omari Banks, Vasbert Drakes, Mervyn Dillon, Corey Collymore, Fidel Edwards.
UMPIRES: Rudi Koertzen, Simon Taufel.
MATCH REFEREE: Gundappa Viswanath.
