West Indies’ miserable tour of Australia ended with a draw in the 3rd Test © Getty Images
Had there been no rain at Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG), Australia would almost certainly have whitewashed West Indies in Frank Worrell Trophy 2015-16. As things came to an end, they left the tourists battered, bruised, and humiliated by a comprehensive 2-0 margin; even that margin flattered the tourists, for they lost by an innings at Bellerive Oval, Hobart, and by 177 runs at Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Australia lost 4 wickets at Bellerive and 6 at MCG, and another 2 more in whatever was left at SCG. In other words, West Indies managed a mere 12 wickets throughout the series. Yes, they were that bad. FULL SCORECARD: Australia vs West Indies 2015-16, 3rd Test at Sydney, Day 5
It is almost impossible to praise the West Indians for their performance through the series, but here is an attempt, however feeble.
KraiggBrathwaite: 7
KraiggBrathwaite was not outstanding in the series, but he got off to a stunning start at MCG (31 in 34 balls in a 35-run stand) and scored a patient 85 at SCG. His finest performance, of course, came in a fighting cause at Bellerive, where he took on the Australians head-on. By the time he was ninth (last, for Shannon Gabriel did not bat) out, West Indies had scored a mere 148; Brathwaite had romped to a 122-ball 94 with 13 fours and a six. Nobody in the team went past 17. A haul of 229 runs at 45.80 (and a wicket) earns him 7.
Darren Bravo: 7
Barring the Brathwaites, Bravo was the only bright spot in West Indies’ meek submission. His 120-ball 108 at Bellerive reminded people why he is often compared with Brian Lara, but once again, the second-highest in the innings was a mere 31, and the tourists managed a mere 223. Then came that 81 at MCG, but once again, West Indies could not capitalise, and succumbed to 271. Bravo finished with 247 runs at 49.40, and scored the only hundred for the tourists. READ: David Warner remains unbeaten as Australia vs West Indies, 3rd Test at Sydney ends in draw
Carlos Brathwaite: 6
It is surprising that West Indies used Carlos so low down the order, for two of his three innings were contrasting fifties. He held fort at MCG with 59 to make sure Steven Smith had to rest his bowlers and bat again; and at SCG, with no pressure to bog him down, he played his strokes, slamming a 71-ball 69, 52 of which came in boundaries.
Unfortunately, he is in the side as a bowling all-rounder, and he got only one wicket in 43 overs. But then, the entire side got 12 in the series…
DeneshRamdin: 5.5
Ramdin started the series with 8, 4, and 0, but he followed it with two fighting innings of 59 and 62. He certainly improved as the series progressed. He also had 4 dismissals to his name, and to be fair, none of them were easy: two of them were catches down the leg, one a sweep almost off the middle of the bat, and an electric stumping.
JomelWarrican: 5
Warrican’s figures of 5 for 380 do not tell how hard he toiled against a rampant batting line-up on flat pitches with limited support from fielders. He was aggressive, tossed the ball up, and resorted to negative tactics only under orders. When there was no pressure in the redundant afternoon at SCG, he beat Joe Burns and Mitchell Marsh in flight and got both wickets.
He also batted five times in the series without getting dismissed, which certainly deserves credit.A promotion in batting order, maybe?
Jason Holder: 3
Despite West Indies’ failures, Holder has not exactly embarrassed with his performance — till the series.He had exactly two decent individual performances here, both at MCG: 2 for 49 (including a beautifully curving delivery to remove Joe Burns) and a good catch, having a hand in all three Australian wickets; and a valiant, counterattacking fourth-innings 86-ball 68.
His captaincy was not inspiring, and his reluctance to take the second new ball in the first day of the series raised quite a few eyebrows.
RajendraChandrika: 3
Chandrika came into the series with one Test and one pair under his belt, and added another duck to his name at Bellerive. Other than that, he had 25, 25, and 37, but could not convert his starts to big scores. But then, he was always fighting a lost battle…
Jermaine Blackwood: 2
This was an off-series for Blackwood, who is someone West Indies would look forward to in years to come. He failed in what was perhaps an acid test for him; the only glimpses of his talent showing when scored 28 and 20 at MCG. He could not figure out Nathan Lyon, who got him four times in five innings.
Shannon Gabriel: 1
Gabriel took the first wicket of the series, but he got it with a good ball, sending one through the gate of Burns. However, he broke down after ten overs, and did not take further part in the series.
Kemar Roach: 0.5
Roach was not exactly expected to set Australia on fire, but he did not take a wicket, and went for over 6 an over. He should ideally have got a zero (or even negative), but he scored 31 in the first innings at Bellerive. Oh, he also took a catch, albeit an easy one.
Shai Hope: 0.5
One Test, one innings, nine runs. Enough said. Gets that half a point because the ball from Josh Hazlewood was a good one.
Marlon Samuels: 0.5
Samuels’ entire career has been one of scintillating knocks at sporadic intervals amidst strings of failures. This series, unfortunately, has been all of failures, for his 5 innings fetched a mere 35. His only catch was also a fumble, and he did not bowl.
Jerome Taylor: 0
Expected to spearhead the West Indian attack, Taylor took 2 for 258 in the series. One of his wickets was due to a poor stroke, the other, a good catch. He should still have got more than zero, but is penalised for missing that catch against Victoria XI. Fielding at long-leg, Taylor was actually looking at the crowd with his back to the ground