West Indies v England, 1st Test Preview: Yet Another “Biggest Year Ever” Starts For England

 

West Indies v England

1st Test Preview: Yet Another “Biggest Year Ever” Starts For England

January 23^rd 2019

 

There is a danger that the repetitive hype that “this year is the biggest ever” that we have seen over the last few years will end up leaving the punters blasé but, with the year offering a tour of the Caribbean, where just one series has been won since 1968 – the 2004 series that saw Brian Lara’s astonishing 400* in the 4^th Test, as the groundsman took to heart his instructions that, under no circumstances should the Final Test Antigua pitch allow England to close out a 4-0 whitewash – the World Cup, for which England start favourites, an inaugural Test against Ireland (also the first Test match scheduled for fewer than five days that England have played since 1949), the Ashes, with Australia still reeling from the discovery that their desire to win at all costs went far beyond acceptable limits as well as a series of erratic recent results, there is plenty to get excited about. This is followed by an astonishing winter, with full tours of New Zealand and South Africa being followed by a short series in Sri Lanka!

However, despite the good results of the last few months – a shared series against Pakistan, 1-1, followed by a 4-1 win against India and a 3-0 whitewash in Sri Lanka, giving a record of P10 W8 D0 L2), this is an England side full of question marks. The top order continues to collapse. All too often the lower middle order and tail have to bail out a faltering top five. Jimmy Anderson surely cannot continue for much longer and Stuart Broad, for so many years his new ball partner, is struggling to keep his place in the side. England have two, unconvincing openers and an experimental #3. More than anything, Joe Root will want to see Burns, Jennings and Bairstow give England consistent 200-2 starts, rather than 20-2.

With the series being played against a very good West Indian seam attack using Duke balls designed to keep the bowlers interested for most of the ball’s life thanks to a special design to make them harder, the England top order will have a searching pace examination. However, the Barbados pitch looked as if it might be a lot more interesting to the England spinners than anyone ever imagined. This has left an interesting selection conundrum, with England looking at the possibility of using their all-rounders to play four seamers and two spinners, rather than just the single spinner initially envisaged. The decision of whether to go with one spinner – Moeen Ali – or two has multiple ramifications. Would the second spinner be the steadier Jack Leach, or Adil Rashid: a better bat and capable of bowling wicket-taking deliveries when most desperately needed? If a seamer is to be sacrificed, does Stuart Broad – who took a hat-trick in the “hit and giggle” warm-ups – miss out to Sam Curran, a much better bat and an improving seamer?

England will expect to win this series. If they do not and the top order struggles again, much of the optimism that has come out of the Sri Lanka tour will vanish like the light from an unprotected candle in a gale.