Windies vs England, 1st Test, Preview: The Brits embark upon the Caribbean tour with red-ball cricket first up

The Windies side looks slightly different from what it was last year.

Published - 23 Jan 2019, 12:11 IST | Updated - 23 Jan 2019, 12:11 IST

3 Min Read

The England cricket team will begin its tour to the Caribbean islands with the flavour of some Test cricket. The first of the three matches begins on 23 December 2019 at the Kensington Oval in Barbados. The visitors clean swept Sri Lanka recently away from home and were then off the field for about two months.

The cricketers will have rejoiced this much-needed interval and will be back in action for this long tour in a harsh climate. The England team will go into this series as the clear favourites. Even the Windies have had a good break from Test cricket after the whitewash against Bangladesh in November 2018. The players would have gone back to the drawing board and analysed the mistakes they committed.

Team Combinations

Windies

The Windies side looks slightly different from what it was last year. As quite a few players were axed, it could be Shai Hope who will open the innings in Kraigg Brathwaite. Darren Bravo is expected to make a come back after over two years. Also, both Jason Holder and Shannon Gabriel are back. It could either be a debut for Oshane Thomas or Jomel Warrican might continue to be a part of the eleven.

Predicted XI: Kraigg Brathwaite, Shai Hope, Darren Bravo, Roston Chase, Shimron Hetmyer, Shane Dowrich (wk), Jason Holder (C), Devendra Bishoo, Kemar Roach, Shannon Gabriel, Jomel Warrican/Oshane Thomas.

England

The England team has got quite a few choices for the first Test. They are likely to open with Rory Burns and Keaton Jennings. They will be followed by Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root next. All the four wicket-keepers in the squad will get to feature in the eleven with Ben Foakes being the likely option to don the gloves. Sam Curran could get to open the bowling with the legendary James Anderson. Depending on the conditions, one between Stuart Broad and Adil Rashid will be picked.

Predicted XI: Rory Burns, Keaton Jennings, Jonny Bairstow, Joe Root, Ben Stokes, Jos Buttler, Ben Foakes, Moeen Ali, Sam Curran, Stuart Broad/Adil Rashid, James Anderson.

Focus will be on

Shannon Gabriel (Windies)

Shannon Gabriel thoroughly enjoys playing at home. The pacer picked up 37 wickets in just 8 matches in 2018. He bowled at an average under 20 and picked up wickets at a strike rate of 30.7. Playing against England, he will hold the key for Windies and will be important to rattle down the opposition batting order.

Joe Root (England)

Joe Root scored 948 runs in 13 matches at an average of 41 in 2018. The English Test skipper is capable of doing a lot more with the bat. He will be looking at this series against Windies as the ideal opportunity to get back to his complete best with the bat. Batting at number four, he adds great stability to the middle-order.