Jonhenry Wilson previews the first Test between the West Indies and Sri Lanka set to get underway at Queen’s Park Oval on Wednesday 6 June.
This will be the West Indians’ first Test this year. Their five-day cricket squad is vastly different from their limited-overs unit, so the change of format shouldn’t prove too challenging.
Sri Lanka have not played a Test in the Caribbean in more than 10 years and, overall, have only lost three of 17 Tests against the Windies. All three, predictably, occurred in the West Indies.
West Indies vs Sri Lanka | 6 June – 10 June | Queen’s Park Oval, Port of Spain | 16:00
To Win Match
West Indies 14/10
Draw 33/10
Sri Lanka 5/4
West Indies
The Windies’ last taste of Test match competition was in December last year, when they lost a two-match series to New Zealand. They’ve avoided making wholesale changes since, removing only batsmen Sunil Ambris and Jermaine Blackwood, all-rounder Raymon Reifer and fast bowler Alzarri Joseph – and added opening batsman Devon Smith and wicketkeeper Jahmar Hamilton.
Smith hasn’t played international cricket in three years, returning on the back of some decent recent form for Windward Islands. Strictly speaking, his last eight domestic innings didn’t bring any failures, but he will need to convert the 40s, 60s and 80s produced then into centuries now. He’ll surely be partnered by Kraigg Brathwaite at the top of the order.
The islanders are currently ranked a mere ninth in the International Cricket Council’s 10-team Test rankings – and a disappointing Test history against Sri Lanka, who are three positions superior in the standings, doesn’t suggest this is going to change anytime soon. Home ground advantage should even the scales, though. They have a rather poor record at the Queen’s Park Oval to amend as well, having won just two of their last 10 Tests here. That’s a far cry from the success of 1978 to 1998, when the hosts didn’t lose one Test at the Port of Spain ground.
Off the field, Cricket West Indies seem characteristically cash-strapped. The home nation were keen to drop one of the three Tests in exchange for an ODI or T20I series. That hasn’t transpired, and probably won’t, leaving the players to produce the type of entertaining, motivating and triumphant play that will put bums on seats for the longest form of the international game.
Sri Lanka
Sri Lanka last played Test cricket in February, when they overcame a strong challenge from Bangladesh. Prior to that, they flanked an innings defeat with two draws against India. They flit between solid and poor – and this series against opposition inferior in the rankings is the ideal time to prove their status among the Test match top tier, particularly amid the arrival of Afghanistan and Ireland.
Opening batsman Mahela Udawatte is back in the Test ranks, a decade since his international debut – and three uncapped players in Kasun Rajitha, Jeffrey Vandersay and Asitha Fernando have been included in the squad. The experienced Angelo Mathews and Suranga Lakmal, meanwhile, have returned from injury lay-offs. Mathews’ presence will be particularly key. Batsman Dhananjaya de Silva wasn’t expected to play in the first Test, after the death of his father, but ultimately will.
Despite a sterling overall Test record over the West Indies, they’ve only ever won once in the Caribbean. That was in 2008, in Providence, when a rather powder-puff host seam attack – and inadequate spinners – didn’t really pose a threat. This time is quite different, as Kemar Roach spearheads an attack quick to get on top of the opposition at the slightest sign of weakness.
Recently reappointed, chief selector Graeme Labrooy – along with the rest of the selection panel – will have high hopes for this collective. They will, however, admit the absence of injured trio Dimuth Karunaratne, Dushmantha Chameera and Nuwan Pradeep is telling. Opportunity, of course, knocks for Rajitha, Vandersay and Fernando to stake their claims.
Verdict: Sri Lanka 5/4
It will be a tight enough contest, likely to span a full days, provided seasonal rains don’t interfere. Sri Lanka should take it, for a handy lead in the three-match affair.
