Only two teams have managed to produce test series triumphs over England at home during the past decade; Graeme Smith’s South Africa in 2012 and a Sri Lankan unit led by Angelo Mathews two years on.
Those two series wins were the only instances of foreign success out of the 19-contested series from 2010 to present. However, New Zealand in 2015, Pakistan in 2016 and 2018 and Australia most recently during the Ashes Series, managed to secure series draws during the same time frame.
That suggests that Port England is perhaps more breach-able than we thought, as least from an optimistic West Indian perspective. Although Joe Root’s men are undoubtedly a dominant force to be reckoned with at home, especially when the ball is swinging in cold conditions South Africa and Sri Lanka defied the odds.
As West Indies’ lead selector, Roger Harper pointed out, the absence of crowds, especially the Barmy Army roaring away in the stands, may cause the contest to be slightly even when the two sides meet. On top of that, I’ll also have to agree with Phil Simmons’ conclusion that the batting has to click for Jason Holder’s men to increase their chances of becoming only the third side in the recent past to secure a series win on English soil.
But what were the methods employed by South Africa and Sri Lanka to down the English? The overall observations propelled Stabroek Sports to place the microscope on those two-unusual series wins to examine whether there were any similarities and loopholes for West Indies to exploit when the two sides collide.
South Africa, to begin with, was the number one test side during that period. That side included the likes of Smith, Hashim Amla, Jacques Kallis, AB De Villers, Vernon Philander, and Dale Steyn. That unit went on to win the first of three matches by a massive innings and 12 runs.
Amla played a sublime innings, scoring 311 – his highest individual test score as South Africa piled on 637/2 declared in response to England’s first innings total of 385 all out. The English also faltered in the second innings after being dismissed for 240 to hand the visitors the innings win.
The second match was a high scoring encounter which ended in a draw. The third, however, saw the South Africans inflict a 51-run win over the host.
The visitors batted first and posted 309 mainly because of lower-order resistance from JP Duminy and Philander who both scored 61. Steven Finn bagged four wickets for England who actually managed to overhaul South Africa’s first innings total to earn a six-run lead as Morne Morkel and Steyn shared eight wickets between them. Jonny Bairstow (95) missed out on a ton.
South Africa in the end went on to secure a 346-run lead and England fell short as Philander bagged 5-31.
Sri Lanka on the other hand, after drawing the first test of the 2014 series went on to win the second and final test by 100 runs. That win was centered around solid batting performances from Kumar Sangakkara and skipper Matthews while seamers Shaminda Eranga, Dhammika Prasad, and Matthews were all handy with the ball.
So, it’s clear, for West Indies to challenge the Poms when the two sides clash in the upcoming three-match Test series, the top order will have to withstand England’s skill and experience in their seam bowling department as South Africa and Sri Lanka did, a job primarily for Kraigg Braithwaite and Shai Hope. On the other hand, Kemar Roach, Alzarri Joseph, and Jason Holder, in particular, must be willing to fully exploit the anticipated favorable conditions on offer if London is to fall.
