ADELAIDE, Australia, CMC – West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite has urged administrators to schedule more Tests to help his fledgling side improve.
The Caribbean side started the first Test against hosts and world champions Australia last evening trying to secure a first Test win against this opponent in 27 years Down Under and two decades overall.
“We don’t get many Tests matches, that’s one (issue),” Brathwaite told reporters on the eve of the match. “So more Test matches will be great for us. Obviously, last year we only had six games. I think if we get more, we play more cricket, I think that would help a lot.
“And obviously incentivising Test cricket is always great. Because T20 cricket is out there. T10 cricket is out there, so it will always be tough.”
West Indies have only 13 Tests during the 2023-25 World Test Championship window., and only one three-match series scheduled during the period, coming against hosts England in July this year.
Brathwaite said this was not enough to trigger interest among young players in the Caribbean and a greater effort was needed to secure more Tests.
“For aspiring youngsters in the Caribbean, if we play Test cricket, and we as West Indies do well, they grow up seeing it,” he said. “That will help to inspire them to want to play for West Indies
“But if they don’t see it, they’ll be inspired to want to play what they see, which is the T20s and T10s around the world.”
Former West Indies captain Brian Lara also recently spoke about franchise cricket hampering the state of the red-ball format in the Caribbean.
