(CMC) – West Indies will hand novice opener Mikyle Louis his Test debut as part of an inexperienced XI for the opening Test against England at Lord’s starting today as they begin the arduous task of retaining the Botham-Richards Trophy.
At the start of the year, the 23-year-old Louis was yet to feature in a single first-class game, but a prolific Championship season for the Leeward Islands Hurricanes, where he subsequently emerged the tournament’s leading scorer with 682 runs at an average of 48, saw him force his way into the touring squad.
A half-century in last week’s tour fixture against a County XI further strengthened his claim, and he will now see action at the highest level after only seven first-class matches, becoming the first cricketer from St. Kitts to turn out in a Test for the West Indies.
Louis is one of several rookies who will line up for the first time in the testing English conditions, alongside the likes of batsmen Kirk McKenzie, Alick Athanaze, and Kavem Hodge.
McKenzie, 23, has played only three Tests, while Athanaze, 25, has featured in four. The 31-year-old Hodge, meanwhile, has played only two Tests.
Despite the dearth of experience in his batting group, captain and veteran opener Kraigg Brathwaite said much was still expected of them.
“I think they’re young and exciting. Kirk McKenzie got a few fifties in Australia, which was good, and also good [was] Kavem Hodge got a nice 80-odd… in Australia,” Brathwaite told reporters on the eve of the three-Test series.
“At least that gives Alick Athanaze some confidence to show him that he can do it as well.
“And the challenge for us obviously is to do it consistently, and I think the more games they play, they will be better. They have a lot of talent, and they know we are fully 100 percent behind them.”
The 31-year-old Brathwaite will be turning out in his 90th Test of a career that has yielded 5,513 runs and 12 hundreds and is expected to anchor the batting group with his experience.
Known for his occupation of the crease, Brathwaite finds himself surrounded by dashers like Athanaze and McKenzie, both of whom score quickly, while all-rounder Jason Holder and wicketkeeper Joshua Da Silva are also capable of pushing the scoring along.
With England expected to brandish their own attacking brand labelled “Bazball”, Brathwaite said the West Indies’ batsmen would opt for their individual approaches to scoring.
“Every batter has a different style, and one thing we urge is for guys to have their plans and bat like [themselves],” he explained.
“Generally over the years, my style is taking my time, and that’s me, and we urge all our batters to back their game and their plan, and that’s what we will do – we focus on ourselves.”
West Indies also find themselves short of experience in the bowling, especially after veteran seamer Kemar Roach was forced out of the series with a knee injury.
An exponent of the art, especially in England’s seam-friendly conditions, the Caribbean side will desperately miss the experience of Roach’s 270 wickets, which has placed him among the greats of West Indies cricket.
In his absence, Vice-Captain Alzarri Joseph will carry the attack, the 27-year-old having taken 92 wickets from 32 Tests. Seasoned campaigner Holder, in his first Test in 12 months, will provide support with his medium pace, but it will be the young quicks in Shamar Joseph and Jayden Seales who could be the x-factors.
Shamar Joseph, 24, was a standout on the tour of Australia last January, bowling the West Indies to a sensational win in Brisbane, while Seales, 22, has made an impressive start to his career with 37 wickets from 10 Tests after making his debut as a teenager.
Regardless of the talent littered across the squad, Brathwaite said the quality he most wanted to see displayed was character.
“Showing fight is very important, it’s very crucial for us as a group,” he said.
“Obviously, batting a whole day is always a positive and [having] big partnerships – those little key points for us are very important.
“Once we can do that, it sets up a Test match in a positive way to look for Test match wins.”
The Test, which will signal a farewell for iconic England seamer Jimmy Anderson, bowls off at 11am (6am Eastern Caribbean time).
TEAMS:
England: Ben Stokes (captain), Zak Crawley, Ben Duckett, Ollie Pope, Joe Root, Harry Brook, Jamie Smith, Chris Woakes, Gus Atkinson, Shoaib Bashir, and James Anderson.
West Indies: Kraigg Brathwaite (captain), Mikyle Louis, Kirk McKenzie, Alick Athanaze, Kavem Hodge, Jason Holder, Joshua Da Silva, Alzarri Joseph, Gudakesh Motie, Shamar Joseph, and Jayden Seales
