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Windies no walkover for Australia in coming series
Published on: 11/4/2009.
by EZRA STUART
in Guyana
THE WEST INDIES won't be a cakewalk for Australia during their upcoming three-match Test series "Down Under".
Bubbly all-rounder Dwayne Bravo and Denesh Ramdin, who are both in line to be newly reappointed captain Chris Gayle's deputy on the tour, believes the Caribbean cricketers can compete creditably with the Aussies.
"It won't be easy, but we can do it. With the full strength side I know the guys are hungry to do well. We had a hard break against Bangladesh and in South Africa but we are keen to come together and play Australia hard," Bravo said in an interview with the Line and Length Network on Monday night.
Bravo, 26, the only member of the West Indies' 15-man team with a Test century in Australia, said he saw Test cricket as the ultimate and wanted to emulate the legendary West Indian cricketers.
"To me, Twenty20 and the ODI's are fun but I want to play Test cricket and chase down records held by the greats like Sir Garry (Sobers) and those guys," he said. "Once Dwayne Bravo is fit, I will always want to play Test cricket."
Bravo was speaking minutes after Trinidad and Tobago defeated Barbados by two wickets in the first semi-final of the WICB President's Cup One-Day Tournament at the Guyana National Stadium in Providence.
Meanwhile, Ramdin said he was happy to be back playing cricket for the West Indies after the contractual row, led to the first-choice players pulling out of the two-match home Test series against Bangladesh.
"I just kept focused and concentrated on playing for T&T in India (during the Champions League Twenty20). I always said just keep playing and the row will sort itself out," he said.
Like his Trinidadian compatriot, Bravo, Ramdin also reckoned the Windies could overcome Ricky Ponting's Australians in the Tests in Brisbane (November 26-30), Adelaide (December 4-8) and Perth (December 16-20).
"We can beat Australia. It will be tough, but I know the guys are going to play very hard," he said.
1 comment found!
WI will be a walkover/cakewalk : 11/4/2009
Wishful thinking! Those of us who are old enough, solace can be found in the 1975-1976 team which, on paper, seemed to be the most daring and daunting task for the Aussies. Remember, Fredericks, Greenidge, Rowe, Kallicharran, Richards, Lloyd, Julien, Derrick Murray, Holding, Roberts and Gibbs? The end result WI 1 Aussies 5. Later that team, with a few additions and deletions, became the most revered and feared for about a decade. None of these guys, except Chanderpaul, can cope with the likes of Siddle, Johnson, Hilfenhaus and maybe Noffke. How are we going to bowl out the Aussies? It would take tremendous courage from our players, which is not seen in any except Chanderpaul who is 37 years old. I am very, very dissappointed with Sarwan whom I had hoped would be our next Kanhai. Gayle is too irresponsible and should not have been shouldered with the task of captaincy, especially after his comments to the media before the series in England this year. He said blatanly that he did not care about captaincy or test cricket and that, and that alone, should have been sufficient for the selectors. I visisted Australia to watch the WI during their 2000-2001 tour and I thank God everyday that He afforded us, my wife and I, such an opportunity and although I have the opportunity again, I would not venture to do so. For me, it has reached a point of too much embarrassment and hurt. I cringed whenever the WI is batting and I ached whenever they are bowling. Why is it that the Aussies would not play a 5 test series with the WI anymore? Poor performances by the WI which would cause a financial calamity for the ACB. Finally, it doesn't matter whom the Aussies play, I always root for the other team and I am hoping and praying that these guys would, somehow, make us all proud and make me eat my words.
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