After a 1-0 victory in the two-match Test series in Zimbabwe, the West Indies cricket team is all set to begin their tour of New Zealand from 25th November, as they play their first practice match. The first of the two Tests starts from 1st December at Basin Reserve in Wellington. The Windies were seen giving a tough fight to the English team in conditions which favoured swing and seam bowling.
Windies coach Stuart Law is expecting this tour to be similarly challenging, but he also believes that the conditions will support their brand of cricket, and they are looking forward to spring a surprise on the home side. The Windies side is currently on the rise and has produced a good brand of cricket as they have been looking forward to winning even on away tours.
The wickets in New Zealand will be bouncier and will be good for free flowing stroke play unlike the wickets in Zimbabwe. Law said:
“[The series win against Zimbabwe was] in difficult conditions, really slow, low pitches. Didn’t really suit our style of play but we’re looking forward to the wickets we get here in New Zealand, they’re a very aggressive team, they love playing aggressive cricket. Our boys are really looking forward to that challenge. It’s very similar to what we faced in the UK earlier in the year as well. We didn’t win the series but we won the second Test match and we made great strides, which is what we’re trying to do.”
The conditions in New Zealand will favour pace and bounce which will be beneficial for their resurgent bowler Kemar Roach and Shanon Gabriel, and the head coach is confident the two bowlers do well in such conditions. Law is looking forward to upsetting the home team in the upcoming two-match series, he said:
“They are looking forward to these conditions that will probably suit the way they want to play better, normally in New Zealand, they back their quicks and their batters to play on wickets that have a bit in it. It’s a bit more of a contest between bat and ball which not only livens up the game of cricket but also promotes good skill and better learning. We’re not expecting them (pitches) to be flat roads, we’re expecting wickets that have a little bit of life in them. That’s what we’re looking forward to.”
The Windies are scheduled to play two Tests, three ODI and three T20 internationals with the final match to be played on January 3.