http://www.senore.com/Cricket/West-Indies-c760 v New Zealand – 1st Test – Match Preview
New Zealand’s tour of the United States of America and the West Indies has boiled down to the final extended-overs leg, and the tourists will be looking to scrape a win in at least one format, while the Windies attempt to continue their dominance, in the first Test of the 2-match series, due to be played at the Sir Vivian Richards Stadium in North Sound, Antigua, from July 25 to 29.
The limited-overs leg of the tour saw the host team claiming two consecutive series wins, in the T20Is and the ODIs, while the Kiwis struggled visibly. However, with several new additions to both squads, the Test series is bound to prove an exciting and fairly even contest between two teams who will be hungry for the Test win against top-level opposition which has eluded them for a number of years.
New Zealand have gone nearly 10 years without a Test series win away from home (barring Bangladesh and http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Bangladesh-c747.
The West Indies line-up features the prominent inclusion of Jamaican all-rounder Chris Gayle, who will be returning to the Windies’ Test team after a period of 19 months. The hard-hitter’s addition will strengthen the team’s fledgling top order, which has struggled in their past few assignments, and youngsters http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Kieran-Omar-Akeem-Powell-c71441 are sure to be bolstered by his formidable presence.
In addition to the top order, the host team have veteran Test batsman Shivnarine Chanderpaul to bank on at number 4, as he returns to the team after missing out on the third Test against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/England-c56013 owing to a side strain. The 37-year-old is the second West Indian to have reached the 10,000 Test runs milestone, and registered scores of 103*, 12, 94, 68 and 69 during the Test series against Australia earlier this year.
Along with Chanderpaul and Gayle, the Windies possess excellent all-rounders in http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Marlon-Nathaniel-Samuels-c74804 and Narsingh Deonarine, both of whom have performed exceptionally with the bat, and chipped in with their handy part-time spin in previous matches.
The Sir Vivian Richards Stadium also played host to the warm-up match played between the West Indies Cricket Board President's XI and the New Zealanders, and the surface was observed to offer a fair amount of turn, with spinners http://www.senore.com/Cricket/DL-Vettori-c1384 (6 for 48 in the WICB President’s XI’s first innings) having thrived in the conditions.
This indicates that http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Sunil-Philip-Narine-c91869, who proved to be the danger man for the Black Caps’ batsmen in the limited-overs series (having taken 20 wickets in 7 matches), will continue to play a key role for the Windies. Then 24-year-old had a disastrous Test debut in England earlier this year, but has been dubbed “unplayable” in home conditions by skipper Darren Sammy.
In addition to Narine, the raw pace of http://www.senore.com/Cricket/KAJ-Roach-c1758, who claimed 5 scalps during the warm-up match, is also likely to prove an essential part of the Windies’ bowling attack. The only choice the Windies face is between Tino Best and Ravi Rampaul.
New Zealand struggled with a disjointed batting line-up during the T20Is and ODIs, featuring players low on experience, and faltering under the captaincy of 21-year-old Kane Williamson, who was stepping in for the injured http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Kruger-van-Wyk-c1811 will be donning the gloves for the extended-overs series.
In addition to the batting line-up, the bowling attack has also gained a fair amount of experience. Spinner Daniel Vettori, a veteran of 111 Tests (with 359 scalps to his credit), will be rejoining the squad, as will pace spearhead Chris Martin (226 wickets from 68 Tests).
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Neil-Wagner-c79182 (238 scalps from 55 first-class matches) who claimed 3 for 65 during the warm-up match, will also feature in the playing XI, rounding off the Black Caps’ pace trio.
Both teams will be going head to head in Antigua today, where scattered showers are predicted for the day, with the temperature expected to be around 26 - 30° C.
West Indies playing XI (probable):
1 http://www.senore.com/Cricket/R-Rampaul-c2233/Tino Best, 11 Kemar Roach
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/New-Zealand-c754 playing XI (probable):
1 http://www.senore.com/Cricket/CS-Martin-c1295
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