West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite remains hopeful that his team will benefit from their recent experiences against England as they prepare to face South Africa next month. The West Indies were recently whitewashed by England, losing the third Test at Edgbaston by 10 wickets, which completed a 3-0 series defeat.
Reflecting on the series, Brathwaite acknowledged the team's struggles, including a heavy innings-and-114-run defeat at Lord's and a 241-run loss at Trent Bridge. He noted that the team’s inability to capitalize on early breakthroughs was evident at Edgbaston, where they reduced England to 54-5, only for the hosts to recover and post a total of 376. Despite second-innings fifties from Mikyle Louis and Kavem Hodge, the West Indies were bowled out for 175, with Mark Wood taking 5-40.
Brathwaite criticized the team's lack of discipline with both bat and ball, highlighting the fast scoring rate England maintained and the insufficient second-innings runs from the West Indies. However, he sees the upcoming two-match Test series against South Africa in Trinidad, starting August 7, as an opportunity for redemption.
The series against England was completed in just 10 of the scheduled 15 days, with the West Indies hampered by limited preparation in English conditions, including only a single warm-up match. Additionally, the team was without key batsmen Nicholas Pooran, Shimron Hetmyer, and Rovman Powell, who were engaged in the domestic Hundred competition in England.
The lone bright spot for the West Indies was Kavem Hodge’s maiden Test century at Trent Bridge, a rare highlight in an otherwise challenging series. Coach Andre Coley noted that while several players managed to reach half-centuries, more conversions to centuries were needed. He praised Louis for his maiden Test fifty and emphasized the importance of replicating moments of resilience and bravery in future games.