Coming up against a previously unseen rival is rare in international ranks, posing a new challenge for Australia to evaluate their new-look foes on the fly

New faces, new spots, new looks for Adelaide Test
He might be leading one of the greenest outfits to grace an Australia Test ground in recent memory, but West Indies captain Kraigg Brathwaite is expecting his unheralded line-up to exceed the sum of its unknown parts.

Brathwaite will lead a team that features three debutants – top-order batter Kavem Hodge, allrounder Justin Greaves and fast bowler Shamar Joseph – in a starting XI that includes just four players with more than 10 Tests experience.

In addition to the new caps, number three batter Kirk McKenzie can claim one Test to his name while second-drop batter Alick Athanaze boasts just two.

Left-arm spinner Gudakesh Motie will be making his fifth appearance in West Indies colours, with Brathwaite’s opening partner Tagenarine Chanderpaul nudging comparative veteran status given his eight previous outings in the Test arena.

Only Brathwaite (87 matches), veteran fast bowler Kemar Roach (79), vice-captain Alzarri Joseph (30) and keeper-batter Joshua da Silva (24) – who with Chanderpaul are the only surviving members of last year’s West Indies campaign in Australia – can purport to be Test regulars.

But while their skipper recognises the scale of the perceived mismatch against the reigning World Test Champions and recently reinstated top-ranked team in the world, he refuses to concede his largely untried team won’t push their hosts to the limit.

“I do believe we have some talent, it’s just about going out there and doing our job,” Brathwaite said on the eve of the West Indies return to Test cricket in Australia, where they have not won a match since 1997.

“All I want to see from the team is fight.

“We come here playing the number one team, but I believe we do have the potential.

“It all goes around discipline, how long we can be disciplined as a bowling unit because we don’t want to be going at fours and fives (runs per over).

“So once we can be disciplined and put partnerships on the board, anything is possible.

“But we’ve got to work extremely hard, and we have to believe in ourselves.”

On the strength of history, at least, they face a daunting assignment.

The last time a West Indies team debuted three players in the same Test was against Bangladesh at Chittagong in 2021 when Kyle Mayers, Shayne Moseley and Nkrumah Bonner received their maroon caps.

But beginning a career against such a formidable opponent on their home patch is rare, and no touring team in recent memory has unveiled three newbies in Australia where winning is regarded among the toughest assignments for visiting line-ups.

Brathwaite believes the lessons learned by the five players who were part of the 0-2 defeat in last summer’s NRMA Insurance Series will be valuable, as will be the research undertaken by players and coaching staff as to how other visiting teams have performed here.

That includes a study of how Pakistan’s bowlers went about their task in the preceding three Tests this summer, where they acquitted themselves well despite failing to win a game.

Opening challenge has ‘re-energised’ Smith: Cummins
Of particular interest was the return of Aamir Jamal, the Pakistan seamer who made his debut in Perth and ended up his team’s leading wicket-taker due to his preparedness to attack the stumps with the ball.

“Especially early on, you can always get carried away as fast bowlers,” Brathwaite said of the approach instilled in his pace bowlers.

“Obviously in the Caribbean we’re not that accustomed, we don’t see many pitches like this so our young fast bowlers come and here get a bit excited and bowl shorter.

“But we’ve been in discussions in terms of lengths and watching guys bowling over the years, and we do agree that a bit fuller especially early on with the new ball.

“The new ball will be crucial, and discipline is a big word for us.”

If the new-ball in the hands of Roach, Alzarri Joseph and exciting 24-year-old Shamar Joseph, who has been clocked at around 140kph in stints at the Caribbean Premier League, is vital then the expectation on the West Indies opening pair is immense.

Chanderpaul was a revelation in his maiden Test tour here last summer, with scores of 51, 45, 47 and 17 against the new ball, while Brathwaite was his team’s sole century maker having compiled a gallant 110 in the second innings of the series opener at Perth Stadium.

But once that duo is separated, the next four batters in the West Indies line-up – McKenzie, Athanaze, Hodge and Greaves – boast a combined Test aggregate of three matches, of which none have been played outside the Caribbean.

“It’s very important,” Brathwaite said of the responsibility he and Chanderpaul take into the opening Test at Adelaide Oval.

“We know it’s never easy against a world-class attack, and early on it’s very important for us to build that foundation and spend time, make it easier for the guys to come.

“That’s always the role of an opener and we’ll go out there and fight hard, and look to do that for the team.”

Brathwaite targets ‘fight’ and ‘discipline’ on Australia tour
If the visitors can claim an advantage, it might reside in the near anonymity of many in their 15-man squad.

As Australia skipper Pat Cummins conceded, coming up against a previously unseen rival is rare in international ranks, especially in the era of franchise cricket that brings together so many players from around the globe.

As a result, it will be a challenge for his men to evaluate their new-look foes on the field rather than being able to rely on previous experience or information gleaned from others who may have encountered them across the journey.

“You play grade cricket or even state cricket sometimes and you come up against guys you’ve not played before and you don’t know much about, so you’ve got to problem-solve on the fly,” Cummins said on Test eve.

“It’s rare you get that in international cricket, but that’s exciting for this week.

“We’ll do a bit of research and try and get our heads around some of the players we haven’t seen before.

“But really it’s going to be getting out there and that’s going to be our first feel for some of those players.”