Brathwaite double ton drives slow West Indies

Kraigg Brathwaite raised his maiden double-century - the third youngest West Indian to the mark at 21 years and 279 days - but his watchfulness contributed to a slow second day at Arnos Vale. Their run rate slid from 3.03 from the first day to 2.85, allowing Bangladesh some breathing space despite them not picking up any wickets.

Persistent overnight rain ate three hours and 45 minutes away from the second day but West Indies managed 407 for three after 56 overs. Brathwaite and his hero Shivnarine Chanderpaul added 146 runs at a run-rate of 2.49 per over, having come together with 2.3 overs remaining on the first evening.

LICA delays tournaments

The Leeward Islands Cricket Association (LICA) has postponed its Three-day and 50-overs tournaments by a week.

The Three-day competition, originally scheduled to start September 18^th, will now bowl off on September 25^th, while the 50-overs commences on September 28 instead of September 21^st.

Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of LICA, Derrick Nicholas said the change was made following suggestions from one member association over concerns the tournament opening clashed with the independence celebrations of another host country.

Brathwaite hits second Test hundred as Windies flourish

KINGSTOWN, St Vincent (CMC) — Kraigg Brathwaite's penchant for heavy run-scoring continued here yesterday as he stroked his second Test century to headline West Indies' domination of the opening day of the first Test against Bangladesh.

The 21-year-old right-hander was unbeaten on 123 at the close at Arnos Vale, an innings that helped propel the hosts to 264 for three, after they were sent in on a decent batting strip.

Along the way, the Barbadian added 116 for the first wicket with talismanic left-hander Chris Gayle who struck 64, before posting another 128 for the third wicket with the stylish Darren Bravo who stroked 62.

First Test starts today

KINGSTOWN, St Vincent (CMC) – A buoyant West Indies enter the first Test against Bangladesh here today, convinced they can brush aside the minnows and extend their domination of the Home Series.The hosts rolled over Bangladesh 3-0 in the preceding One-Day International series with the greatest of ease and will carry this momentum into the two-Test series, when it gets going at Arnos Vale.
More importantly, the Windies will use the series to rebound from the disappointment of their loss to New Zealand in the three-Test series back in June – their third straight Test series defeat.

What the next coach should do

The West Indies Cricket Board and coach Ottis Gibson recently parted company and the Board is now searching for a new coach to revive the team. Let’s hope that it chooses wisely this time and not repeat its mistakes of the last decade.
Indian captain MS Dhoni once told me that the main difference between good organisations and the others is the interval between mistakes. Good organisations make mistakes, learn from them and hardly ever repeat them. Lesser ones keep repeating them.
Performance is not only influenced by history and past experiences but also by goals and visions formulating the future. Our last three coaches seemed to have a limited and fuzzy picture of what they wanted the team to achieve and become and acted as if our cricket did not have a rich and successful history.

read the full article at the Trinidad Express