Lawrence Booth looks at 10 things West Indies could do to surprise India today
Lawrence Booth looks at 10 things West Indies could do to surprise India today
1 Only one man, Albert Trott, has ever hit the ball over the Lord's pavilion and that was in 1899. But could Chris Gayle become the second? The six he launched off Brett Lee onto the roof of the Bedser Stand at The Oval last Saturday was the biggest anyone at Surrey could remember. And Twenty20, remember, is the format he says he loves bestu2026
Chris Gayle
2 The word is that West Indies coach John Dyson has learned how to decipher the Duckworth/Lewis charts after costing his side their one-day series at home to England in April. India may be tempted to start their rain dances now, because all those pesky rows and columns of weather-related numbers have not become any easier to read. But Dyson's determination to deal with his technical flaw may win the day.
ADVERTISEMENT
3 A vicious rumour is spreading around England that West Indies finally care about their cricket again. The rediscovery of their passion wasn't easy after Gayle's interview in which he expressed his preference for Twenty20 over Tests, but much more of their enthusiasm and India could come unstuck.
4 It's easy to overlook any man who opens the batting with Gayle, but Andre Fletcher (above)deserves better than that. At the age of just 21 he has already made his fortune thanks to the Stanford Super Series and he duly batted like a millionaire against Australia, making an almost unnoticed 53 off 32 balls. Mahendra Singh Dhoni's men will underestimate him at their peril.
5 When West Indies last played at Lord's, they dropped six catches after tea on the first day of the first Test against England, and their fielding in this tournament has been entertaining for all the wrong reasons. Who knows, they may even surprise long-suffering fans by diving at the ball, rather than over it, today.
6 Jerome Taylor blows hotter and colder than a dodgy air-con machine. But when he's hot, he can sting like a branding iron.
He blew England away for 51 in a Test in Jamaica in February, and the other day took two wickets in the game's first over against Australia, including Ricky Ponting first ball. Rohit Sharma could have a job on his hands.
7 Anthropologists believe Dwayne Bravo's range of facial expressions is unmatched anywhere in the animal kingdom.
No one looks more aghast when a boundary is hit off his bowling, no one more desperate when a run-out chance is missed.
If he can channel his grimaces into his cricket, the Windies will be in business.
8 Could Fidel Edwards bowl a maiden? Rohit Sharma and Gautam Gambhir will be disappointed if he does after his two overs against Sri Lanka on Wednesday cost 37.
Equally, his one-day international record against the Indians (two wickets at 90 each) suggests the clever money is on their openers.
9 So far it's been easy to forget Shivnarine Chanderpaul (below). He has faced six balls in the tournament, and has scored one run while losing his wicket once as well. But don't be fooled. In April 2008, he hit the last ball of an ODI against Sri Lanka for the winning six. That impression of a constipated crab can be misleading.
10 Will Kieron Pollard stun us all and pitch the ball up? Against England in the group stages he dropped shorter and shorter against Luke Wright and was pulled for three sixes in an over, while a World Twenty20 economy-rate thus far of 12.4 implies he is struggling with his length on
English pitches.
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
