LONDON: England still have quality bowlers at their disposal despite the absence of fast bowlers Stuart Broad and James Anderson, West Indies head coach Phil Simmons said on Monday ahead of their three-Test series against England.
Anderson and Broad, who have taken a combined 1,177 wickets in Test cricket, were not selected in England’s 16-player squad following a 4-0 Ashes drubbing in Australia, but Simmons called on his side to keep their guard up.
“Everyone keeps harping on about the fact that there’s no Broad, no Anderson,” Simmons told a news conference. “Yes, England might not have the experience, but they have young fellas who are hungry to make their name.
“That is something that you have to guard against. For me, you can’t be saying ‘that’s a big advantage’ because then you tend to get complacent and you get found out. There’s still some quality bowlers in there who we have to bat against.”
West Indies flew home from their tour of India last month without a single victory, losing both the One-Day International (ODI) and T20 series 3-0 as their batters failed to impress.
Simmons stressed the importance of getting good starts to innings, and said he hoped that the opening duo of Kraigg Brathwaite and John Campbell would be able to provide the team a decent platform to build upon.
“I think the last time we beat England, the opening pair was Kraigg and Campbell, so let’s hope that’s a good omen for us,” Simmons said. “They bat well together.
“We’ve been talking about getting a good start and making sure that we don’t leave it for the middle and lower order.”
Simmons also provided an update on bowler Shannon Gabriel, who was ruled out of the initial squad because of a hamstring injury but has since trained with the team.
“We had him here just so that we can see where he’s at. He’s a lot further on than I thought he was,” Simmons said. “He bowled well, and bowled with some pace.
“We’ll see what happens over the next four or five days. This team was selected for the first Test, so we’ll see where he’s at and then we can make a decision on the second Test.”
The first Test in Antigua begins on March 8 and will be followed by contests in Barbados (March 16-20) and Grenada (March 24-28). The three-match series forms part of the ICC World Test Championship.
