Image Credit- Fox Sports
Kraigg Brathwaite, the West Indies captain, says the
way Shamar Joseph and Kirk McKenzie performed in Adelaide should give their
teammates hope that they can perform well against Australia.
The standout performers in the West Indies’ ten-wicket
loss at Adelaide Oval, which gave Australia a 1-0 series lead, were Joseph and
McKenzie. After capturing five wickets in Australia’s opening innings, Joseph
went on to make 36 and 15 batting at No. 11 in both innings, making history as
only the 14th player in Test history and the first West Indian to take five
wickets and score more than 50 runs on Test debut.
In just his second Test match, McKenzie scored his
first half-century. On an Adelaide Oval pitch that was challenging, he was one
of just two players to reach 50 during the entire match. He appeared at ease in
both innings against an Australia bowling unit that performed brilliantly all
through.
“It shows them that they can do it,”
Brathwaite said after the match. “Kirk got a 50 and 20-odd [26] in the
second. So it shows that he has the ability to score runs against world-class
bowlers. And the other guys didn’t get runs but from watching Kirk they know
now that we could get it done.
“Because it’s all mental. We played some shots
where I believe the shot was on but we edged it. So whether it was nerves,
obviously a little poor execution, but I think it could give the batters
confidence to know that they could do it.
“[Joseph’s] belief is amazing. If all the guys
could have that that’d be great. But he’s obviously a special, special guy and
he gave a lot of confidence to the team as well when you see him playing his
shots and for the batters I just want them to go out there and enjoy
themselves.”
Brathwaite had further praise for Joseph’s all-round
performance, particularly his bowling.
“It’s a great start to his international career
and he has a bright future for the West Indies,” Brathwaite said. “I
wasn’t surprised. I really believe he’s something special. And I was very happy
for him.”