The ongoing Test series between West Indies and England is scheduled to resume. On Thursday, July 18, both teams will play in the second Test at Trent Bridge, Nottingham. After the first Test of the series ended in a crushing defeat for the visitors, the West Indies revealed their playing eleven days before the second match.
To the surprise of the crowd, the West Indies stated that their playing XI for their second Test match against England would not change. Once more, the team will be led by Kraigg Brathwaite. Shamar Joseph, who hurt himself in the first Test, is also available.
🚨BREAKING NEWS🚨
An unchanged playing XI will face England in the 2nd Test at Trent Bridge.#ENGvWI | #MenInMaroon | #Apex pic.twitter.com/cQK8tDVgK0— Windies Cricket (@windiescricket) July 17, 2024
Brathwaite: “We just need to put runs on the board.”
Following a lacklustre showing in the Lord’s Test, in which the West Indies were bowled out for 121 and 136, Brathwaite underlined that the team’s primary task is to bat as well as they can. The captain stated that while there were some encouraging things about the bat, it was by no means enough to win a Test match.
“What we need to do is really easy. We must improve our batting greatly. Of course, we have to figure something out, and as a team, we’ve spoken about a few potential things we can do better. The bat does still have certain advantages. As I already stated, England scored 50–60 runs excessively with the ball, but taking ten wickets was a good thing. But all we need to do with the bat is put runs on the board. It’s easy,” Brathwaite remarked.
West Indies Playing XI for the Trent Bridge Test
Kraigg Brathwaite (C), Alick Athanaze, Joshua Da Silva (WK), Kavem Hodge, Jason Holder, Alzarri Joseph, Shamar Joseph, Mikyle Louis, Kirk Mckenzie, Gudakesh Motie, and Jayden Seales.