ICC world Cup 2019 | SWOT Analysis - West Indies

It’s painful to see a side with such a dominating history even failing to make the cut to knock-out stages in the last few editions and have looked defenceless. However, the Caribbean side have sprung occasional sparks of brilliance in recent times and could be a surprise package in the upcoming quadrennial event. They have the backing of many cricket pundits and experts, who feel that Windies have the ingredients to beat any team on their day. 

West Indies cricket hit an all-time low after they failed to qualify for the 2017 Champions Trophy, but bounced back emphatically in the qualifiers through which they chiselled their path into the World Cup.  They finished as runners-up in the qualifiers last year and should be oozing with confidence. The return of key players, who also happen to be in red-hot form, should bolster the side. A team like West Indies cannot be written off, they have match-winners and on a whole, the team don an electrifying look.

Strengths:

Scintillating form of the troika of Chris Gayle, Andre Russell, Shai Hope

West Indies have the second-most explosive batting after England; they have quite a few versatile players, who can wreak havoc on batting-friendly surfaces of England. Players like Gayle, Russell, Shimron Hetmyer and Nicholas Pooran can snatch the game away within a span of few overs, but consistency is what they would have to work on. 

Gayle amassed 424 runs in the series against England earlier this year at a mind-boggling average of 106 and a blistering strike rate of 134.17. His return at the top has infused immense confidence in the Windies side and he will be the man to watch out for in his last swansong. Hope, on the other hand, has scaled newer heights in ODI cricket and averages just over 51. Hope’s career graph is only on the hike after averaging 94 in the ongoing season and just over 73 in 2018/19 season, which is an indication that he should do well in the tournament.  

Russell may not have some serious numbers in ODIs to back his case, in fact, his last game was almost a year back, but his T20 form has been unstoppable. Different ball game though, the way Russell batted in the IPL must ring the alarms in many dugouts. If anyone needed any further validation, Russell and Hope showed that in the second warm-up game against New Zealand.

Weakness:

Dearth of quality spinners

The emergence of wrist-spinners has taken the world by storm and has been hogging the headlines constantly in recent times. However, Windies seem to be wanting on this front and the only specialist spinner in the side is Ashley Nurse. They do have part-time options, but no attacking option, which might swing things out of their control in the middle overs. In an era, where wrist-spinners have almost become a mandate in shorter formats, Windies opted to drop Devendra Bishoo from the squad.

Opportunity

To re-establish their dominance 

It may seem like an exaggeration, but the Windies do stand a solid chance to reinstate their dominance in world cricket. They have been won two World T20 titles, which is a testament to their abilities of delivering on the big platform, if they manage to translate their T20 exploits on a bigger platform, they will only reap fruitful results out of it. If their batting clicks, they are well equipped to notch the 500-run total, for which England are the front-runners.  

The pace attack looks potent and the likes of Kemar Roach, Oshane Thomas, Shannon Gabriel and Jason Holder can run through an opposition on their day. This is a golden opportunity for the Windies to rekindle memories of their glorious past, which they are quite capable of.   

Threats:

Explosive batting can backfire in a 50-over format

While West Indies have earned the trust of many, their explosive batting may backfire if there is enough help in the surface. They have a plethora of T20 stars, who have done well in the format of uncertainties, but ODI will demand longer innings and temperament. Though they have proved it in recent times, the World Cup in England will pose a challenge of a different kind. 

Russell has not played an ODI since July 2018, which might cause few problems in adapting to a different format. To add to their woes, there is a lot of inexperience in the squad, but West Indies have the potential to spring a massive surprise and take the world by storm.   

SportsCafe Best XI: Chris Gayle, Evin Lewis, Shai Hope, Darren Bravo, Shimron Hetmyer, Andre Russell, Nicholas Pooran, Jason Holder, Kemar Roach, Ashley Nurse, Oshane Thomas.    

West Indies squad: Jason Holder (capt), Fabian Allen, Carlos Brathwaite, Darren Bravo, Sheldon Cottrell, Shannon Gabriel, Chris Gayle, Shimron Hetmyer, Shai Hope (wk), Evin Lewis, Ashley Nurse, Nicholas Pooran, Kemar Roach, Andre Russell, Oshane Thomas.