Just 12 days after Australia’s defence of the World Test Championship ended with a surprising loss at Lord’s, its bid to win back the Mace begins in Bridgetown on Wednesday night in what is an intriguing period for the champion side.
The last time the Aussies played the West Indies, they were stunned at the Gabba by the heroics of Shamar Joseph in January, 2024, at a time when Australia’s top order was in flux.
It is 17 months since that defeat and the situation at the very top remains the same, with Australia shuffling its batting deck with the Ashes looming large later this year.
Ahead of the three Test series in the West Indies, and amid potential ramifications in terms of Ashes selection later this year, foxsports.com.au considers the Burning Questions ahead.
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FIRST TEST XI: Aussie’s big spin gamble as Cummins confirms Green call for first Test
HOW DOES THE NEW TOP ORDER LOOK?
As Travis Head previewed the first Test of the West Indies tour, he said the Australians were “prepared for anything, really”, which is understandable for several reasons.
For the first time in seven years, Australia will be without either Steve Smith or Marnus Labuschagne in the top order.
Just four Australians, including Smith, have been part of a Test tour to the West Indies before, which is not necessarily surprising given the most recent was back in 2015.
Whether the pitch seams or spins will be intriguing, so too the manner with which the Australians handle the Dukes ball in the West Indies after the difficulties it experienced at Lord’s in the WTC final.
Head acknowledged there will be differences without the experienced Nos 3 and 4, but said the nature of touring with extended squads means the newcomers Josh Inglis and Sam Konstas — who have been confirmed at No.4 and as opener respectively — are familiar faces.
“When we get into the game, it’ll be a little bit (of a) new look. But guys have already played, so (they have) experience already in a short amount of Test cricket,” he said.
“There’s some guys there that have been a part of the group for a long time now, so it shouldn’t feel too much different.”
For at least the first innings in the first Test, Australia’s opening combination will be Usman Khawaja and Konstas, with Head to bat down the order.
After the loss to South Africa at Lord’s, Australian coach Andrew McDonald flagged the South Australian as a prospect to open, as he has on the subcontinent, but that option has not yet materialised.
Konstas, therefore, stands a direct replacement for Labuschagne given the Queenslander was elevated to the top of the order for the WTC decider against South Africa.
How those selected to bat at Nos 3, 4 and 5 perform in the first Test will be an equal point of intrigue, particularly with Smith set to return for the second Test should his injured pinky finger recover enough for him to bat, as expected.
The pressure will be on No.3 Cameron Green to prove he has what it takes as a top-order batter. He failed in both outings at Lord’s in his first opportunity at No.3, but he did flourish when tried at second drop in New Zealand. Adding another complication ahead of the Ashes is the fact Green is expected to be fit enough to bowl when the series arrives, if selected.
Should he be required to bowl a significant number of overs in the Ashes, burdening him with the No.3 role could prove a heavy task.
Head, as the senior batter in the team, could well be promoted to No.4 at some point, though he looks set to bat at his regular No.5 position behind Josh Inglis. Head too was out of sorts when facing the Dukes ball at Lord’s last week.
Inglis shapes as Australia’s wildcard who is confident of filling a number of positions within Australia’s batting order. He has batted in the top and middle order in white ball cricket and said he feels “comfortable going into different positions”.
“I’ve obviously batted at the top in white-ball cricket and in the middle, so (I have) sort of become accustomed to moving around a fair bit. (It is) something I sort of pride myself on,” he said.
Inglis’ flexibility, Head said, is a prized asset.
“He can cover so many bases. (He’s had a) limited opportunity in a long time, (despite) being in the squad, (and) it feels like he’s played a lot more than he has for Australia,” he said.
“Once he gets an extended stay in the team, I think he’ll excel. He’s already showed great application in Sri Lanka. He’s (been) in some tough roles as well (and) I think he’s well-adapted and ready to go.”
The English-born West Australian, who returns to the side after a century on debut in Sri Lanka, has also had the benefit of knowing he will be in the Test team for several days, with chairman of selectors George Bailey informing him early last week that he would come in for the Test.
Should Inglis excel again in Test whites, it certainly provides an additional, yet welcome, curveball for when it comes time to sit down at the Ashes’ selection table.
Khawaja, for his part, is defiant about holding his spot at the top of the order, pointing out to reporters in the West Indies that he has been Australia’s leading run-scorer in the past two WTC cycles.
The 38-year-old acknowledged the need to perform in the West Indies, and to assist Konstas as he seeks to cement himself in the Australian team, but is clearly eyeing off the Ashes later this year.
“I still feel like I’m playing really well. I bat at the top of the order, so there’s going to be times where I don’t score runs, there’s going to be times when I do score runs. (But the) stats don’t lie,” Khawaja said.
WILL AUSTRALIA MISS MARNUS’ MAGIC IN THE FIELD?
The loss of experience at Nos 3 and 4 is one thing with the absence of Smith and Labuschagne. But that is not the only gap the Australians will need to cover.
While the Queenslander has been out of sorts with the bat, what could never be questioned is his attitude in the field. Labuschagne’s energy and skill when fielding was outstanding.
As a case in point, the 30-year-old’s diving catch to snare Wiaan Mulder in South Africa’s superb second innings at Lord’s tilted the balance Australia’s way at the time.
Had Smith managed to hold on to the exceptionally difficult chance (by virtue of standing so close to the bat) Temba Bavuma offered in the infancy of his innings soon after, Australia probably would have defended the WTC title.
Konstas, who received treatment to his wrist from Australia’s physiotherapist during a training session on Monday, is clearly a batter of considerable promise.
But as renowned author Gideon Haigh wrote on the Cricket Et Al website, Konstas is not Labuschagne in the field.
“It’s a shame he’s been indulged in his junk medium pace, as his leg spin would have been handy in the fourth innings at Lord’s. Konstas, by contrast, is an ordinary fielder and does not bowl. His contribution to Australian outcricket will be a wispy moustache and a tattoo,” Haigh quipped.
The absence of Smith also means Australia will be minus a slips fielder who has taken more than 200 catches in the cordon.
It is likely, however, that the twin towers of Green and Beau Webster will stand side-by-side in the slips, as they did for a period in the WTC final, in the West Indies.
At a session on Monday, Inglis stood alongside Webster and veteran Usman Khawaja in the cordon and later said he was enjoying time in the field without the responsibility of keeping.
“I really enjoy my fielding actually. I’ve done a fair bit of it,” Inglis said.
“I sort of only started ‘keeping when I was 14, 15, so done a lot of fielding, and it’s something I actually really enjoy. I always like to be in the game. So I’m saying this now. It might all go arse-up during the Test match, but it’s something I enjoy naturally.”
LIFE IN THE FAST LANE OR TANGLING WITH TWISTERS?
The Caribbean Kings once possessed the most fearsome pace attacks in the world, with Curtly Ambrose, Michael Holding, Malcolm Marshall, Courtney Walsh, Patrick Patterson and many others destroying the confidence of batters around the world.
In Shamar Joseph, who demonstrated his talent in dazzling fashion in Australia in January, 2024, West Indies might have another superstar. But in recent visits to the region for white ball series, including last year’s T20 World Cup, spin has been a big factor.
As a result, the Australians seriously considered the prospect of deploying Matt Kuhnemann alongside Nathan Lyon again after their brilliant tandem act in Sri Lanka in February.
That temptation has been resisted with Australia sticking with the bowling combination of Lyon alongside the three quicks of Pat Cummins, Mitchell Starc and Josh Hazlewood. Even so, pitches for the remaining Tests could still force a significant rethink for the selectors.
Scott Boland was the bowler who made way for Kuhnemann in Galle, despite his heroics through the series against India when called on to replace Josh Hazlewood.
When Hazlewood, Aussie skipper Cummins and Starc have been available, they have tended to play alongside Lyon. It is a rare occasion when they have not been able to succeed, though notably they could not bowl South Africa out on a benign pitch at Lord’s.
But if the pitches in the Caribbean do look like taking turn in the rest of the series, will one of the superstar trio of quicks have to make way? Or does Australia instead rely on Head, a more than useful part-timer, and perhaps ask Beau Webster to deploy off-spin instead of medium pace, as will likely be the case in the first Test? Head and Webster’s success in doing so could well have a massive say in how selectors view their bowling picks for the series’ remainder.
Inglis, for his part, expects that the wicket in Bridgetown will spin as the Test progresses, despite Australia ultimately resisting the urge to pick another spin specialist.
“Conditions wise, I’m not really sure what we’re going to get. I think a lot of the cricket here has been quite slow traditional cricket and the ball might spin towards the back end of the game, but I guess we just got to see and adapt,” Inglis said
WILL THE BOWLING ATTACK BE ROTATED?
This might depend on whether the pitches in the West Indies turn as much, or potentially even more, than anticipated, but the next couple of series will be intriguing when it comes to Australia’s champion fast bowlers.
The blueprint has been that when Cummins, Starc and Hazlewood are fit, they play. No ifs. No buts. And if one of the trio has been unavailable, Scott Boland has demonstrated he is always read to step up and deliver, as he did throughout last summer at home.
But all four are getting older. Boland is 36, Starc is 35 and Hazlewood will hit that mark during the Ashes. The skipper Cummins is 32. As brilliantly as they have bowled, the challenge will be for the attack to produce their best in the West Indies and then in the Ashes.
While it is admittedly rare for Test matches to extend to five days, on schedule there are three day breaks between the Tests in the Caribbean.
The Ashes, meanwhile, will follow a similar time frame to last year, with an extended gap between the opening Test in Perth and the second in Brisbane, before a tighter gap to the Adelaide Test preceding Christmas. The Boxing Day and SCG Tests follow.
Cummins said prior to the Lord’s loss to South Africa that leaving Boland out of the WTC decider was one of the toughest of his career and his message to the Victorian was that there would be more chances to extend his brilliant career.
But given the quartet are all in their 30s, one suspects the Australian selectors would love to have tested the waters with Brendan Doggett, who took 11-140 in the Sheffield Shield final for South Australia and travelled to the WTC as a reserve, only to suffer a minor injury strain.
Sean Abbott, who travelled with the Australian team to Sri Lanka, was called up in his place but would need a few things in his favour to earn a “Baggy Green” cap for the first time.
Australian coach Andrew McDonald said that, regardless of how the conditions pan out in the West Indies, the tourists feel they have the variety and flexibility to prevail.
“What are we going to get in the Caribbean? We haven’t been there since 2016, so there’s a little bit of the unknown, but we feel as though we’ve got a squad that can cover all bases,” he said.
WHO ARE THE WEST INDIES TO WATCH?
Shamar Joseph is clearly the x-factor Australia will be most wary of in a West Indian side to be captain by Roston Chase, who has scored five Test hundreds in 49 matches.
Chase seems a surprise choice as skipper, with his last Test match coming two years ago, but he told ESPN that conversations with West Indies coach Darren Sammy convinced him that his experience could be influential for the nation of islands.
“I’ve never captained a senior team in terms of the West Indies team or Barbados team. But I’ve captained eight teams in the West Indies before,” Chase said.
“I think I’m a good leader. Obviously, I’m not perfect. I’m still learning. I did most of my captaining in my early days like school level and local divisions. I think I have a calm style. I really know how to bring out the best in the players that I have.”
Joseph, of course, needs little introduction to Australian fans after taking 7-68 at the Gabba to square the most recent series. He has 29 wickets in eight Tests and was named the West Indies Test Player of the Year at a function in the Caribbean on Sunday.
Head said the Australians are wary of his talent but noted that, in his pursuit of wickets, opportunities could arise for the Aussies to plunder.
Alzarri Joseph is the senior member of the West Indies attack and has taken 111 wickets at an average of 35 in 37 Tests. With his experience in the Caribbean, he could well prove a handful for the Aussies to counter in tandem with Shamar Joseph.
Jayden Seales, 23, is the youngest of the trio but has already proven himself highly capable at Test level with 75 wickets in 18 Tests at an average of 22.26. He has only played once against Australia, dating back to 2022, but is another the Aussies will be wary of.
