West Indies are set to face South Africa in the first Test of a two-match series, starting Wednesday, August 7. The hosts West Indies are coming into this clash on the back of a 0-3 drubbing against England. Kraigg Brathwaite’s men lost the first game at Lord’s by an innings and 114 runs, the second at Trent Bridge by 241 runs, and the third at Edgbaston by 10 wickets.
However, in the second and third Tests, the Caribbean side showed glimpses of improvement. At home, the West Indies will look to give a good account of themselves against an upbeat South African side.
WI vs SA : Previous performances
On the tour of England, West Indies Kavem Hodge finished as the third-highest run-getter, scoring 216 from six innings at an average of 36. He scored a brilliant 120 off just 171 balls in the second Test and would want to go from strength to strength against South Africa. Meanwhile, Jayden Seales was the second-highest wicket-taker, bagging 13 wickets from three games at an average of 27.23 and a strike rate of 35.69. He can cause a lot of discomfort for the South African batters if he can find his rhythm.
Meanwhile, the Proteas played their last Test series against New Zealand in February. However, most of their star players skipped the tour to play in the SA20. While New Zealand won both the games in the series, many young South African players got to showcase their skills at the international level.
David Bedingham was the third-highest run-scorer in the series as he registered scores of 32, 87, 39, and 110 in the four games. The 110-run knock in the second Test at Seddon Park came off just 141 balls. Meanwhile, off-spinner Dane Piedt picked up eight wickets in the second Test, averaging 22.75.
South Africa played a warm-up game against West Indies Championship XI in Tarouba, Trinidad ahead of the first Test against the Caribbean side. After conceding 397 runs in the first innings, the tourists declared at 408/9. The home side were 46/4 in their second innings when the match ended in a draw.
Kagiso Rabada and Piedt bagged three wickets apiece in the first innings. In the second innings, Lungi Ngidi picked up three wickets. With the bat, Aiden Markram, captain Temba Bavuma, Bedingham, Ryan Rickelton, and Kyle Verreynne scored half-centuries. West Indies went to South Africa last year to play a two-match Test series. The Rainbow Nation won both games comprehensively. The Windies would want to turn the tables this time
WI vs SA : Head to Head Matches
| Matches | 32 |
| Won by West Indies | 03 |
| Won by South Africa | 22 |
| Draw | 07 |
| No Result | 00 |
| First-ever Fixture |
April 18, 1992
|
| Most-recent Fixture |
March 8, 2023
|
WI vs SA : Pitch Report Expect rain in Port of Spain
“Everything tells us it’s going to spin. The question is how early or how late in the game it’s going to spin,” Shukri Conrad, South Africa’s Test coach said ahead of the game. Apart from seeing a surface that Conrad described as “devoid of grass”, West Indies have picked three frontline spinners in their squad, which South Africa have read as a clear indication to expect slow, dry pitches.
That may negate the pace threat on both sides unless the weather offers some assistance. There are showers forecast for all five days of the Test, mostly in the later afternoon. Days one and five appear likely to be worst affected.
WI vs SA Big Picture : Where has the competition gone in Test Cricket
A rivalry that started with intensity in a one-off Test in 1992 has fizzled out into a one-sided affair with South Africa victorious in 22 out of 32 matches against West Indies, and vanquished in just three. They have never lost a Test series (the emphasis being on multiple matches in a tour) to West Indies, and last lost a match to them 17 years ago.
But this is not the South Africa that bossed the away-from-home arena in the mid 2000s; and with inexperience laced through the visitors’ line-up, hosts West Indies will believe anything is possible in this series, ahead of the first Test in Port of Spain.
It was only six months ago that South Africa lost a Test series to New Zealand for the first time, and though that was with a makeshift squad, it suggested something about the shifting sands of long-format depth. South Africa, whose provincial players only have seven red-ball matches a season, have chosen to invest the bulk of their resources into the kind of cricket that brings in, rather than costs, money. West Indies, on the other hand, continue to spend money developing the first-class game.
Despite having a domestic system that costs more than anywhere else in the world to run because of their island geography, West Indies play red-ball cricket at the Under-17 and Under-19 levels, and at the academy level too; but whether they are reaping rewards remains up for debate.
This January, West Indies beat Australia in a Test for the first time in over two decades – for comparison, South Africa did not get a win in Australia in 2022-23 – but have not won a series against a World Test Championship (WTC) team since beating Bangladesh in 2022. Just before that, they beat England in a series, something South Africa have not managed since 2012.
Pound for pound, the recent history of these squads suggests they don’t have much between them as they both enter yet another rebuild phase against the backdrop of continued T20 league expansion. In personnel terms, they are similarly matched too.
Both have batting line-ups with newcomers hoping to establish themselves: Mikyle Louis for West Indies, and Tony de Zorzi and Tristan Stubbs for South Africa. Both sides have an experienced seamer – Kemar Roach and Kagiso Rabada – and some fiery youngsters in Shamar Joseph and Nandre Burger, although neither have made the final XIs. And both are desperate for points in this WTC cycle. At the least, that could mean we see the most competitive contest between these two sides in 30 years, which would be a very satisfactory outcome indeed.
WI vs SA : Vital Stats that matters
- Rabada needs nine wickets to get to 300 in Tests. If he takes all nine in this Test, he will equal Allan Donald as the second-fastest South African to the landmark, and will get there in 63 Tests.
- The last time West Indies won a Test against South Africa at home was in 2001. Since then, South Africa have played nine matches in the West Indies, having won six and drawn three.
- Between them, the two squads combined have 21,652 Test runs – the second-least runs in Tests between the two after the XIs that played each other for the very first time in 1992.
WI vs SA : Probable Playing XIs West Indies and South Africa
West Indies:
West Indies will need to back their players who showed promise at certain stages of the Test series against England. The return of the experienced Kemar Roach, who missed the England series due to injury, will bolster the fast-bowling attack. However, Alzarri Joseph has been rested and he would be a huge miss for the hosts. Keacy Carty is in line to make his debut as Kirk McKenzie has been dropped from the side following a dismal run in England.
Predicted XI
Kraigg Brathwaite (C), Mikyle Louis, Keacy Carty, Alick Athanaze, Kavem Hodge, Jason Holder, Joshua Da Silva (WK), Gudakesh Motie, Kemar Roach, Jayden Seales, Shamar Joseph.
South Africa:
South Africa will be without the likes of Anrich Nortje and Gerald Coetzee but they have enough depth in their pace attack to compensate for the two right-arm seamers. Piedt has performed consistently in recent times and he could be played as the second spinner alongside Keshav Maharaj. This would add a lot of depth to South Africa’s bowling unit.
Predicted XI
Aiden Markram, Tony de Zorzi, Tristan Stubbs, Temba Bavuma (C), David Bedingham, Kyle Verreynne (WK), Wiaan Mulder, Keshav Maharaj, Dane Piedt, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi.
WI vs SA Fantasy XI : Aiden Markram, David Bedingham, Kyle Verreynne (WK), Temba Bavuma (C), Keshav Maharaj, Kagiso Rabada, Lungi Ngidi, Alick Athanaze, Kavem Hodge, Gudakesh Motie, Kemar Roach
WI vs SA : In the Spotlight: Kavem Hodge and David Bedingham
One of the positives from West Indies’ last two tours is the rise of Kavem Hodge, who scored 71 against Australia in Brisbane, and 120 in Nottingham and 55 in Birmingham against England. Given that the rest of the batters have struggled for regular runs, it’s easy to argue that Hodge has been West Indies’ most consistent recent performer, which could result in more pressure on his shoulders.
But West Indies are actively working to reduce that. Head coach Andre Coley told ESPNCricinfo that he will not add to Hodge’s expectations, and has just asked him to continue playing the way he has done so far. Hodge has already stood up to Australia and England’s attacks, and it will be interesting to see how he performs at home against South Africa’s.
His Test career is only four matches old, but David Bedingham is already been spoken of as a mainstay in the South Africa line-up. And it’s easy to see why. The runs have been coming in the county circuit since his century against New Zealand in February. With the Championship just over the halfway mark, Bedingham is currently the leading run-scorer with 926 runs in 14 innings for Durham.
His haul includes five centuries, four of them scored in successive innings against Hampshire, Lancashire (two in two innings) and Somerset, and comes into this Test series in exceptional form. Bedingham had a slight hamstring injury heading into the West Indies tour, but scored 84 in the warm-up match and is expected to play a big role in this line-up.
WI vs SA : Match Prediction
South Africa have gone with an inexperienced middle order, but they have an experience bowling attack, which can make a difference here. That is why they have a slight edge, and we back South Africa to win.