5 West Indies players who can surprise India in Tests

West Indies return to the Indian shores after a gap of five years to play a Test series with fresh talent. Here are the five players from the Caribbean who can make an impact.

Number one Test team in the World, India, is now ready to host the West Indian side for a brief two-match Test series. The action begins on 4th October with the first Test match scheduled at Rajkot.

India maintained its numero uno position in Test cricket despite conceding series losses such as 1-2 in South Africa and 1-4 in England on their recent away tours. West Indies, on the other hand, drew a series against Sri Lanka and defeated Bangladesh this year at home.

The Indian Test team is a dominating force in the home conditions and they have steamrolled over teams like Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, New Zealand, South Africa, England and Australia in the last two years. The visiting Windies side is full of young blood and will be seeking to fight hard against the current World Champions in their own den. The Caribbean side is not to be taken gently as they proved in their win over England in the Leeds Test in August 2017.

The last time West Indies toured India for a Test series was in 2013 where they lost both the matches by an innings margin. The complexion of the team has changed drastically in the last five years with incoming fresh talents. Here are five players from the current West Indian squad that can surprise India in Tests.

#1 Shimron Hetmyer

Shimron Hetmyer is the youngest centurion in CPL

The 21-year old left-hand batsman is a bright prospect from Guyana. Hetmyer was in the limelight since he lead the West Indies Under-19 team to its maiden championship in Bangladesh, 2016. He subsequently made his Test debut against Pakistan in April 2017 and then earned his place in the limited overs side of West Indies.

The youngster has been impressive with his crisp shot-making and fluid timing of the ball. Although Hetmyer’s Test career is only six Tests old, he has provided glimpses of capabilities with his knocks of 66(89) against New Zealand at Wellington and 86(105) versus Bangladesh at Jamaica.

In CPL 2018, Shimron Hetmyer became the youngest CPL centurion with a hundred from only 47 balls. The Guyanese batsman will be excited to take on India’s bowling attack in his first venture on subcontinental pitches.

#2 Shai Hope

Shai Hope is the only batsman to score a century in each inning at Leeds

Apart from Kraigg Brathwaite, Shai Hope is West Indies’ most reliable batsman. Making his Test debut at the age of 21, it took some time for the little wicket-keeper from Barbados to valuable contributions, but he stopped the world when he did so. Hope became the first batsman to score two Test centuries at Headingley, Leeds and guided West Indies to a historic win over England.

Batting at number four, Shai Hope has the capability to occupy the crease for a long time when needed. He is the batsman around which other West Indian batsmen can play their natural game. Hope will be the backbone of the visiting team’s lineup.

Hope has an impressive first-class record with eight centuries and 12 fifties in 86 innings. Facing India’s spin bowling maestros on the turning tracks will be the sternest test that the 24-year old batsman will face, he will definitely ‘hope’ to come out strong.

#3 Sunil Ambris

Sunil Ambris was hot wicket on the first ball of his Test career

Sunil Ambris has played only two Tests so far, but his appearances have been noteworthy for peculiar reasons. The 25-year old was out hit wicket on the first ball he faced Test cricket. Determined not to repeat the fate, Ambris opened his account with a six off his third ball in the second innings.

Another failure in the next Test saw Ambris losing his spot from the team. He is now making a comeback in the team on the back of his solid performances for West Indies A. He scored an impressive 128 against India A in a first-class at England in July 2018. This with other valuable knocks, Ambris found himself in the Test squad against India.

In the tour match against Board President’s XI at Vadodara, Ambris smashed a brilliant 114 runs from 98 balls with 17 boundaries and five fours while batting at number seven. The knock is likely to seal his place in the starting XI for the first Test. If so it will be interesting to see how Ambris approaches the Indian bowling attack.

#4 Roston Chase

Roston Chase scored a match-saving hundred against India in his second Test

The all-rounder, who made his debut in 2016 against India, proved his mettle in the second Test itself. Chase picked five wickets in India’s only inning and effected a runout but he reserved his masterpiece for the last day. West Indies needed to bat out a day to save the Test after being 48/4, Chase scored a spectacular 137 not out to prevent the loss.

The 26-year old from Barbados since then has added two more centuries to his records, both coming against the accomplished bowling attack of Pakistan. Chase’s off-spin though has not really kicked on thus making him more of a batting all-rounder in the middle order.

Roston Chase has not been in a great form of late but confronting India once again will hopefully charge him up. With the helpful turning tracks around, he will want to rejuvenate his bowling career.

#5 Shannon Gabriel

Shannon Gabriel holds the record for best Test match bowling figures in West Indies

Shannon Gabriel has been the most improved bowler for West Indies since 2017. The zenith was him grabbing 13 wickets against Sri Lanka in the home Test as he recorded the best ever bowling figures in West Indies. The bowler from Trinidad and Tobago clocked over 140 kmph regularly in his spell and constantly kept the batsmen hopping and ducking.

The 30-year old bowler has played a Test match in India before. Gabriel was a part of the 2013 Test in Mumbai which was the last career match of the Indian legend Sachin Tendulkar. Gabriel took the sole wicket of R Ashwin in that match and soon faded away.

The bowler has rediscovered his pace now, and he will be a lethal weapon for West Indies against the superior batting lineup of India. In the recent tour match, Gabriel bowled only eight overs but managed to dismiss Prithvi Shaw and Karun Nair. He will be the one bowler who can push the Indian batsmen on backfoot and not allow them to run away.