Coach Coley: Windies eager to excel on Australia tour

HEAD coach of the West Indies Test team Andre Coley says his players are eager to succeed on their tour of Australia, which includes two Test matches with the first one bowling off in Adelaide on January 16.

Prior to the first Test match, West Indies face a Cricket Australia XI, in a match that starts at 7.30 pm on Tuesday (TT time). Seven uncapped players have been named in the squad including Zachary McCaskie, wicket-keeper Tevin Imlach, Justin Greaves, Kavem Hodge, Kevin Sinclair, Akeem Jordan and Shamar Joseph.

Captain Kraigg Brathwaite, fast bowlers Kemar Roach and Alzarri Joseph and wicket-keeper Joshua Da Silva, who captained a West Indies A team on a tour of South Africa last year, are the more experienced players.

"Watching them take leadership (has been commendable)," Coley told Cricket West Indies media. "I think Alzarri, Kemar have been very good in terms of how they have engaged the younger players and given insights around their experiences, so that has been good to watch as well outside of the obvious leadership from myself and Kraigg."

Speaking about Da Silva's role, Coley said, "Most definitely (Da Silva will guide others). Most of the senior players, if not all, form part of that leadership group and we have discussions around how we want to play and everybody is keen on giving input and some guidance. Everybody wants to do well here, whether it is you had experience here in the past or not."

The Windies coach wants his batsmen to occupy the crease in the warm-up match.

"When you think about Test cricket it is really important that you are able to bat a day to be able to set up the game from a batting standpoint and then the flip side of that...If you could get the opposition out before the end of a day's play."

To achieve that Coley said West Indies must execute their plans. "How we go about it as a batting and bowling group is where it becomes more specific as it relates to the role and different skill sets that each person brings to the team, but we are looking to keep it really simple and those are some of the markers we are trying to get out of the (practice) game."

Australia is known for bouncy wickets, opposite to many of the wickets in the Caribbean.

"It has been a gradual adjustment...At the end of the day regardless of how the pitch plays and what response you get off the pitch when bowling each player has to adapt to what is bowled at him in every single ball. Sometimes the pitch has nothing to do with it as opposed to just being locked into what is being bowled at you. I think we have done that pretty well. We have been playing on merit, similarly from a bowling standpoint, just adjusting to the lengths here in terms of what we want to achieve."

Coley said there is camaraderie among the players despite seven uncapped members being in the squad.