Windies looking to end losing habit

Neil Manthorp

West Indies cricket followers have grown used to the team losing in recent years but the despair is usually reserved for when the side is on tour.

The West Indies have now lost nine of their last 11 Tests and fans fear losing habits will catch up on home turf as the team prepares for the third Test against South Africa, which starts at the Kensington Oval on Thursday, with the tourists 1-0 up in the series.

When the home side failed to score 200 runs on the final day of the second Test with nine wickets in hand and South Africa won by 69 runs, early pessimism turned to gloom and new captain Carl Hooper's marvellous personal form was deemed insufficient.

South Africa, however, are taking nothing for granted. Captain Shaun Pollock and coach Graham Ford remain in awe of the West Indies home record and celebrations were kept to a minimum after the victory in Trinidad.

"It will only get harder from here and we know we have to expect them to bounce back," Pollock said, after a three-day warm-up match against a West Indies Board XI ended in a draw at the Kensington Oval on Monday.

Two changes to the West Indies 13-man squad have raised questions about the overall approach to the Test.

Left-arm wrist-spinner Dave Mohammed has been included alongside orthodox leg-spinner Dinanath Ramnarine, while two fast bowlers -- Reon King and Nixon McLean -- have been replaced by just one in Cameron Cuffy.

The Kensington Oval has historically favoured fast bowlers with pace and bounce but in recent seasons the Caribbean has witnessed a growth of spin and the traditionalists are cowering at the prospect of two spinners appearing at the home of fast bowling.

Pollock is sceptical about the chances of a fast bowler's pitch being prepared: "I don't know...It looks like it's got a bit of grass covering but how it plays is a different story.

"If it plays like the others then it won't be much quicker," Pollock said.

It remains highly unlikely that the home side will choose two spinners but the mystery surrounding their final selection is in stark contrast to the approach of South Africa, who intend to stick to a winning team.

"Continuity of selection has been a South African strength for years," Ford said. "So I'm fairly sure it will be the same line-up unless anything dramatic happens."

The only doubt concerns all-rounder Nicky Boje, who has a swollen knee, although he is expected to be fit for the match.

Despite the lack of confidence in the home side, locals have been flocking to buy tickets for a series which has been intensely absorbing.

For South Africa, it will be an emotional return to the ground where they played their first test almost 10 years ago after spending 21 years in sporting isolation because of their government's apartheid policies.

Mail Cricket Editor