No full ICC member nation had ever lost five T20 Internationals in a single bilateral series – until Monday, when the West Indies men’s cricket team fell to Australia in the final game of what can only be described as a forgettable month. Following a sweep in the red-ball series, the Men in Maroon suffered the same fate in the shortest format of the game.
A sense of “when it rains, it pours” swept over fans and players alike, as everything that could have gone wrong seemingly did. The series ended at Warner Park in St Kitts & Nevis, as the Windies fell by three wickets. The Caribbean side didn’t even have the luck of the coin toss, losing all seven tosses across the T20 and Test matches.
As in the red-ball series, the Caribbean team was outskilled, outgunned and outsmarted by the visitors, though they did show brief moments of resilience. However, unlike in the Test series, the team’s main issue wasn’t with their batting, but their inability to restrict the opposition. On several occasions, they finished with scores over 200, yet still failed to close out games with the ball.
Speaking to the media in a post-series interview, captain Shai Hope highlighted the need for all-round improvement if the team is to find success moving forward.
“Just being a little bit more consistent in all three areas. We either started well and faltered in the back end, or vice versa. When you’re playing against quality opposition like Australia, you’ve got to put your best games together. We’re all human; we won’t always get it right. But against top teams, we need to be more consistent across all three areas.”
Hope also pointed out some of the key lessons the team can learn from Australia’s disciplined and clear approach to game plans – elements the West Indies must adopt if they are to progress.
“We just have to be better and more ruthless in our cricket. They say you can learn from mistakes, but also from your opponents. I thought [Australia] executed really well, especially with the ball. You could see the clarity in their plans. In every situation, they had a clear strategy, and their bowlers executed much better. Their batters stayed aggressive, constantly applying pressure and never allowing our bowling group to settle. Even when we took early wickets in the powerplay, they kept their foot on the gas, which is tough to stop—especially on small grounds and good surfaces like Warner Park in St Kitts.”
Acknowledging the frustration of fans after yet another disappointing series, Hope urged continued support for the team.
“They just have to keep supporting us. We’re out there fighting every time. Regardless of the result, we all want to win—probably even more than the fans do. It’s about finding the right formula. Once we hit that success button, we intend to keep pressing it for as long as we can.”
There’s little time to regroup, as Pakistan now awaits the Men in Maroon, with their next series starting Thursday night. The three-match T20I series will be played at Lauderhill in Florida.
