Brathwaite leading his team by example

During Kraigg Brathwaite’s mammoth first innings effort in Bridgetown, Ian Bishop recounted a story on the TV commentary. Ahead of Barbados’ game against Jamaica in the West Indies 4-Day Championship, Brathwaite had had a conversation with a friend of his father’s, a local umpire. Brathwaite was told to treat the game against the Jamaicans like it was a Test match. That would be, his father’s friend told him, the best way to prepare for facing Joe Root’s team. Braithwaite obviously took that idea to heart. He made 276 in Barbados’ first innings.

It was a sign of things to come. Brathwaite batted for 673 balls in the second Test, the longest a West Indian has ever batted in a Test match. His first innings 160 was a disciplined, ruthless example of shutting an opposition bowling line-up down, of sustained refusal to be drawn out of his bubble. His unbeaten 56 not out on the final day ensured West Indies did not succumb to fourth innings pressure. While some other West Indian batters looked skittish and nervous, Brathwaite was serene. “It was annoying how good he was,” Root said after the game. The West Indies captain made 55 and 33 in the first Test too.

Brathwaite’s hundred in Barbados, his first at his home ground, was his tenth Test hundred from 76 matches. His overall average is a tick over 34. It is not a record that yet compares to many of those in the storied history of West Indian batting. But then again, hardly any of those who have averaged more than Brathwaite in Tests for the region did not have to play in a team that has struggled as badly as West Indies have during his 11 years on the international scene. Opening the batting has also become an incredibly challenging task in recent years.

Even so, technical issues have sometimes hindered Brathwaite. However, if he can continue to bat as well as he has done in this series, he should be able to improve his overall figures significantly. He certainly has all the attributes that a good Test match opener needs.

Owen Dawkins, Gloucestershire’s batting coach who worked with Brathwaite during his stint with the county last summer, says: “He has a strong understanding of his strengths. His dedication to playing late and straight is obvious. He is happy to leave the ball until it’s in his area. And he just loves batting.” Brathwaite is also a hard worker. “He’s a great practiser of the basics,” Dawkins adds. “He spends time just repeating his basics with drop feeds, as well as facing bowlers.”

Aside from the excellence of his innings, Brathwaite’s performances in this series have also been important evidence of his leadership credentials. The West Indies’ batting has misfired for far too long and so much relies on the captain at the top of the order. In Barbados, Brathwaite led from the front, batting with the sort of responsibility that his team so desperately need from their batters. It was a fine example.

There were concerns that the captaincy could adversely affect his batting. After all, he was handed the role despite a horrible three-year period between 2018 and 2020 when he averaged just 22. His form has returned as captain, however, and as the team’s leader he averages basically the same as when he was one of the rank and file. Against England, and with the caveat of two pancake flat pitches, there have been tentative signs that the captaincy may even be elevating Brathwaite’s game to a new level. Time will tell.

Captaincy is nothing new to Brathwaite. He has captained many of the teams he has played in, beginning at Combermere school. He also captained Barbados through the junior ranks, from Under-15s to Under-19s. He skippered the West Indies Under-19 team at the 2012 World Cup, leading a side that included the likes of Jason Holder and Kyle Mayers. He is the current Barbados first-class captain too. And as vice-captain he had led the West Indies in seven Tests before he got the top job permanently last year, replacing Holder.

“His personality was always one of being very disciplined,” Henderson Broomes, the Barbados chief selector, says. “He has a very strong mentality and wants others around him to be themselves while being respectful to the team goal. I also think he was respected by most of his teammates so that allowed him to lead in his way without much pressure from the dressing room.”

“He will lead by example,” Roddy Estwick, West Indies assistant coach who has known Brathwaite since he was at school, has said of his leadership. “He’s someone who will put a price on his wicket, he’s a person who will give 100 per cent at all times and he will expect his players to do that as well. He will expect his players not to give an inch, not to let their heads drop and continue to work hard and stay disciplined, and those are the things he’s going to bring to the table.”

Brathwaite was given the permanent captaincy after a 2-0 series win in Bangladesh, which included the famous victory in Chattogram when Mayers scored an unbeaten double hundred as West Indies chased down 395 in the fourth innings to win. He was sitting in for Holder, who was injured, but impressed to such an extent that the West Indies’ management decided to make a change. “Kraigg was able to motivate his players to play to a very high level and create the culture we are looking to establish where the team showed a collective determination to fight and a real hunger for success,” Roger Harper, the lead selector, said at the time.

Things have got far harder since, however. West Indies have only won one game since Brathwaite officially took over and their five defeats in his 12 games in charge have been significant losses, four by more than 100 runs and the other by an innings. That is, however, perhaps more of a reflection of the strength of the current team Brathwaite has at his disposal. This is a limited West Indies side, particularly in the batting department. Expectations have to be tempered.

During this series, there have been some indications that Brathwaite is growing into the role. His batting has been vital and his side have played with plenty of spirit and determination in this series, twice batting out tricky fourth innings on the final day of each Test, which did not appear to be the case at times last year. The body language of the team during long stints in the field has generally been good and the bowlers have kept running in hard. It all suggests the team is pulling in the same direction.

“I think he’s more comfortable now and he believes that it’s his team,” Broomes says. “So he does things the Kraigg Brathwaite way now, even at Barbados level. He’s been working really hard on his batting and that more confident player is coming out too.”

There is plenty of work for Brathwaite and his team ahead, starting with the third Test in Grenada. West Indies have many issues to resolve. Two draws on flat pitches against an England team who are finding their way after a disastrous 12 months do not suggest any great resurgence in West Indies cricket. But Brathwaite has, at least, shown his side the way. He has shown them the level of discipline, technical excellence and character needed to thrive in Test cricket. He has led from the front. For any captain, that is a fundamental task. The challenge for Brathwaite now – as a batter and leader – is to kick on again. (Cricbuzz)