West Indies' batters will attempt to strike the right balance between defence and attack when they face up to England in the second Test at Trent Bridge , with the captain, Kraigg Brathwaite , saying that they have "to find a way" to put runs on the board.
The tourists were bowled out for totals of 121 and 136 to lose by an innings at Lord's , with no one in the top seven managing more than the 27 by debutant opener Mikyle Louis in the first innings. Brathwaite said that while there had been discussions about what a young batting line-up, four of whom came into the series having played fewer than five Tests, could do differently - such as taking the attack to England's bowlers - the focus of his message would be on doing the same again, but "for longer".
"It's pretty simple what we've got to do," he said. "We've got to bat a lot better. Obviously we've got to find a way, which we've had some discussions around different things we can do better as a team. There are still a bit of positives with the bat. With the ball, as I said before, [England scored] 50-60 runs too many but it was a positive to get ten wickets. But with the bat, we've just got to put runs on the board. It's simple.
"A few guys did get in and didn't go on. It's just important that you go on for longer, because the longer you bat, the easier it becomes and it's important to stay in that plan for as long as possible. Obviously you want to put away bad balls, that's what everybody wants to do. But it's that hard work that you do for 40 minutes, being able to take that to an hour, two hours. And it is a balance, a mixture of putting away the bad balls, because when you put away the bad balls it gives them confidence. We just got to keep learning. You know, I think a lot of learning would have taken place in the first Test and you've just got to believe in our ability and do it and aim to do it for longer periods."
While many of his players are learning on the job, Brathwaite has the experience of 90 Tests to fall back on - and he remains unflustered by a lack of personal form with the bat, which has seen him score one half-century in his last eight Tests going back to February 2023, during which time he has averaged 15.13.
"I know what I have to do and it's obviously important to lead this team and lead the batting, just to build this foundation is obviously what I'm focusing on and obviously that always puts us in a better position to score big runs," he said. "I enjoy captaining, I enjoy leading. I've been opening my whole life, so when I go there to bat, for me, it's always to see off that new ball, and be there as long as [I] can. That's always my focus, so I don't see it as any added pressure. Yes, you know, at times you don't get runs and it could be a little bit tough but it's just important to stay mentally tough and keep believing."
On the team's motivation, he referred to their victory in Brisbane earlier this year, having been beaten heavily by Australia in the first Test, as proof "that we could get it done after a loss", and said that it was important not to dwell on the lack of preparation time that resulted in such an underwhelming performance at Lord's.
"I think from a belief point of view, it shows that we could get it done after a loss, albeit in different conditions," Brathwaite said of the Gabba victory, West Indies' first in Australia since 1997. "It was [a few] months ago. But yes, we could take a bit from that. But the main thing is just having that belief in yourself.
"We have a motivation, we got to be better than in the first Test. As you know, the batsmen [have] obviously got to put runs on the board, and that's our focus. I think once we remain disciplined, session by session, build partnerships that will put us in a good position, you know, and the overall result of the game.
"What's gone is gone. The first defeat is gone. The preparation period is gone. I think the guys are in very good spirits. Mentally it's really important to believe in yourself. Guys are ready to go."
The two-match series in Australia in January was West Indies' only Test commitment between July 2023 and the current England series, and Brathwaite reiterated calls by his predecessor, Jason Holder , for administrators to do as much as possible to schedule more games, while also looking forward to home series against South Africa and Bangladesh following the conclusion of their trip to England.
"It's a challenge. I mean, we be longing for more Test cricket. I think the more you play it, the faster you will learn," he said. "Obviously if it is drawn out over a long period of time, playing two Tests here, two Tests there, you will take longer to learn. The guys are learning, that is the positive, but yes, we need more Tests. It would improve everything about the make-up of playing Test cricket because it's always going to be tough. You get good periods, you get bad periods, and the more often you play, you pretty much understand it better.
"But we have what we have. We have a good period now till December, we have six more Test matches for the year. So we've got to make use of that and hopefully, going forward, we can get more because it will benefit the players. The more Test matches you play, the more experience you get. You always learn because I'm pretty much still learning after 90 games. Yeah, we need more Test cricket."
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